For many a moon, portents have hinted at my having to leave the Palace.

Yea, my apartment complex longs to follow in the footsteps of many a complex here in South Florida, and wants to go condo. Rumors have flown, and come back to roost. Due to regulations, they cannot go condo immediately, but they are no longer signing new leases.

And so, on my birthday, I got a letter from the complex stating that my lease (which expires December 31, 2005) would not be renewed, and if I wanted to stay here, my rent would go up $100 a month as a penalty for going month-to-month. Even though I was given no choice in NOT going month-to-month. In the interim, I have sweated, I have fretted, and I have prayed.

In October, I helped a co-worker and her husband move into a complex that is very near the Palace (one mile exactly, according to my odometer). It is in a nice area (I love my neighborhood), it is a 2/2 (I live in a 1/1). And it's comparable in price to what I would pay to stay month-to-month at the Palace. So I'd never get in, right? Especially since Wilma has totally skewed the SoFla housing market...

I called yesterday to check on availability, having three other prospects lined up. All the others were multi-level complexes, and none of them had in-unit laundry. Having had my own washer and dryer for the last three years, I could hardly stand the concept of community laundry rooms again, but you take what you can get, right?

So, I called the place I thought I had no shot at.

And there was a unit coming available at the end of December. So I went and applied.

I was shown a place that rocked. It's an east-facing (which is important to me, since I am much more of a sunrise person than a sunset person), lake-view unit. First floor. In-unit laundry. Pretty much everything I could possibly hope for.

I filled out the forms, dropped the application fee, and was told they'd call me back today with an answer.

So basically, from 7:30 this morning on, I was as jumpy as a frog in a frying pan. By 3PM, no call, although I know that at about 9:30AM they called (because the secretary knew what was going on, and called me to let me know they had called asking to verify employment). So I called them to see what was up. The secretary had referred the call to my boss, who wasn't in, so the call went to voicemail. That message sat in my boss' voice mailbox ALL DAY LONG until he decided to check it at about 2:50PM. So literally, when I called the complex, they had just gotten off the phone with my boss.

The verdict?
I'M IN!

I gave my notice to the Palace's management this afternoon as I dropped off the (last) rent check. I get occupancy of the new place on the 27th, and have from the 27th-31st to move my stuff to the new place.

Life is sweet.

Upgrading from a 1/1 to a 2/2 with little difference in price.
Facing a lake, rather than a parking lot.
Facing EAST, which is important to a "morning person".
Ground floor.
In-unit laundry.
Same neighborhood that I love and am used to.

Can I sy it again? Life is sweet.