Turned down the fourplex rental unit

In a major reversal of course in the last twenty four hours, I decided not to take the rental property after it was offered to me today.

A woman from the rental office called just after lunch to tell me my application had been approved (I beat out the other rental applicants, thank you very much) and I could come in and sign the paperwork, but when I told her I changed my mind and didn't want the property, she seemed shocked:

"No ma'am, I've changed my mind, and I don't want to rent it."

"You don't want to rent the unit on Tamar Drive?"

"No ma'am."

"This is Alvin Alexander, and you looked at a duplex unit on Tamar Drive that has a garage and washer/dryer unit, and filled out the application and paid the $20 processing fee, and you're saying you now don't want to rent that property."

"That's correct, I don't want to rent it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes ma'am. After I thought about it last night and this morning, I realized that the negatives with renting the property outweigh the positives, and I don't want to do it."

"Well, okay, if you're sure."

"Yes, ma'am."

Need to live closer to Anchorage

The more I thought about some changes I might need to make to my lifestyle next spring -- such as potentially getting back into the computer programming business in Alaska -- I decided that I really need to live closer to Anchorage, because that's where the majority of the programming action is. I know many people do commute back and forth from Wasilla to Anchorage every day, but that commute isn't for me. If I go back to work full time, I'd rather live closer to work, though I know the price will be even higher, probably $1,200/month or more.

I did actually see one other nice unit in Palmer last night. It's actually very close to the base of "Lazy Mountain" in Palmer. Unfortunately that wouldn't get me any closer to Anchorage, but if I wanted to move farther out into the forest, it would certainly be an option.

Getting the car ready for winter

Well, now that I've made this decision, I need to really prepare for the winter. With my car being outside all the time, there are several things I'd like to buy, including a winter car cover, an engine block heater, and possibly even a remote starter. Come October I'll also need to get the winter tires put back on my car. I may try to wait as long as I can, but two different auto places have told me to get the winter tires on October 1st, because when the first snowfall hits the lines at the tire-changing shops will be extremely long, with "wait times" measured in hours or possibly days.