From 2013 and until now, I have moved 8 times.
I recently sold the first home I’ve ever owned, sold half of everything I own, put
the rest in a truck and left.
Where am I now?
We’ll get to that later.
But first, I’ve been reflecting on my living-situation history.
Of living with roommates, living with a boyfriend, living alone and living with a dog.
And today, I’d like to share with you some of what I’ve learned, the pros and the cons
of each living situation, because I think it might be useful for someone out there.
I’ll also talk about the financial aspect of each situation, which is especially interesting
to me personally right now as I’m really trying to save up.
I’ve been thrifting more, I’ve been selling a lot of my old things, and I’ve been introduced
to Temu, which is our sponsor today.
Temu is an e- marketplace and app where you can find high-quality, affordable items.
They offer a wide range of things, everything from fashion, jewelry, home décor, pet supplies
and so much more.
The factory is shipping directly to you, there's no middleman in-between, and that's how you're
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I've carefully hand-picked some products that I want to share with all of you.
I will put them in the description box and you can save an extra 30% off using my code
deal6973.
Also, they offer free shipping and free returns for up to 90 days, so you have enough time
to figure out if you’re happy and would like to keep your products or not.
#1: The juicer: Firstly the juicer.
As you all know, I’m in my healthy-girl era and so I drink plenty of smoothies and
juices daily.
I like that this one is so small and portable.
If you buy using my exclusive link in the description box, it’s currently only $1!
#2: Stainless steel coffee cup: Next we have this stainless steel coffee cup.
You press the button and it stirs the coffee for you.
I personally really like little fun features like that.
You can get these for under a $1 using my exclusive link in the description box!
Linen tote bags: Next I’d like to show you these reusable linen tote bags.
It’s hardly a secret that I always carry at least one tote bag with me.
They’re convenient and I prefer not to buy plastic bags when I get groceries, instead,
I can bring these.
By the way, you can always check the reviews for each product.
These linen totes for example are clearly very popular and loved.
Portable water bottle: Next, if you have a fur-baby like me, you will need one of these.
I already bought one of these at a local pet store for literally almost 40 dollars.
This one is just over 4 dollars.
And it’s literally the exact same.
Again, I’ll put the links for everything in my description box.
Don’t forget to use my link deal6973 for an additional 30% off when you download the
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Thanks again to Temu.
LIVING ALONE
In 2013, I went away for university here in Sweden.
I rented a small, studio apartment.
It was my first time getting to experience being fully independent; paying my own bills,
cooking my own meals and everything else that comes with being responsible for a home.
It was also my first time getting to experience total freedom.
I could basically do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, without having to really tell anyone
about it.
I mean, I still told my mom, but you know what I mean.
Getting a taste of being an adult “for real” was exciting.
Now, I didn’t love what studio apartment, obviously, I was just lucky I got my hands
on it considering student apartments are typically in very high demand.
I was mostly busy with my studies and exploring this new chapter in my life; I didn’t really
reflect much on what it was like to live there alone.
It just kind of was, for a lack of better way of describing it.
In 2016, I moved to Los Angeles to continue my studies.
I was going to live with roommates.
I didn’t know any of the girls beforehand, I had never lived with roommates before, so
it was definitely a lot of “firsts” happening.
Now, the reason I chose to live with roommates was quite straightforward:
1) Living alone, as a student, in LA… that simply isn't realistic for most people.
It sure wasn’t for me.
It’s super expensive.
2) I wanted the full college-experience.
And in my mind, that meant having roommates.
That’s what I had seen in all the American movies at least.
And I wanted to try that!
For context, I was 21 at this time.
Now, In LA, I ended up living with two different sets of roommates at two different points
in time: when I was studying I lived with one group of girls, and then when I was working
I lived with a different group of girls.
Both times, there were 6 or 7 of us in total in one apartment.
And both of those experiences were totally different to me, which was the first lesson:
It’s a total hit or miss.
Unless you know the people who you’ll be living with beforehand, it could either go
terribly or really well.
But, generally speaking, here are some of the upsides:
- You’re rarely ever alone.
Which, of course, could be a downside too, but at that very point in my life, I actually
enjoyed it.
I liked having people around me, I liked going to bed knowing I wasn’t alone.
I very quickly got used to having people around, so whenever I was alone, I felt almost uncomfortable.
I also enjoyed knowing that, whenever I got home, someone would be there.
Like, I remember this one time I got home from a rough day and my roomies surprised
me with some of my favorite candy and that was very heartwarming.
- It’s easier to make friends.
If you’re moving to a new country or city all by yourself, it’s easier to get to know
people, I believe, if you’re living with others.
Hopefully, at least one person out of the people you live with will be your friend,
and you’ll also get to meet their friends and perhaps form friendships there.
- You’ll rarely be bored.
Like, I remember I could just go to the kitchen for example and start chatting or hanging
out with one of my roommates.
We could go get food together or go out somewhere or just chat.
I realize the upside-list is quite short, but those are some pretty important things.
Now, as the for the things that I experienced to be less glamorous:
- It’s really hard to live with people you don’t get along with.
Like, it’s not like you can escape them, and they can’t escape you.
You just kind of have to live with the situation.
- You have little to no freedom and privacy.
Depending on what you’ve agreed on, you can’t exactly bring home whoever you want
whenever you want without communicating it with your roommates.
You also can’t just decide to occupy the kitchen or the shower all day.
You also can’t randomly throw a party or go lay naked on the living room floor or play
really loud music.
- Disagreements are inevitable.
Like, regardless of how well you get along with your roommates, there are of course going
to be things you disagree on.
And some people are easier to sort things out with, others it’s more difficult.
You might find out that you, in fact, are difficult.
That’s also what’s really interesting about living with other people, you learn
a lot about yourself, and you might not like all of the things you learn.
- Also, it’s likely that you and your roommates have different schedules.
You might be going to bed at 10 pm and have a big important exam tomorrow, while someone
might be out partying all night and stumbling home all loud and intoxicated at 3 am.
- But honestly, the biggest downside was deciding on what temperature to have at home.
I’m someone who’s always cold, like, I cannot walk through the mall in the summer
in any city on the US because I’ll freeze to the point of feeling sick.
In my experience, people in the US are just generally a lot warmer than us Scandis, you
guys sure love blasting the AC.
LIVING WITH A BOYFRIEND
Now, I’ll intentionally make the time-line blurry from here on because I don’t want
to specifically target any specific person I’ve lived with, but let’s discuss living
with a significant other.
So, it goes without saying that, if you’re in a committed relationship with someone and
you intend on hopefully spending your life with them, most people in that situation would
want nothing more than to live together.
To fall asleep next to the person you love so much and to wake up next to them is one
of the best feelings in the world.
To share all those mundane moments of daily life with your favorite person; brushing your
teeth with them in the morning, making coffee, dancing in the kitchen, kissing them goodbye,
planning your meals, your weekend plans…
But also, you get to know each other on a deeper level.
Are they helpful?
Proactive?
Do they keep their word?
When things get rough, how do they handle it?
Do they embody the qualities that you deem necessary in a future husband or wife and
in the father or mother of your, potentially, future children?
You know, you get to pick your partner, but your children don’t get to pick their parents.
And if you live with this person and you experience them not showing up for you and for this life
you’re trying to build together, that should tell you that they won’t be showing up for
a future family together either.
Or, hopefully, you notice they are showing up, they are that woman or man that you want
to build forever with.
I think many of those answers will come to you once you cohabitate.
LIVING ALONE, BUT LIKE, FOR REAL
So, a couple of years ago, I bought my apartment.
You all were with me in that process, I updated you about the renovation process on instagram.
And I’ve truly enjoyed living there.
Have I had moments of loneliness?
Of course.
But to be honest, not that many.
I’ve loved spending so much time with myself, getting to know myself, learning about myself.
I think everyone could benefit from living alone for a period of time.
Spring of 2023 A while back I decided to sell my apartment
and buy something bigger.
With getting Fred and expanding my camera setup and moving further away from minimalism,
I simply outgrew my apartment.
and one too many bruises from walking into things due to the lack of space, I had enough.
I just wanted out.
Now, I was hoping I’d buy something new rather quickly, but after spending so many
months looking, going on viewings almost weekly, I still haven’t found a home that feels
quite right to me.
I’m still on the lookout for my next home, but I don’t know when that will be.
Could be tomorrow, could be 3 months from now.
And so, in the meantime, I’m living…
well, a bit all over the place.
Luckily, I have very lovely humans in my life who let me stay with them until I find my
own place.
So that’s where we’re at right now.
Having nothing that’s really tying me down to one place has felt liberating.
I can work from wherever I want, I can live wherever I want…
What does a person do with all that freedom?
What does Lana want?