Dreaming out loud: Lindsay

Introduction: We want you to hear from the future residents of the Input Housing condominium building.  This is the second in our series of posts, focusing on each of the amazing young people who will realize the dream of having a place of their own, through Input Housing Corp. (IHC).

IHC: Lindsay, what do you want to tell people about yourself?
Lindsay: I am a 27 year-old girl and I’ve been living on my own for coming up two years in April. I have three jobs and I might be getting a 4th job so I can have more cash, but I’m not sure about that right now. I’ve got two loving parents, a brother who went to school in Edmonton and I’ve got a roommate and a housemate/guy that I am seeing who lives in the basement.

IHC: What do you want for your own apartment that is being planned?
Lindsay: I know that there will be a kitchen for everyone in the main area, but because my schedule is going to be different than the rest of the people living there, I want a stove, microwave and oven in my suite so that I can cook some meals for myself and have some meals in reserve for when I need a fast paced meal when I won’t be home for long. I just need the essentials otherwise.

IHC: What are you looking forward to and what things would you like in the new Input Housing?
Lindsay: The thing I am looking forward to is having free range, where I will be able to make more decisions about my suite and how things should look than I can do right now.

IHC: How do you think things will work when you are living with 10 friends and residents?
Lindsay: When I am home, I want to share some meals and even come down and sit on the deck or somewhere with all the people and we could have a drink or have a snack and play some cards or something and have that time with them.  I am looking forward to having more freedom.

IHC: Tell us about your interests and what you like to do?
Lindsay: I like to be able to make a living and have cash, I hope. I like to try to keep busy. I am part of some sports teams and like to be active, work out a lot. I hope the other residents understand that I need to keep working out.

IHC: Tell us about your jobs.
Lindsay: I work at Brown Communications since about 2010 and start with cleaning counters and the staff room and areas, re-stocking these areas, filing dockets and invoices. I also make the filing look perfect and neat to make it better for others. I started to do some data work and I hope I get more hours now that I am done my school, so I can have some more cash coming in.

My second job is the SaskTel job. I love the staff there. I clean the classrooms every Friday and then I began to do some data work. Then I began working two shifts a week, data on one day and classrooms on the next day, and more data work if I have time. The goal is to have more time at SaskTel in April.

The final job, which I am thankful for the Autism Resource Centre in helping me get, is at the Legislative Building. I started off with some shredding and then some scanning and I’ve been doing that since I started. The hope is to possibly get more time there at the Ledge.

IHC: You are a busy girl. How do you get to most of these places and activities?
Lindsay: Beginning in Grade 10 in high school, I began to learn the bus routes. I’ve been taking the bus for 10 plus years now and it is a good spot to listen to tunes, read, chill, do some emails or texts and get other things done. When I was a Campus for All student, I would read my text book on the bus and not have so much reading to do when I got home. I know the bus system very well.

IHC: What else should people know about you?
Lindsay: Well, even though I work a lot and not home as much as I want, I do try to spend time with people. But I also want some time to myself, especially if it was a hard day at work or really busy at work because I may need to rest.

IHC: What do you like to do in your leisure time or down time?
Lindsay: After household chores, I have been testing the Wii system games, watching TV, colouring and basically just the typical stuff that people like to do in their down time, really.

IHC: What is special about you?
Lindsay: The good thing about me is that I have a kind of crazy way of looking at things. I will have gained some experience living alone so I can help my friends and making meals and lunches and showing them things about living away from their home.

IHC: Why do you see Input as a good place to live?
Lindsay: Most of the people that I see, like at bowling, don’t get the chance to live like that and make decisions for themselves. They may not be ready but I think many are willing to try to live more independently like the way that I am getting to try to live.

I want to say to people that if you feel like you are ready and want to know more about the project, go to the website or contact Input from the website.