Casey's Garage

[KenM]

I'm fairly certain you could fit more monitors on that thar desk Casey....

[TJ 450]

Nice,
Yeah that's a few monitors indeed. I spot some Dell monitors haha. I've seen a few of them in my time.

That's some decent furniture too.

Tim

[Casey]

Nice,
Yeah that's a few monitors indeed. I spot some Dell monitors haha. I've seen a few of them in my time.

That's some decent furniture too.

Those two on the left are my work ones - I'd brought it home over weekend when my employer was moving to install a new O/S. All the other monitors were $20 or less each at thrift stores. Hard to pass up deals like that. And actually the iMac monitor is dead so one of the Dell monitors is just for that. All my personal computers are quite old, or made up of discarded stuff. I like to save my money for Mercedes fun.

[Casey]

Well, it was fun while it lasted...

But, having let the disease take hold to the degree I have, at this point, I'm going to be letting the garage go.  It's been a lot of good times, learning adventures, and I definitely have come a long ways in the last year and four months since I first rented this garage.

Over the course of the next month or two, I will be clearing all the cars and parts and furnishings out of the garage, most likely turning the driveway at my house into the world's biggest clusterf*** of cars in various states of inoperability for a while.  I will be wishing a heartfelt good-bye to the lift and compressor (which I've never actually seen as it's tucked away up in the attic somewhere so as to not make too much noise) that have served me very well.  I'll drop off my final (or perhaps second to final) rent payment tomorrow, and give notice to the landlord, who's always been very nice and fair.  There's a lot to love about this garage, and I have appreciated my time here sincerely.

Unfortunately, I can simply no longer justify the expense, and distance from my new house which has become more important to me and is where I intend to stay living for years to come.  And the simple reality of the garage is that I've bought too many cars and it's been too crowded to work very effectively even with six in it along with all my parts, and I now own another five cars besides.  ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.  While I've made good use of the space I just have too much crap piled up and have not been good about labeling or organizing very effectively.  Honestly a lot of it I need to either assign to a project or put up for sale.  There's some stuff I'd like to hold on to of course, but I need to split it out better.

With having to drive 30+ minutes each way to get to the garage from my house, along with a lot more upkeep responsibilities with my new house and more self-reliant lifestyle, I've found myself frustrated and not getting car stuff done that I need to on the ones that I intend to keep running well.  I have a single car garage at my house, but it seems that whenever I need something, it's at the other garage.

So, it is what it is, I'm moving out.

IF ANYONE IN THE AREA IS INTERESTED IN TAKING OVER THIS GARAGE RENT (MONTH-TO-MONTH, NO LEASE) AFTER I LEAVE, PLEASE LET ME KNOW AND I WILL PUT YOU IN TOUCH WITH THE LANDLADY.  It's a great deal for what it is at $500/month!  It's just not a great deal for me anymore.  The garage (many pictures above in this thread) is located in Keymar, Maryland.



Now then, I suppose you're wondering what the plan is for all my cars, since many are not really in a state worthy of selling except at a loss right now.  How about all the rare parts I've accumulated?  I'll bet some of you are looking at me with a greedy eye thinking it's about to be your lucky day, wondering just how lowball of offers you can get away with making.  Well, I'll tell you:  GET YOUR GRUBBY HANDS OFF!!!

I suppose I should mention the minor detail that I've been approved for a lease on a warehouse space 5 minutes from my house in downtown Frederick.  In addition to a private alleyway to park in, behind a single bay door (the only entrance), there is 4000 square feet (that's 371 square meters for all you non-Americans) of cement-floored space for me to use to my heart's content.  Within is plenty of space for ALL my cars, not counting a fair bit of the space that has been built up into separate storage rooms with 2x4 and plywood framing with framed roofs that I can store parts on top of as well, and a large attic area in the back half.  THERE IS SO MUCH FREAKING ROOM IT'S RIDICULOUS.  There is also a larger insulated room with heat and a bathroom (current garage has no plumbing at all, not even a hose).  So if I want to work real late and just crash at the garage, I can!  I'm going to set it up as a little studio apartment - a home away from home.   I am welcome to tear down any of the current stuff that's built in the space and/or build my own structures as I see fit.

Now for the kicker...  I've moved into a big house on 5-6 acres of property, it's wonderful and I love it.  The house is made of stone and is about 200 years old.  I couldn't want anything more, but apparently it's hard to rent, so it's a very fair rental price.  It's a 4-bedroom and I've got two roommates currently, and plenty of people interested in moving in should the landlord allow a fourth person at some point.  So my house rent has dropped considerably since I moved.  I also have about a 15 minute shorter commute since I changed jobs, so I'm saving some money there too.  Once I get a diesel back on the road, my fuel expense will drop dramatically also.  BUT, let's just ignore those last two points for the moment.  If I total together my old house rent plus old garage rent, and compare it to my share of the new house rent plus the new garage rent, my total spend is a mere $100 more per month!  My current fuel expenses are over $400/month, and that should be dropping by at least two thirds once I'm commuting in a diesel again.  And that's not even counting fuel costs I spend going to and from the old garage now, which on their own cost more than the $100 difference in combined rent.

So I've got a HUGE amount more space both at home indoors and outdoors, at my garage, and much more convenient to both my house and right near the heart of downtown, and I'm going to be spending LESS money at the end of the day doing it.  When I lived in Seattle, I spent more than the total amount on a two bedroom *apartment*  When I lived in Berkeley, California, I spent even more on the same.  Yet I make better money here, and the combined rent will be under a quarter of my income, so I'm very comfortable with the arrangement.  So comfortable, in fact, that I'm going to sign a four-year lease.  I foresee a whole lot of productive work and happiness in my future.

Since it's easy biking distance from my house, I have zero need to keep ANY car parked outdoors - I can keep my daily driver parked in the single car garage at my house, and at my new job, it sits in a covered parking garage all day too, which is a nice perk.  There is no lift or compressor, so I'll have to purchase and install my own equipment in time.  There is also 3-phase power coming in, which will be nice if I want to invest in a big welder at some point.

You guys are gonna have to wait a while for pictures though, because I didn't get any when I visited the space the day before yesterday.


I want to give some idea of the size of the space though, so here are pictures from another 4000 square-foot warehouse I evaluated but opted not to rent:  http://gallery.w116.org/v/garage/keymar_warehouse/

I'm really looking forward to the future.  Two 6.9's on the way, don't have to get rid of any cars, lots of space to organize, more freedom, less expense...getting into W116's has been the best idea I ever had.

[Squiggle Dog]

Great news! That will make an awesome shop.

[oversize]

At first I was thinking what you're gunna do with all those cars and that you really shouldn't leave them out in the weather.  But then I read you're onto bigger, better, cheaper!!!  Great news and I'm sure you'll manage to do lots in your new spaces....

I have a similar problem where you fill your storage spaces and find you have little room to do much actual work!  Time to re-arrange stuff methinks....

[JasonP]

I have no garage. If a hailstorm comes, I'm f*cked.

Please donate to the JasonP Foundation, for the restoration of Mercedes for all mankind. And by "for all mankind," I mean me.