Boundaries

Since we started renting a room in our basement to a student I have learned some important things about myself. It took a while and some soul searching but I think I have figured it out. At first I thought I was anal-retentive, then selfish, then just a bitch. And while I realize all of those things may be true to a point, at the end of the day it just all comes down to boundaries.

Vince couldn't understand why I was getting so upset when the renter kept coming up and using the dishwasher, using my seive to drain his pasta, and using the stove when he has burners downstairs to use. It's all about boundaries. I realize he's not going to wear out my seive (although I would have appreciated it if he had asked first but that's another rant) and that it's more practical for him to use the stove burners which are larger than the ones we bought for him to use. But my kitchen really needs to be MY kitchen. I'm uncomfortable going in there when he is in there and there are times when I HAVE to go in there (cooking, cleaning up, putting away leftovers, etc). And if there is one room in the house that really is mine, it's the kitchen! So he needs to really back off and allow me my space.

So what we have done, in order for me to quit losing my mind every time he comes up the stairs, is purchase all the items to build a mini-kitchen downstairs for him to use. It will have a sink, counter, microwave and microwave cart, and a fridge. The only thing it won't have is an oven (or toaster oven) and any additional appliances the renter may want such as a popcorn popper, blender, etc. Tonight we will start building the cabinets. Within a few weeks I hope to have it fully assembled and functional.

The only thing we still need to buy is a 28" wide refrigerator. If anybody hears of a used one for sale in Southern Alberta please let me know :)