$500 to live in a great Somerville household - Dec 15 or Jan 1

[ihavemeaning.livejournal.com]

We are two intelligent women, one a grad student and one a professional in
the non-profit world. We have cats and hope you will enjoy them as a
step-parent but please no more free-roaming pets (or reptiles), our landlord
simply won't allow it.

We live in a quiet family neighborhood on a one way street right off
Highland Ave. Our landlord gave us a great deal on the apartment, it is
large with lots of basement storage, high ceilings and tall windows. Besides
our three bedrooms we have an EIK, a diningroom and livingroom. There is a
laundromat 1.5 blocks away, convenience stores close by and a Shaws a 10
minute bus ride from our house. We are a short ride or walk outside Davis
Square, and right by the Somerville library and city hall.

We are looking for a liberal like-minded female roommate. We hope you will
be a good conversationalist, enjoy occasionally watching the Daily Show or
Colbert Report, and enjoy hosting infrequent holiday parties or cook-outs.
First/last/security required. Madison Street at School Street.

We're queer & trans friendly.

Please email us at borderlands@gmail.com or vzmkitty@gmail.com. Thanks!

Comments

[on-reserve.livejournal.com]

You do realize that your apartment is more than a mile out of Davis, right? I know because I lived at Lowell and Highland which is closer than what you're describing. I understand putting a positive spin on things and $500 for a nice place in that neighborhood is a great deal (I paid $550 for a 5-person at Lowell & Highland, 3 years ago so that ought to tell you something) but describing it as a "close walk" to Davis just isn't even close to true.

[alphacygni]

I never trust any statement containing the word "walk" in apartment ads, and I think that's a good rule of thumb. The definition of a "short walk" or a "quick walk" is far too subjective, and the temptation to throw it in to make your apartment sound good is simply too obvious.

Map something on google maps, and make your own judgements about walking. You know your own abilities.

[neitherday.livejournal.com]

As per the rules in the profile of this community, all ads, including roommate ads, must be behind an <lj-cut>.

[ayelle.livejournal.com]

Out of curiousity, why? Roommate ads aren't commercial. It doesn't make much sense to me.

[neitherday.livejournal.com]

I defined ads in the rules as "Any post that includes an invitation to exchange money, services, and/or property will be considered an advertisement for the purposes of the rules.". I also pointed out in the rules that under this definition roommate ads are ads. I did this to simplify the decision making process as to what is an ad and what is not. In many cases it is hard to distinguish what qualifies as "commercial" and what is does not, and such decisions are likely to be contentious.

[ayelle.livejournal.com]

Not trying to be obnoxious, just honestly don't get it -- how is looking for a roommate, which will presumably lead to paying rent, different from looking for a dentist, whom you will also have to pay?

[neitherday.livejournal.com]

When someone asks about dentists in the area, they are generally looking for advice on what dentists are available nearby and that others recommend, they are not expecting to do business with the people giving the advices and therefore are not extending an invitation to exchange money, services, and/or property. Of course there is possibility that there will be a dentist, or someone who works for one, in the davis_square community that will respond, but that would not have been the intent of the post.

On the flip side, a dentist seeking clients would be required to post under an cut, because the dentist would be directly inviting an exchange of money and services.

Someone seeking a roommate is looking for an exchange of money and services as well, and therefore must put their ad under a cut. However, a post asking which areas or apartment complexes in the area are convience and well kept would not need to be cut, in the same manner that someone asking for advice on local dentists would not have to be.

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

Of course, the person asking about a dentist is repeating a question that many have asked before and that wouldn't need to be posted at all if you'd just let the people willing to index the community in the memories go ahead and do so.

[hauntmeister.livejournal.com]

In other words,

"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said in a rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean--neither more nor less."
Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass, Chapter 6 (http://stripeys.com/stripey/humptyandalice.htm)