WGP.

This week I’ve been having some serious WGP aka white girl problems. I was so looking forward to a relaxing weekend alone in my apartment with a few fun fall activities sprinkled in so I didn’t end up feeling too depressed with a lack of human contact. All in all, it was perfect. I went to bed relatively early; I watched multiple Lifetime movies; I slept in; I barely thought about work at all. However, when my first WGP slipped under my door Saturday morning, I almost lost my tranquil weekend mood. It was the rental renewal notice informing me that my 2012 rent will be going up…wait for it…FOUR HUNDRED DOLLARS.

Yes, friends, four c-notes. For those of you who haven’t seen my abode, it’s lovely, but it’s small. The building is in a fantastic location, but it certainly hasn’t transformed enough in the past 12 months to make my monthly experience here worth an additional $400. They’ve got to be kidding me.

I moaned about this to my girlfriends on our way to Mt. Vernon on Saturday. We all know that DC is expensive, but somehow one bedroom apartment rents have taken on a new level of ridiculousness. As the only “single-liver” in the group, I wasn’t getting much sympathy. Understandably so. All residents of our nations capital pay more than we would like to…usually on the brink of what our salaries will allow us to afford. I managed to forget about the living situation for the rest of the afternoon because we ended up having such a nice time, so I saved my wallowing for Sunday.

On Sunday, I had brunch with a girlfriend who helped me find some perspective. My main complaints about my rental predicament were as follows: a) I don’t feel like finding a new apartment, b) moving is a huge, huge hassle, c) I like where I live, why should I have to relocate, and d) just plain angry that the leasing company cares so little about the residents who live here. Girlfriend helped me find the light. I’m lucky to be able to afford to live in a city as fabulous as the District. I’m lucky to have a job that affords me some flexibility in choosing an apartment in a neighborhood that I want to live in. I’m lucky I can afford to live on my own, and I can avoid the whole Craigslist roommate situation. I’m lucky if the biggest difference between my current apartment and a potential new home is stainless steel and granite.

Moving might be a pain, but it’s one week of un-fun-ness in exchange for 52 weeks of increased savings. It’s about continuing to learn to live within my means and not overextend myself on something as silly as a balcony and an updated kitchen. It’s a lesson in life’s unfairness and accepting challenges as they come. I know it sounds cliché, but the load God asks us to bear is never more than we can carry. I should be proud to know that He has made me into a person who can handle life’s stresses calmly and (kind of) gracefully.

Then, at the end of the weekend, I learned that one of my very young co-workers had passed away on Saturday night in a horrific car accident. It instantly made my WGP go away. For good. I cannot imagine the grief and sorrow the parents of this beautiful 23 year old are experiencing right now. Even though I work for a very large company, somehow my coworkers have felt like a family to me over the past two years, and even though I didn’t know her well, I think we’re all deeply saddened to lose a member of the work family. My thoughts and prayers are with Lauryn and her family tonight and remembering to focus on what’s truly important.

To Lauryn,

Lia