As of today, I am officially off for two weeks from work, paid. I love my job.
I am completely rearranging and scrubbing down my apartment with a chunk of this glorious time off. Trevor and I moved into our studio a little over two years ago post Japan, after living in a space that was as big as our current kitchen. When we saw it we thought, why do we need a one bedroom? This is paradise! So, we moved in with literally just camping pads and sleeping bags and enough money to pay our rent the next month. We were looking for work, and consequently had nothing -- nothing to sit on except the hardwood floor, only soup and bread and spinach and vitamins to eat, and no entertainment money -- so we would walk all over the neighborhood, sometimes three or four times a day, at all hours.
We began to accumulate the makings of an apartment, and picked up our share of fantastic things from our travels about the neighborhood (I'll never forget you, forgotten Corona 12-pack shining like a jewel in the parking lot under the moonlight -- you were there when I needed you). But as pieces came in willy-nilly -- a fancy dresser from the sidewalk, a sweet formica table leftover from someone'e yardsale, a forlorn chair from our free table downstairs -- we just shoved them into our apartment, grateful for a place to sit or store socks or whatever, and never designed a layout for the space. And then life in the form of jobs and rockshows and school came along and we came home only to sleep and shower. Now here we are 2 years later, living in a studio apartment/storage space that we still hardly ever spend time in, yet is so absolutely unpleasant when we do that we go out instead. Lame.
Our place is already shaping up. It is amazing what a tiny bit of rearranging will do, plus a change in lighting. We just picked up a beautiful oak bookcase that matches the hand-me-down we got from our friend, and another crate for my records, so you can imagine how just that can neaten up our space. And we moved our futon and tatami into the walk-in, which is I swear 10 degrees warmer and oh so cozy. I have been sleeping like a baby. Now to build a platform for the bed and get some more storage bins, and voila -- maybe we will even feel good enough about the space to throw a dinner party. But, it is still a studio after all, so if not a dinner party, maybe I'll at least allow people past the front door.
I am completely rearranging and scrubbing down my apartment with a chunk of this glorious time off. Trevor and I moved into our studio a little over two years ago post Japan, after living in a space that was as big as our current kitchen. When we saw it we thought, why do we need a one bedroom? This is paradise! So, we moved in with literally just camping pads and sleeping bags and enough money to pay our rent the next month. We were looking for work, and consequently had nothing -- nothing to sit on except the hardwood floor, only soup and bread and spinach and vitamins to eat, and no entertainment money -- so we would walk all over the neighborhood, sometimes three or four times a day, at all hours.
We began to accumulate the makings of an apartment, and picked up our share of fantastic things from our travels about the neighborhood (I'll never forget you, forgotten Corona 12-pack shining like a jewel in the parking lot under the moonlight -- you were there when I needed you). But as pieces came in willy-nilly -- a fancy dresser from the sidewalk, a sweet formica table leftover from someone'e yardsale, a forlorn chair from our free table downstairs -- we just shoved them into our apartment, grateful for a place to sit or store socks or whatever, and never designed a layout for the space. And then life in the form of jobs and rockshows and school came along and we came home only to sleep and shower. Now here we are 2 years later, living in a studio apartment/storage space that we still hardly ever spend time in, yet is so absolutely unpleasant when we do that we go out instead. Lame.
Our place is already shaping up. It is amazing what a tiny bit of rearranging will do, plus a change in lighting. We just picked up a beautiful oak bookcase that matches the hand-me-down we got from our friend, and another crate for my records, so you can imagine how just that can neaten up our space. And we moved our futon and tatami into the walk-in, which is I swear 10 degrees warmer and oh so cozy. I have been sleeping like a baby. Now to build a platform for the bed and get some more storage bins, and voila -- maybe we will even feel good enough about the space to throw a dinner party. But, it is still a studio after all, so if not a dinner party, maybe I'll at least allow people past the front door.
posted by Ammie at 11:08 PM
1 Comments:
Ammie,
I really liked this post. Making a home and taking time to enjoy simply what I have is something that I struggle with. My last studio didn't have a chair or table in it. I slept and knitted atop a mat on the floor. I loved it and at the same time was a bit ashamed of it. I regret never inviting anyone over. The thought and fear of having to explain myself was too great I guess. -Eric
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