There's
this interesting thing happening.
There's
bunches of people in their 50's-70's who are not well prepared for not working,
for supporting themselves, for growing older and gradually more frail. For
financially or socially doing well alone in a home, or apartment.
And the
far traditional remedies are no longer accessible, because it's too stressful,
and noone's willing to do all that hard work. Right? Whereas in the past it was
just what you had to do, when you needed more income, or got older. You took in
old people to care for, or boarders, or became a boarder.It's what we all did
by route in the past. Take in parents and relatives and orphans and challenged
neighborhood individuals in. Take care of them. Someone stays home and doesn't
ever get to go do other things and instead takes care of so many, while others
work one or two jobs and endure pollution and long hours and not live too long
and come on home not much better off than the one staying home feeding and
bathing and caring for the others. That was how we used to do it. How
fascinating that this generation, at least around here, absolutely refuses to find
ourselves needing to do this.
There
used to be so many homes with one or more older people, taking in older people
to make ends meet and because you already had your old Aunt Edna or a parent or
a handicapped child.
We
really don't want to tolerate that any more. It's not that financial things
have really changed that much. Just that we don't feel like doing what people
did before. Not with our lives, with our time. Interesting. I'm there, too. I
don't want to take in older people and spend my life that way, either. How we
have changed, in what we will put up with. And I don't expect it from my
children either. And THIS is with us living longer than ever, too.
So,
there is this resurgence of what used to be known as rooming houses. Because
Baby Boomers who are having a hard time making ends meet and still working,
mind you, don't want to be roommates. No Golden Girls or Boys here.
And we
sure as hell aren't reneging on sole apartments to be roommates somewhere and
give up our privacy so we can save money and be able to manage in a few years
down the road. Nope.
Those
of us who go round trying to rent out our rooms and offering to be besties
don't get it. And will get no takers. Because noone wants to be besties.
They
all want privacy. Anonymity.They want to come and go and eat and cook and watch
tv alone and go on their computer.
But
more and more are willing to do that in a rented room, in a house, with rented
rooms. Where the kitchen and living room are open til 8 pm,where there are no
morning conversations all cozy with the owner of the house. Where they can come
and go and live their lives and have a nice private set up of a room, an ok
car, and independence. Without being in a household with roommates to deal with
and sort out chores and greet in the evening and make small talk.
So many
people who own houses are rearranging the interiors so that there is more
privacy, and then renting out rooms. In order to make ends meet. Lots of people
are separating their own little bedroom or tiny wing off from the areas used by
the renters.
In the
past, rooming houses were a usual thing. If you owned a house with extra rooms,
you let in boarders, who talked with you or not, but had their own quiet lives.
Many even had their kids in their rented room. Certainly older people
predominated, as well as young.
This is
where we are heading. And many of us can't really conceive, no matter the
efforts we made that turned out to be inadequate, of managing to afford
anything else.
Learning
this new way. Owners using the rent to build an additional bathroom, and instal
doors in certain places. To soundproof a bit, to spiff up certain areas. To
ensure privacy, at the same time as accommodating the lifestyle of those who
would rent.
Happening
all over the place. Coming to a year near you soon.
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