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Tim Wong, a fourth-year electrical engineering student, unpacks and settles into his new apartmen

As summer was drawing to a close and before the beginning of a hectic school year, a couple of friends and I hopped on the bus to Santa Monica. Along the way, we reminisced about how during our first year we were intimidated by the idea of taking the bus to the city and realized that somehow along the way we had even managed to expand our independence to the point of living in our own apartments.

The moment I moved into my apartment, I began to wonder how and when I would ever adjust to living on my own. The following chronicles my experiences of the past two weeks.

Day 1: After about five hours, I finally finished moving in, and I’m pretty excited to start unpacking and begin furnishing and decorating. I remember looking through furniture catalogs when I was younger and wondering when I’d ever have my own place to furnish.

Day 2: I’ve been scavenging for usable furniture dumped in the streets, thrown away by people moving out, and picked up a desk chair in perfect condition off the street today. One person’s junk is another’s treasure (especially when the latter is without money).

Day 3: Boxes and boxes of possessions sit in my closet, yet somehow there are so many essentials I forgot, such as pots, pans, toaster, vacuum, trash cans and bath rug. So for now I am resorting to using the George Foreman Grill as a toaster and the rice cooker to cook vegetables. I’ve also found economy-sized cereal boxes to be functional trash cans. The list of things to buy gets longer by the day.

Day 5: Back in the dorms, the endless supply of toilet paper, garbage bags and food has led to a lot of shameful wasting. But now that everything comes directly out of my pocket, I’m noticing how much I can conserve by only using what I actually need, such as using half a sheet of paper towel and preparing food in only the needed amount. (I really do miss dessert-binging in the dining halls.)

So many side obligations also take up time in the apartments, such as cooking, shopping, cleaning and figuring out bills.

Day 7: Murphy’s Law has unleashed itself, with the discovery of rust build-up in the tub due to the perpetually leaking faucet, a problem since move-in. Besides the hole in the screen, the window blinds are also frustrating because the broken strips fall off whenever I turn the shades, requiring more work orders to be filled out. Half the day is spent scrubbing the bathroom and kitchen, but somehow there are more and more places to clean and organize. On top of all this, my computer graciously decided to malfunction; at this moment, I’m writing this column by hand.

To comfort myself, I turn to food and head to the grocery store – and realize I don’t know what to buy. Do I buy lettuce over cucumbers, or both? How many combinations of meals can be made with chicken, broccoli and carrots? After calling my mom about five times and weighing out decisions, I walk home with food to last for the week, but realize five minutes later that I should not have bought heavy items such as cantaloupes and a 10-pack yogurt because the uphill walk back is rather unforgiving (and I am definitely out of shape).

Day 12: My roommate moved her furniture in and I finally bought a used bed – an upgrade from the sleeping bag I’ve been using. The room is beginning to look more livable, and I now look forward to coming home to crash on my bed – unlike before, when I didn’t want to come home because it appeared so empty.

Day 14: By now, the apartment seems like home. I also definitely enjoy the freedom, privacy and the larger living space. Though cooking can be a nuisance, I can eat whatever I want, whenever I want. There are no room inspections, and my living space isn’t confined to a small room with beds and desks.

As I step out of the apartment to go home to my family for the weekend, I find it difficult to differentiate between “home” – this apartment in Los Angeles – and “home,” my family. Somewhere along the way, since our first year, we’ve morphed from parents’ dependents to true independents. The transition can be rough sometimes, but when you take a step back from being immersed in these difficulties, it’s pretty amazing to see the progress.

Who knows, maybe I’ll even buy a house in the city some day; now it seems more feasible. And by then I won’t pick up dumped furniture, but I will put the furniture catalogs to good use.

Share quick cooking recipes with Yoo at jyoo@media.ucla.edu.

Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.