Moving to a new place is always an interesting proposition. I've been thinking about moving into Washington, DC (from my current location in Alexandria, Va) for quite a while. It's been on my mind for at least a year -- right around this time last October when my roommate and I started talking about whether we were going to re-sign our apartment lease for another year.

I gave my roommate the option of moving out with me but she's not ready to leave this area yet. And I certainly have nothing against Alexandria -- in fact, I think it's a great place to live. Beautiful, safe, all that. I just need a change.

In addition to needing a change, another factor is my commute -- since I started my new job a few weeks ago, my commute is longer. If I lived in DC, I'd be closer to my workplace. And spending less time traveling is always a good thing.

Aside from the shorter commute, a big motivator for finding a new place to live is that I want to see what it's like to actually live in the city. Not just close, or right over the border, and not just working in the city or traveling there on a regular basis. Living there.

I've spent some time researching apartment options. I admit that I'm opposed to moving in with someone I don't know (even though it would definitely be cheaper), so I'm looking for a place by myself. My current roommate and I get along pretty well, but I'm looking forward to living by myself again.

The only problem is, with the amount I'm willing to spend on rent, my options are pretty much limited to studio apartments. While I know there are plenty of people who live in studios and they like it just fine, and there can be creative ways to hide the bed from the main living area, it's just not my first choice. Even though I'm just one person, and I could do it if I had to, I'd much rather have my bed in a separate room, even if the bedroom was just a tiny, closet-sized space.

I've been lucky -- once I started letting my local friends know that I'm apartment searching, I've been receiving all kinds of input and advice. It's great to be able to ask people for their opinion and receive tips on specific apartments in my price range and areas of the city that they think I might like. (I would also like to note that one of those people is a DC police officer, and he's already offered to give me safety/crime-related information about the areas I'm interested in. Gotta love having a wide variety of acquaintances!)

But when it comes down to it, I'm the one who will make the final decision. Either it's going to feel right or it won't. I'll know when the time comes.

Related Reading:

I've been checking out my local Apartment Therapy site for decorating ideas and bookmarking posts that I like.

Urban Sardines shared photos of a studio apartment that she admires.

At Decor8, a writer shares her need to do some cleaning and organizing in her small apartment.

(Contributing editor Zandria blogs at Zandria.us.)