It is one of those days. You know the type. Those unavoidable days that happen from time to time and while you are keen to get started and get it done, once you start, you realize how much you just don't want to do it again. How many of these days have come and gone? How many are left? Will we look back on these days with fond memories? You know the days....
IKEA building days.
Finally, the last room in the house is going to be made livable - the office. Though, I have been working in here for a couple years already. It was last Autumn that we finally did the walls and painted the wooden floors, but it has been a junk room since, except for the corner where my desk and computers sit. Even with the blurred background, the mess was evident in meetings.
While no magic happens, this is the room I probably spend the most time. The days I work from home and every evening when I am writing on Hive. I am hoping that once the cupboards are in, it will be more comfortable, because the "stuff" can be sorted and put away and that sense of mess sitting behind will be gone. Even now, it feels better, though all the mess is currently in the loungeroom instead.
I far prefer working in a clear space, though honestly, I am not very good at maintaining one. My desk is often a mess, even though I clean it quite regularly and the messier it gets, the more junk that gets piled up on it. At the moment, there are a lot of unpaid bills. I am not very good at staying on top of admin stuff, but I keep trying to improve.
The new cupboards are technically clothes cupboards, not office cupboards, but since the office is a bit of a bits a room anyway, it isn't going to matter. We will also have hanging space in these, so that we can swap the winter and summer coats over from the entrance cupboard, because they take up a lot of space when they aren't being used. And in Finland, there is a fair amount of winter clothing needed.
But, what I am looking forward to having a little more organization around are the bills, because like I mentioned, they are sitting on my desk. There isn't an IKEA hanging file solution that fits straight into this model of cupboard, but I think there are some options out there and anything will be an improvement on having nothing.
Storage space has always been a massive component of the places I have lived, which is probably because I grew up in a house that felt filled to the brim with random stuff. No matter how clean it was, it always felt messy, which is partly because it was a 1920s farm house that had been added to multiple times throughout its lifecycle, with a lot of mismatched styles from very different eras. I remember as a child I "swore" I would never have a house similar.
Oops.
Okay. This house isn't the same at all, but there are certain vibes that remind me of my childhood home and if my family can ever visit, I think they will recognize it also. But, one difference is that this place has a place for everything, so it doesn't look messy. But, it also doesn't feel like a place where you can't relax. It is nice when friends occasionally come and visit and very soon, they feel at home, curled on the couch with a cup of tea. That is a successful space in my opinion.
The office space is a bit different of course, as it is meant for work, not relaxation. However, I work better when there is a sense of order and not too much clutter to distract my attention away. The cupboards will help with this, as well as when I need something, I won't have to rummage through twenty boxes to find it.
These cupboards are a bit more of a challenge to build though and what makes it worse, is that I can't do it alone. Unfortunately, we have quite low ceilings in this old house and it means that the normal build on the floor approach doesn't work, because there is no clearance to tip it up against the wall, as it will scrape the roof panels. This requires building it in pieces while it is standing, which is harder, more uncomfortable, and impossible to do alone. So my wife has to help - which comes with its own challenges. She is a lovely person, but not the strongest, nor the most mechanically-minded - which is fine, as we all have our strengths and weaknesses.
I would like to get the frameworks done tonight, but it requires some hammering and Smallsteps has gone to bed, and her room is directly above the office. She probably wouldn't wake up anyway, but it will be annoying if she does. What I might do is the prep work for the other frames so that it doesn't take too long tomorrow, but I may also just pour a glass of wine and write instead.
Which sounds pretty good.
Wine has won.
At least there will be one glass of goodness on a day like this.
Does anyone like building flat-packed furniture?
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]