an ode to craig's list and iowa

we have found an apartment to begin our blissful marital journey. it is incredibly small, with lots of character, oddly shaped rooms, a nonexistent kitchen, and a "nook" that i just can't get over. (built in benches and table in the kitchen?!? sign me up! it's like free furniture!) the woman who owns the building is eccentric, wears huge pieces of jewelry and lines her eyes in black. she is the type of woman who pins up her long, graying hair with a pen or chopsticks. she is the type of woman that smokes, and then covers it up with overwhelming perfume. she is the type of woman that is thrilled by our dreams of korea and is willing to hedge around the lease a bit, to make it work for us. she - and this place - are answers to prayer.





the best thing by far about the apartment is the location. tucked on the corner of polk boulevard and grand avenue, all our southern facing windows gulp in views of the art center and the sculptures surrounding it, and the western windows capture sun rays broken up by huge branches from gigantic trees. there are trails for miles behind the art center, and i can't wait to run down polk boulevard and look at all the unique, over sized houses. we are almost giddy with excitement. i am also personally giddy because finally, after all these years, i get to decorate a place in my style. not a combination of myself and a random roommate, or a sister, or multiple roommates. just me and david. and we are so far embracing it by going all-out junky retro. my mom would be grossed-out already, but i think it's super fun, not to mention cheap.





in preparation for the move, and the inevitable lack of furniture, i have been scouring craig's list. most of the time, i email people too late, or i don't have the means to move something on my own, or it's some sort of scam. it's been a fruitless hunt. until yesterday. yesterday, i spotted this glorious jem:

i began texting the guy right away, and he seemed a little odd in response, but he said he had some other stuff as well, and we could come look after 8 that night. the rest of the day i was antsy, wanting to see the dresser, wanting to know if it would work within our space and our budget. that night, after a couple slightly confusing phone calls, we arrived at the house. we had to park a little ways away, since their driveway was torn up by construction. the garage was lit up, revealing a couple dozen pieces of furniture, stuffed together like a bad game of tetris, all 60s and 70s and fantastically vintage.

david and i were instantly climbing in and out of rows of dressers and side tables and desks, our garage-sale-ing spirits lit up by all the prospects. the guy followed us around (let's call him "russ"), talking slowly, trying to sell each piece, occasionally rubbing his grizzled face. his wife (?) stood by, in a shirt too short, in pants too long, and slippers, encouraging us on. we tried to ask about their apparent hobby of collecting furniture from estate sales and selling it on craigslist, but mum was the word - they divulged very little.

we finally settled on the dresser pictured above and a hide-a-bed couch that was from the 60s, but hardly ever used. david and i tried to work out the logistics of how and when to move things - it was 9:30 at night at this point, when russ nonchalantly shrugged and said he was free, we could just load it up in his truck. he and david wrestled the couch out of the pile first, and used russ's lift to precariously teeter it down the front lawn, around the massive hole of construction. his wife went inside to put on some proper shoes, and soon she had the back of her tahoe open as well, to fit in the mirror and the dresser.

we created a small parade of 3 cars, cruising slowly down grand to the new place. i called zach and mary, knowing i could count on them in a pinch to help move a couple pieces. they showed up, a few minutes later. david and russ single-handedly hauled the dresser up the awkward steps to our 2nd floor apartment, heaving and sweating the whole way. russ took the hinges off our door to make more room for the couch, and david and zach grunted the couch up the same flight of steps. i had to hide out in the kitchen, too terrified to watch. apparently, zach tripped going up the stairs backwards, fell, and had the couch land squarely on top of himself. david said it wasn't pretty. but they made it, tilting it on its side and cheering each other on.

russ got out his power drill to reattach the mirror to the dresser, gave us each a firm handshake, and, without any fanfare, he walked quietly out the door. it was almost 10:30 at night. a complete stranger and his wife had just let us use both of their vehicles to haul furniture across town, and on top of it all helped us lift and move the heavy stuff into our 2nd floor apartment at 10:30 on a monday night. i've got to admit, i'm baffled and humbled. only in iowa, most would say. i could only hope that i would someday emulate that same sort of humble giving of time, of property, of possessions.