the times they are a-changing

A few months ago Mitch and I made a tough decision: to leave Brixton.

We're leaving Brixton to, temporarily, move in with my parents. Yup, I'm moving back into my old bedroom from when I was 18. I'm not going to lie, it's taken me quite awhile to come to terms with it and I have, just about.

The reason why is pretty simple: we'd like to start putting our money towards a home that's ours.

Over the last 6 months or so we've been talking about our future together (I think the proposal had a big part to play in this) - what we want to do, what we want to see and of course where we want to live. We don't really have a definitive answer for that last one but I know, pouring our money into a hole - a leaking, mouldy hole with broken windows (we've had some amazing times in our flat but it certainly hasn't blossomed in the last 2 and a half years) - isn't going to help. I'd like to put my hard-earned cash towards something that's ours, that we have a say in, that we can make into a home. Perhaps I am looking at this through rose-tinted glasses. I know, from experience, that there are many benefits to renting, but for us, the time is right to try something new.

So why move back to my parents'? I love Brixton and I love living in South London, but a combination of my average salary and eyebrow-raising rent prices means that, if we continued to rent our flat until we had a big enough deposit to buy somewhere, it would take approximately a 1000 years. My parents saw our predicament and offered to take us in until we have saved a deposit-sized amount. I have no idea what kind of state I'd be in without them and I'm so unbelievably lucky that they are letting us stay. That said, it's going to be a bit of a test, for all of us. I moved out four years ago and my parents' probably thought they'd seen the last of me - sorry ma and pa. We've all got certain ways of doing things (I'm quite messy - much to my mum's amusement and my sister's horror) and Mitch will be entirely new to all of them (apart from own habits of course). Similarly, my parents and my sister will have to get used to Mitch and his laid-back-ness (they don't believe me when I say he's messier than me - they're in for a shock). Oh, and Moriarty is coming too (obvs), so although my parents have had him to stay, will it be different when he's living there full time? Who knows. Truthfully, I'm quite excited to see how this year will pan out for us - that sense of heading into the relative unknown is disconcerting but rather exhilarating at the same time.

I can honestly say, with hand on heart, that Mitch and I got a hell of a lot out of Brixton - we soaked it all up, tried lots of new things and met new people. Yes, we're sad to leave but thankfully, with a fair wind (read: trains running smoothly) it takes 35 mins to get from my parents' house to Brixton. Plus, a huge number of my friends are all Brixton-based now so I've got plenty of excuses to visit (not that I'd need an excuse) and, potentially, a choice of couches to crash on after large nights out.

Ordinarily, I'm not a fan of change but I'm feeling a lot more positive about this move compared to a few months ago (living in a flat that is literally crumbling to pieces around you really puts things into perspective). You'll have to forgive me the odd "au-reviour brixton" post over the next month. They won't be mushy, more along the lines of my favourite places and some of the things I want to do before we leave. So stick with me, we've got six and a half weeks left and I fully intend to make the most of it :)