Broke, bitter renters were so totally right about renting instead of buying when we signed that lease back in October—in light of the financial meltdowncrisis. Not that we are renting instead of buying by choice, but whatever! We won by default, and when you're not rich, you gotta take your victories where you can find them. At least all our money is tied up in unsecured credit card debt instead of real estate!The situation of renters right now is totally comparable to that gas smell that permeated your apartment hallways yesterday—you know, when you were worried that there was a gas leak and the building might explode? You know how to handle that, right? First you call your Polish landlord, who yells at you and pretends to understand less English than he actually does. Then you go "fuck it, I'll just go down the street to the coffee shop to do my typing and maybe when I get back the smell will be gone." And you do, and it does. Crisis averted! It's like you made the best decision by accident, or by doing nothing. Again. Remember that episode of Roseanne where DJ is in a spelling bee, and they ask him to spell "foreclosure," and Roseanne and Dan nervously put their arms around each other and pretend to smile? Foreclosure. F-o-r-e-c-l-o-s-u-r-e. Foreclosure. [Photo: Threebeansalad]