It's all so random. My best friend had a studio in the Outer Richmond district of S.F. about seven years ago -- big, beautiful old 3-story building with nothing but studios, but they were VAST. For those who've visited Chez Zmayhem, picture one room roughly double the size of the Zmayhem living room and kitchen put together, with a separate kitchen slightly larger than our back porch and a walk-in closet almost the size of Emmett's bedroom. 14-foot ceilings and hardwood floors.

Ever since, I've had that ridiculous and unequalled place firmly lodged in my brain as What A Studio Ought To Be, so whenever I see normal-sized studios I gasp and cringe.

What could be smaller than a studio?

Efficiencies, which are apparently close to the same thing as Bachelor apartments, although the efficiencies I've seen in Oak Park have full fridges and stoves, just stuffed into a closet instead of being a separate kitchen.

I was lucky with the studios I've lived in--they were both huge rooms that easily subdivided into "living room" and "bedroom" sections, and they both came with big walk-in closets and kitchens with room for a dinette and chairs.

Also, apparently apartments out there often don't come with fridges. Fucked up, right?

That's just wrong. You'd have to do some extra arm twisting to get your buddies to help you move if it involves moving a fridge as well as the couch.

There are just studios, and then there are one-bedrooms.

Here, too. Well, there are also efficiencies, which seem to differ from studios in that there's no separation whatsoever between the kitchen and the rest of the room (in most studios there's ast least some sort of half-wall). But it's standard to have fridges here. In fact, I think it's in the renting code laws.

Heh. X-posty with a fellow midwesterner.

My friend Didi lived for 8 years in a studio in New York which used to be a hotel room. It was one good-sized room, a pretty big (big enough for a bathtub--rare in NYC) bathroom, and the "kitchen" was in a niche as you entered which had a one piece unit, which was a small dorm fridge with a tiny sink and two burners on top of it. Above that, one cabinet to store everything cooking-related.

I've never lived in a place without a tub and an oven, but my first NYC studio only had a half-fridge. And I had to put a shelf over the sink to have a place to put my coffee maker. For other details, see Great Write.

The Pope is now on a respirator. Man, does it suck to be him. Who is going to have the guts to pull the plug on the Pope?

Are they asking for volunteers? I have some vacation time coming up, and I've always wanted to see Italy...

Aw, it's raining on the OC.

Why would they put that poor old man on a respirator? Sometimes, it is time to go.

I've been told that LA places don't have fridges, but everywhere I looked at (this time and last) did, and I certainly wasn't looking for that in the listings. Because it's perfectly NORMAL. Or should be.

My Vancouver friend was stunned to see that dishwashers were so standard here. I likes it. Even though I haven't emptied mine in days.

Okay, so have apartment. Still like it. The tiles in the kitchen and bathroom are actually tiles. Not floorpaper, tiles. Kinda cool. Cleaning will probably be a bitch, but still.

What is floor paper?