Melbourne Street

Located close to the CBD of East Gosford, is my humble abode. It's a Catch 22. I love the location seeing it's close to public transport, but I also hate the location seeing it's so close to the main strip, which has traffic flowing down it from 4am to 1am every day.

I also have a school and a day care centre within a stone's throw from my porch, so between 8am and 9am then from 3pm to 5pm, I get school buses and multitudes of cars stopping and starting to pick up kids. Sometimes these ignorant parents park in the driveway (oh some days I long for a council ranger to wander by and give them a ticket) and on rare occasions they even park on the lawn.

The unit is not much to look at, but at least it's better than my old place at Winifred Avenue. I'm paying a lot more rent than what I'm used to. The bathroom ceiling is decorated with mold, and the kitchen and shower recess have water stains from when next's doors water heater (which is located in the ceiling) leaked for three days. (It was a very agonising time. I reported the problem on Saturday morning, and the owners responded on Monday. By that time, I had gone through every towel I had in the place, every rag, even every old shirt in an attempt to mop up the water seepage. At one stage it was even trickling down through the light fixture.) My bedroom is also prone to flooding from the bathroom if there's a plumbing problem or trouble with the washing machine. On at least three occasions I've been horrified to find my bedroom floor waterlogged. In summer it dries pretty quickly (thankfully) but in winter and autumn, well, I have to put up with the smell a lot longer.

The good feature of this unit, is that it has security doors at the front and back, which is something the other three units don't have. That, and the lounge and bedroom are separated, not like the converted garage I previously lived in.

As for my neighbours, well I have minimal contact with them, and that's the way I like it. The bloke in number three I really try to avoid. When he talks, he sounds like he's been sucking on cones for the last ten years (I don't like to speculate, but... ), and he thinks he knows absolutely everything. He was a building labourer, but suffered a neck injury and hasn't worked since, so mostly he sits around the house all day and does nothing in particular. He can't be that badly injured. He can still fish and work on his vege garden outside, and considering that he has a girlfriend, he can probably do other things as well. He is divorced, and has three boys that visit on and off for extended periods (one of them brings his enterage with him), of which two are known juvenile delinquents.

At least the gent in number two works, even though he was a former junkie, and is considerate enough to keep the noise down, even though he's a bit deaf as well. The bloke in number four was in a car accident a few years ago and is quite obviously brain damaged. I usually smile and say hello if I pass him in the street, but he generally just smiles and doesn't say much. His elderly parents come to visit on occasions.

Me, well, I don't get that many visitors. Most of the people I know work, or study, like me. So generally I'm left to my own devices. At least I get out every now and again. I really cannot stay in this unit 24/7.

I'd like to move on, but, well, where would I go? If I want anything decent I'd have to pay a lot more in rent. Besides, moving is a costly experience. It's not as if I have the luxury of a parent to borrow money off.