Did I Buy That Apartment During Grocery Shopping?

A reflection on how patience and time can turn impulsive decisions, old homes, and past mistakes into meaningful, long-term miracles.

The difference between a mistake and a miracle is often just a few years of patience. — Nuniek Tirta Sari

Just last Tuesday, Aliyah asked why I didn't share more stories handling 10 properties in 7 cities, coz it must be interesting. I told her, for now I prefer to write what I'm thinking and feeling instead of what I'm having, coz it's supposedly to be more longlasting. But today, let's give it a try. 

I spent the whole day taking care of two properties in Bekasi today. One apartment that once broke my heart and one little house that still smells like our early marriage years. You know that kind of exhaustion that’s not just physical, but slightly emotional too? That’s me right now.

Kemang View Apartment from Pakuwon Mall Bekasi point of view.

Let’s start with the Kemangview apartment.

It’s right across from the brand-new Pakuwon Mall, a place that didn’t even exist when we bought the unit back in January 2014. That apartment was a textbook definition of an impulsive purchase. I still laugh when I think about it. Imagine this: one minute I’m in Giant buying milk and detergent, and two hours later, I’m signing papers to buy an apartment. Who does that? Apparently… us.

And here’s the funny part: just two days before that, we had already bought another apartment in Alam Sutera. Our very first apartment, now called Springwood Residence near Binus University (which also didn't exist yet when I bought it). I know, it sounds like an episode of “Extreme Real Estate Decisions: The Couple Edition.”

But here’s what happened. Around that time, my husband had just handed back control of our finances to me, and he’d just gotten a raise. I didn’t want that salary increase to turn into lifestyle inflation; the kind where your wants grow faster than your income. So we decided to force ourselves to save by buying assets instead of handbags or holidays. The logic was simple: if the money turns into a wall and a key, at least it won’t vanish into thin air.

Except, well… real life isn’t as simple as Excel spreadsheets.

When we bought it, the building was almost done. We thought, “Great! We’ll rent it out soon!” Well we did, for a while. But the developer turned out to be a mess. The management went bankrupt, and the place slowly decayed into an abandoned tower. For years, the apartment just… sat there. Locked. Waiting. Like a paused dream.

Luckily, we had moved out our furniture to other properties before things got worse. And this year, finally, a new management team took over. The residents’ association now runs it, and I'm so glad seeing the improvements. The elevators actually work. The swimming pool is clear. The security and cleaning team are on duty.

As I walked through the corridor, I felt a quiet sense of hope. Maybe this apartment still has a future. Maybe it wasn’t a foolish decision after all. The location is gold: within walking distance to the LRT station, literally a few steps from Pakuwon Mall, and just a few meters to the toll gate. Maybe soon, it’ll attract tenants again. Amen. 

This used to be our main en-suite bedroom for 11 years in Pondok Gede home.

Then, there’s our Pondok Gede house.

The one that I told you about. Our very first home. The walls there have heard our laughter, arguments, baby cries, and late-night dreams. It’s the place where I first learned how to be a wife, my spouse learned to be a husband, and where we learned how to be a family.

I went there just to replace the lights, but stepping into that house felt like walking into a memory. Someone had come to see it recently; wanted to rent first, then buy in July. My mother-in-law met them, but unfortunately didn’t ask for their number. 

For now, the house is waiting too, just like the apartment was. I’ve had several inquiries through Lamudi and Olx, mostly people wanting to rent. I’m not really in a rush, though. The right person always shows up at the right time.

Still, after visiting both properties, going through Bekasi traffic, doing all the uninteresting parts and sweaty stuff, I was completely drained. But on the way home, a thought came to me:

Maybe impulsiveness isn’t always recklessness. Maybe sometimes, it’s courage wearing the wrong label.

I mean, yes, buying an apartment during grocery shopping sounds insane. But if I zoom out, that decision was a symbol of something bigger: a season of financial security, a lesson in patience, and a reminder that some investments take a decade to make sense.

In psychology, there’s a term called “post-decision dissonance.” It’s the stress you feel after making a big choice. Yes, that “Did I just mess up?” feeling. Researchers from Cornell once found that people tend to overestimate short-term regret and underestimate long-term growth. Meaning, the things we panic about today might become the stories we proudly tell tomorrow.

I once read in The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel that “Wealth is what you don’t see — it’s the cars not bought, the jewelry not purchased, the vacations not taken.” Maybe impulsive saving disguised as impulsive buying was my way of building invisible wealth back then. It didn’t always make sense, but it built a kind of resilience.

So yes, I’m tired today. But it’s the kind of tired that also comes with gratitude. Because some things, whether properties or people, just need time to heal before they start shining again.

If you’re reading this while second-guessing your past choices (let's say that job you took, that relationship you ended, that apartment you bought after shopping for groceries, anything), maybe this is your sign. Give it time. Let the story unfold.

Sometimes we don’t need to fix everything at once. We just need to show up again, dust things off, and believe that something good is quietly working beneath the surface.

And maybe, that’s what faith in everyday life really looks like.

Thursday, 16 October 2025

Nuniek Tirta Sari