...To a delux apartment in the sky!

[Magic_Marker]

Dearest NPF,

I have decided to release my inner-man-raptor and move out on my own. This will be my first time being independent and I would like to ask you for advice. What was your first time like? What should I do to make sure I'm a good neighbor or not go bankrupt and things of the sort?

Recipes Wanted.

Yours,

Magic_Marker,
Independent Man of Mystery.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

Move in with someone. It'll help immensely.

Also learn how to make P.

[krogothwolf]

Make sure you play loud music until 4am in the morning, have a dog barking all hours of the night, And rev a motorcycle at 5am because you got bored, drive it around the block for half an hour before parking it again, followed by more loud music.

Oh wait, that's the guys who house I want to burn down...nevermind don't do that.

Bangers and Mash is a good and easy thing to cook

[phil_]

Don't take up drinking.

[Osterbaum]

Start buying cheap food.

Originally Posted by phil_

Don't take up drinking.

Why...?

[Magic_Marker]

Originally Posted by Osterbaum

Why...?

I think he's advising against the costs. I'll be living frugally as I can until I can get reasonable ideas on my overall expenses.


Example: I'll probably just drink water for the first month I'm there. It's better for me and it costs less than Bud Light or Coke.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

I was confused by that too. I found it useful to meet people and neighbours.

On food tips- if you have an asian supermarket or tofu shop near you look into tofu. It's got a bad reputation as tasting bad but that is only when it is poorly prepared- it really has no taste and can be flavoured to whatever you want. More importantly it is cheap like a mofo and useful if you running low on cash (unfortunately we don't have such things int he shitty place where I live).

[Lost in Time]

Mac and Cheese and Hot dogs were all I had in the month of me first moving out on my own and getting a job. Cheep as hell and doesn't taste as shitty as Ramen noodles. Also I leached off of the 20 unsecured wi-fi connections in my apartment complex before I finally got around to ordering internet.

Also get used to knowing where you live by walking! I walked everywhere, saved more cash and a good workout.

Edit about neighbors: It's a good idea to talk to them, introduce them to yourself! True story, my old neighbors where three hot young girls. I didn't see them until the day before they moved out, when they asked me to take pictures of them. Totally missed opportunity to hang out with them.

[Magic_Marker]

Originally Posted by Smarty McBarrelpants

Move in with someone. It'll help immensely.

Wish I could, every good friend I have can't move right now and I decided it was time. I've been wanting to do this since about last July and told my friends and family that if I didn't find someone to move out with by the end of January that I'd move out on my own. I set a deadline and I'm keeping to it, that might turn out to be a stupid thing to do but I've got some money saved up and I'm prepared to get my ass handed to me by this real world everyone talks about. I've crunched the numbers and I can afford it. It's in a decent area of town and the apartment is about the size I would use. All in all it's nothing special but there's nothing wrong with it which is what I was going for.

Things I intend to use this time exprience for:

-I can now read/watch/play what I want without catching flak.
-I get a certain measure of privacy and silence I've been wanting. My Mom runs a home daycare so there is no end to interuptions.
-Learn to cook. I want to be frugal and relying on my own wits to feed myself will help in this.
-Walk everywhere. I am within walking distance (As defined as 1 mile or less) of a theatre, resturants, laundry, grocery, Comic and Game Shop (I will admit the nearness of this shop was a reason for choosing this place) two coffee shops (Both Starbucks) a bookstore, a mall, and a used game store. I am 4 miles away from work, on good days I fancy I may ride a bike there instead of driving.

[bluestarultor]

For food:
- Do your own cooking. It's cheaper than eating out.
- Buy meat on sale and stock up when you do. Frozen, it will last you ages. I had 20-year-old duck once and it tasted great.
- Frozen veggies are actually better for you then fresh sometimes. Stock up on frozen veggies. Also, freeze yourself some grapes. They're delicious that way.
- Buy milk by the gallon. It's overall cheaper and you get a good two weeks out of it if you don't drink it first.
- Eat a lot of oatmeal. It sticks with you, so you aren't hungry again for a while.

For heat:
- Set your thermostat to 68 if you can bear it. I personally need it at 70 or it's impossible for me to wake up in the morning.
- Got a dishwasher? Does it heat dry? Don't use the heat dry. Open it up and let the dishes air dry. It'll add heat and humidity to your home.
- Keep closets and such shut. They just mean more space that needs to be heated if left open.
- Is it warm out? Open a window and let it in. Close it when it gets cool.
- Do you take showers? Don't turn on the fan. You're siphoning out heat and humidity that could be going into your home. Leave the bathroom door open, instead.

For cooling:
- Is it cool out? Open a window and let it in. Close it when it heats up.
- Fans go a long way unless it's unbearably humid.
- If you have the sun beating in from a southern exposure or something, pull the blinds/shades/drapes to keep it out.

For electricity:
- Do you have a TV? A laptop? A console? A device with a clock? Unplug it when you're not using it. They still eat energy even when off, because they don't actually turn off so much as go into a standby mode. Minus laptops. The computer shuts off, but the power supply on the cord doesn't, and you don't need it pulling juice if it's not being used.
- This may sound simple, but turn the lights off when you leave a room.
- Invest in a shake flash light. It saves on batteries. Make sure it has a capacitor and not an internal battery that will wear out.