Living Life to the Min

Tom and I live in a house that’s pretty standard for Seattle (at least for those Seattleites who did not buy Microsoft stock when it was $10 a share). Our house, built in 1924, has 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, and about 2000 square feet. In November we decided to try living in a 650 square foot studio apartment inside our house. We added a door to close off the upstairs, moved this futon into the dining room, put a table in the living room, and we were set.

I love it! Our electricity and natural gas expenses are half of what they were last year. Housekeeping is a snap, and best of all, we know we can survive living with each other when it’s nursing home time.

Part of what inspired us was a discussion on Sightline about small houses in Vancouver, BC http://daily.sightline.org/2011/09/08/home-home-on-the-lane/ and part, I admit, is my own disinterest in dusting and vacuuming. Besides, after spending a month in a VW van this summer with my old husband and my old dog, 650 square feet feels like paradise.