R.E. strikes again.

We had a publication-sponsored happy hour at work last night. This meant that I downed four Blue Moons in about two hours, closed down the "bar" (granted, last call was at 7:30PM), then walked home with a co-worker (who lives about nine blocks north of me). I marveled at the fact that I did the walking home portion of the evening in jeans and a short sleeved shirt with my coat draped over my arm.

I ditched the coat when I stopped by my apartment to drop off my bag and headed out to grab dinner without any extraneous clothing. It was WONDERFUL.

Of course, it'll be another two weeks before I get the opportunity to do that again. Such is life in New York, they tell me.

I am currently dealing with a serious case of Real Estate Envy. A friend of mine is starting to consider making a move to Richmond at some point this summer, and she sent me the link to one of the apartment complexes she's considering.

This is the fourth or fifth person I've known that's moved to Richmond over the course of the past year (and they all work in advertising, so I'm sure that most of you can figure out what's drawing them there), and it made me start to wonder what's so great about the city. After a session on Wikipedia and some Googling, I drew a few conclusions:

1) It seems to be strangely similar to Austin - right down to the agency location. Small city with a distinct flavor, growing 20/30-something social scene, and a lot of downtown development going on. Unlike Austin, they're actually developing aesthetically pleasing buildings.

2) It is really, really cheap to live there.

After my friend shot over the link to the apartments she likes, I went to the website and poked around. And then I cried. And I showed it to my boss, who also cried.

Allow me to share this with you. Items included? The floorplan that I am in love with, along with a few sample pictures of the building and the apartments it contains.

The floorplan (yes, that's a sitting room in the master bedroom):




















Sample pictures of the apartments and the buildings:



























The kitchen I'm drooling over:



























Still drooling...



























I mean, holy crap.



























Do you know what the rent is for the apartment shown in the above floorplan? The whole thing, not just one of the bedrooms? The apartment above that has a washer/dryer in the unit, central air, elevators, a pool, video entry access, exposed brick, ceilings with exposed beams... in a building that is right on the river in downtown Richmond, mere steps from the major bar/restaurant district?

You done guessing?

$1,200 - $1,250.

FOR THE ENTIRE TWO BEDROOM APARTMENT.

I'm going to be sick.