Eileen R. Tabios is a poet working in multiple genres and in-between. She also loves books by writing, reading, publishing, critiquing, romancing and advocating for them. This blog will feature her bibliophilic activities with posts on current book engagements and links to her books and projects related to books.

Sunday, July 26, 2015

ONCE, I WAS A SLUMLORD


Reading Michelle Tea's memoir, HOW TO GROW UP (PLUME / Penguin, 2015) is making me remember some of the things I did in my early 20s to survive.  Like, I graduated into the early '80s in New York City where, among other things, apartment rentals were (still are) scarce and expensive. My first post-college income was (if I recall correctly) about $8,400 a year. So, how to live?  I started getting the leases to apartments.  I would sign a lease for, say, a three-bedroom and then rent out the other two bedrooms at a price that would cover or nearly cover my one-third share of the rent. It could have been dangerous as I lived with the strangers who would come to share my abode but, thankfully, nothing along those lines happened ...

Like Michelle Tea, I loved the very first apartment I had that I didn't have to share with anyone.  And loathed having to give it up to go back to a rental share ...

I'm sometimes surprised I survived my early twenties.

Anyway...

I'm glad Michelle Tea survived to write this memoir.



No comments:

Post a Comment