The furniture hasn't been rearranged yet (and the slipcovers bothered my allergies too much, even after several launderings, so I'm back to square one on getting the furniture to look the way I want it) BUT I don't know when last I saw this room so tidy!!! Just had to share!
Be sure to click on the picture to enlarge it. The hard plastic thing over the carpet (and the white duct tape) will be going -- they were there because Dad had very shaky hands, and spilled a lot.
Also, in trying to get a bit of a California/Zen vibe going, I've tried a couple of things. Here are close-ups of the coffee table, and the new tables/plant stands:
The large stones have words on them. See? (You'll have to enlarge the pic to see them properly.)
I'm starting to get a "peaceful easy feeling" from this room...
Shortly after Dad died on January 15, I tried to put up a display of photos of Mum and Dad. I had to take it down again shortly thereafter. Every time I looked at it, I cried. I put away all photos of Mum & Dad (except for one which was on a low table and behind the magazine rack, and didn't really enter my field of vision). I put away all Dad's wonderful nature and airplane photographs.
Today, I took that one photo of Mum & Dad (& me) from the low table, and put it on my dresser. I think it'll be okay. It's not recent enough to bring back the memories of their struggles over the past few years. Yes, I think it'll be okay.
Progress has been made. Real, measurable progress. As a teaser, may I present a Before and After of the overview photo of the Writing Room. I'm not quite ready to post the detail pics yet, but the overview? Yes. I'm ready to share. I'm eager to share.
Before. It was a bit scary actually. More than a bit. Especially when one considers that it used to be worse. This is what the Writing Room looked like when we began this 8 Week Adventure. (Click all pics to enlarge. It's much more impressive that way!)
Then... ... ... it got worse. As things got shifted out of other rooms, they came to rest in the Writing Room, only temporarily, thank goodness.
It took some doing, and some realizing that I couldn't finish sorting everything before putting things away in the Storage Room, but the Writing Room is 95% complete now. Only a few finishing touches stand between us at this moment, and the moment when I'm able to unveil the details of the transformation. In the meantime, here's a glimpse of the revised edition of the Writing Room:
Notice any difference?
Thought you might.
By the end of this week, which I have dubbed for my own Hybrid Cure, Week 8.2, I will be able to post all the pictures of the Writing Room.
But wait! There's more!
I have figured out how to do the rearrangement of the Living Room while still storing the rocking chair and bookcase/china cabinet until they go to their new home. So that transformation will be revealed at the end of Week 8.2 as well.
I so wish I could find a clip of one of the several James Garner/Mariette Hartley Polaroid ads in which the tag line featured Mariette asking sadly, "No party?" and Jim responding, "No party." I found several other clips on YouTube, and had a lovely time watching them, but "No party?" No. No party.
And that's exactly the case as we wind down our Hybrid Cure. None of the regular participants is planning the housewarming party that Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan so heartily endorses in his book which inspired this Cure. I'm very grateful that I didn't plan a party this time around, because my apartment is not quite ready for its close-up. (Sorry Mr. DeMille.)
However, it occurs to me that the sorts of things Maxwell suggests for a party might make a nice weekly relaxation ritual -- Finding a good recipe, and dining by candlelight; buying fresh flowers; listening to music while dining. I may do that.
So -- what bits of the Week Eight schedule can I incorporate into my Hybrid version of Week Eight?
Vacuum the entire apartment and clean all windows.Cleaning all windows will not be happening, I have more pressing things that need to be done. However, vacuuming the entire apartment is a very good idea.
Do a final purge for clutter and empty the Outbox.That is ongoing. The Outbox will be emptied (including the old computer) the next time the friends who deal with the Outbox stuff come over. Arrange the apartment for the best party flow.The dominoes have not yet all fallen to enable the re-arrangement of the living room furniture, party flow or non-party flow. The rocking chair and the bookcase must leave the building before that can happen. That might be some time, as the cousin who will be the new caregiver for these family heirlooms lives some distance away.
Remove your shoes when at home.That is not going to happen. I prefer to wear shoes or slippers at all times. Consider improving your audio system and making it smaller.Hard to get much smaller than an iPod. I do have a small CD player/clock radio which I'd like to find a space for somewhere in the living/dining room so that I can do that "listening to music while dining" thing.
Buy fresh flowers. When filling my Christmas stocking this -- no! LAST year, I included a Safeway gift card with a note "for roses only". I haven't yet used it. Not for one rose. It's time. Turn down the lights and light your candles.I'll at least turn down the lights. Or rather, turn off a selected number of lights. I don't have dimmer switches.
Choose the music ahead of time.I have many lovely CDs that I rarely listen to. A weekly dinner with music would be a good way to remedy that. Serve cold drinks immediately.Cold water or cold milk? That's all I drink.
Cook and eat at home.Eating at home is something I do on a regular basis. I still haven't disciplined myself well enough to eat healthily at home. That will be factored in to the regular "me party" idea. Plan the week ahead.This week ahead (and into next week) will involve finishing up in the Writing Room. I have realized that the Storage Room cannot be completed in the time-frame of this Cure, so everything that still needs to be sorted will be neatly stored in the aptly named Storage Room, and will be sorted in odd free moments in the days, weeks, or months to come. I have taken all this Cure time away from my writing, and I really must get back to it, so starting today I worked on the transfer of things into the Storage Room from the Writing Room in the morning, and in the afternoon worked on writing.
Wake early for a bath.The sun wakes me by 5:30 or so. If I'm lucky, I get back to sleep. Usually I don't. So there is plenty of time for ablutions in the morning, but I'm not the soak-in-the-tub type.
Optional: Consider removing the television.The television was removed for over a year. I now have a small television again. I have watched it twice since I bought it several months ago. I don't think I'm in danger of getting too caught up in television watching.
So, the basic plan is get the Writing Room into shape, and get back to real life -- but real life in a calmer, more serene manner, with a sense of satisfaction at so much work done.
I'll post After pictures of the Writing Room some time next week.
I am so happy with my bedroom that I had to share the pictures, even though the mirror isn't up yet.
Return with me for a moment to the way the bedroom looked when this Hybrid Cure began. Actually, this picture doesn't begin to show what I was really dealing with, since, on the surface the room looked fairly decent. However, there was a great deal of clutter under the bed and in the closet, the bookshelves needed organizing, and the room was badly in need of a dust intervention. (Not to mention the fact that I did NOT like the drapes.)
Gradually, over the past weeks, I have sorted the bookcase and made it solely for DVDs and CDs; I have cleared out the clutter under the bed (and have added a bedskirt), I have found a new home for the rocking chair (although it hasn't yet been picked up), I've revamped the dresser and decluttered all the drawers, I've decluttered the shelf and floor of the closet, I've replaced the ugly drapes with the blue ones from the Writing Room, and I've vacuumed multiple times (although I still don't have a good vacuum). Two of the dining chairs have come to live in the bedroom, to free up some space in the dining area when the rearrangement of the furniture in the living/dining room can take place.
Here's how the room looks now:
That's the mirror leaning against the chairs. It will go up on the wall at right angles to the picture you see in this photo.
In the interest of full disclosure, I even opened the closet for you! There are usually more clothes in there -- I need to do laundry.
And for those who admired the bedding, a close-up of the embroidery. Unfortunately, repeated washings have made the fabric pucker a bit, but I still love the abstract yet natural pattern.
My bedroom is now a lovely, peaceful, serene place. Mmmmm... good night!
I will post my official Hybrid Cure Week 8 post tomorrow. For now, here's what I have done with my dresser in the bedroom.
The dresser belonged to Mum & Dad. I don't know if they got it new when they were married in 1954, or if it had belonged to Dad previously. It goes back over fifty years, anyway. The wood is very worn, but because of my allergies, refinishing the piece is not an option. So, I turned to a solution I have used in the past -- shiny black stiff cardstock paper to cover the drawer fronts (and, as it turned out, the side of the dresser as well) and new hardware. The old drawer pulls were NOT my style at all. The new ones, and the new look, make me very happy indeed. (And I changed the knobs on my bedside table so that they all match.)
Here is the Before picture. I had covered the top of the dresser a couple of years ago, and then never got around to doing the drawers. Some day I will redo the top, and will endeavor to get the upholstery nails to hammer in straight (the wood is nearly as hard as stone!) Not today, though. Note: the picture doesn't do justice to the wear and tear that was visible on the drawers, although you can get an idea of it by looking at the middle drawer.
First step was to remove the old hardware. I will put it in the next garage sale my friend has planned. Maybe someone will like it. Maybe. Then I cut the paper to size, and stuck it on with double-sided tape. (Not likely wood friendly, but this wood has seen better days, anyway.) I carefully left the drawers open, since there was no way to pull them out again if they accidentally were closed. (Oddly, the drawer fronts are 7 15/16" deep. Isn't that an odd figure?)
The old hardware was handles with two screws. An odd size of handles, that I couldn't match easily. So I decided to switch to knobs. That gave me two hole placements to play with, so I decided to be a bit creative, and do the middle drawer differently than the top and bottom drawers. I like the effect.
I am a happy SCB.
This morning I changed the drapes, and got rid of the old taupe ones (hooray!). A friend is coming to help with the mirror tomorrow. Then I'll be able to show you "After" pics of the entire bedroom.
Not that this particular book isn't available in SmallCity. It is, in abundance. But...
The book is entitled The Very Fairy Princess Takes the Stage, by Julie Andrews and her daughter (my online writing coach) Emma Walton Hamilton, and I went to Minneapolis to buy it because Julie was doing a book-signing at the Roseville Barnes and Noble (Roseville is a suburb of Minneapolis).
One of my online friends (now a real-life friend!) shared the experience with me. We had a wonderful time together, were both thrilled to meet Julie, and are both delighted with the book.
We were also delighted by the way Julie used the balance of her time, other than the two book signings that were her original reason for traveling to the Twin Cities. On the Thursday of her visit, she spent time at the Perpich Center's High School -- a residential school for the performing arts, speaking to the student body and answering their questions, advocating for the importance of the arts in society in general and in education in particular. To experience what she said to the students, check out this link to Minnesota Public Radio.
On Friday, she had a chance to highlight one of her other passions, literacy and the importance of access to books for children. The Target company is heavily involved in this cause, and among many other things, is active in renovating school libraries across the United States. Julie had the opportunity of opening one of these newly renovated libraries, at the Nellie Stone Johnson Community School. She mentioned this to my friend and I when we were talking to her as she signed our copies of the book on Friday evening. It obviously means a great deal to her to do these things. To hear an interview in which she tells about the library project, click on this link. To learn more about Target's work in the area of literacy, click here.
I am very gratified to see this concrete proof of something I already knew, that an author whom I admire greatly for who she is as a person, as well as who she is in the public eye, shares my passions for child literacy, and for arts education.
So yes, I went to Minneapolis to buy a picture book, and came back with so much more, not in possessions, but in inspiration.
This week is Bedroom Week in Hybrid Cure Land. Bedroom/WritingRoom/StorageRoom in SCB Hybrid Cure Land.
As posted over at Alana's place, these are the tasks set out in the traditional Cure:
On p. 208 of Apartment Therapy, the Eight Step Home Cure, MG-R would have us do this: (as usual, my comments are in italics)
Bones:
Clean the bedroom and related storage -- Yes, that is definitely in the plan. Quite a bit of that process has been done already, though.
Buy an air filter for your bedroom. -- No, I won't be doing that.
Buy new sheets, pad, or mattress as needed. -- No new purchases for the bed are scheduled. Mattress will do, mattress pad is fine, and in summer I just use a fitted sheet and the duvet cover, no top sheet.
Breath:
Declutter the bedroom -- That process is already well underway.
Arrange the bed against the best wall -- The bed is on the only possible wall, which happily enough turns out to be the best wall by M G-R standards.
Heart:
Make sure your bedroom inspires you -- It does. I like it.
Head:
Look into ways to improve your sleep -- Having some form of lining behind the curtains would help me sleep beyond the time of sunrise when the sunshine streams in my east-facing bedroom window. I'll look into that.
Optional: Outfit your bed to reduce allergens -- I'm happy with the way my bed is "outfitted".
What I'll be doing this week:
Here are the "Before" pictures of the bedroom. It has progressed a bit since then.
This is looking from the hallway into the bedroom.
The rocking chair is not only leaving that corner, it is leaving the building. I've decided that it's time another family member had a chance to enjoy Grandma's rocking chair and Grandpa's bookcase, so they are going to cousins. I've had the rocking chair for at least 25 years, and the bookcase for about 20.
Hopefully, I'll get enough done in the Writing Room that I can take the blue drapes down from there, and put them up in the bedroom. I will definitely get rid of the torn sheers behind the brown curtains as well. (The brown curtains are going in the trash.) The bookcase in the bedroom has been reorganized and now only holds DVDs and CDs, no books. I find I like it that way. (They aren't watched or listened to in there, it's just where they are kept.)
I still really love the bedding I bought when I was in my last apartment. I've removed the wall art, and changed lamps (again) since this pic was taken. I want to put a mirror up where the large painting is in this pic -- that's where I style my hair, because there's a plug-in where it's easy to put the hair dryer and curling iron, and I have a mirror that was Mum's & Dad's that would fit nicely there.
I didn't take a pic of the dresser or the closet, since I wasn't willing to be that honest in my Before pics! But that's where the major work will be happening. The drawers are cleaned out and organized now, which is a big weight off my mind. The top of the dresser needs decluttering, as does the shelf in the closet. I may or may not decide to beautify the front of the dresser drawers with black shiny heavy paper the way I did my bedside table a few years ago. I did the top when I first moved in to this apartment, but have never done the drawers. It may be time.
Of course, besides the bedroom, work in the Writing Room and Storage Room continue. Last week I didn't get much of anything done, because I spent the last part of the week in Minneapolis (and the first part of the week getting ready for the trip). I will post a little bit about that trip tomorrow. Wanted to get back on board the Hybrid Cure bus tonight.
I'm busy with other things this week -- my Hybrid Cure will be back on course on Sunday. While I'm on hiatus, let's imagine a grand piano in my living room, shall we?
My amazingly wonderful friends came over this afternoon, and not only carted all the junk away that had been accumulating since the last cart-away, but set up the shelves. Actually, it took the three of us working together to accomplish the shelving project. I can now get on with the rest of what needs to be done, and I am THRILLED about it.
Am I lucky or what?
Don't these look fantastic? No, wait. Let's do a Before and After of this corner of the Storage Room so you can get the full effect.
Here's what the far side of the Storage Room looked like when this Hybrid Cure began:
Here's what it looks like now:
Can you believe it? When I get everything put away, I'll take another picture. I can even wash the floor now! This is so great.
Onshore just posted her own "kick in the butt" and I decided that was exactly what I need as well.
For one reason or another, I haven't accomplished as much in my home office/Writing Room or in the storage room as I had planned to this week. That has not all been bad, as I have accomplished other things, and have had some wonderful, serendipitous visits with friends over the course of the week.
I *did* look at the stacks of books waiting to go into the storage room, and a couple of nights ago made the decision that I was ready to let go of many of them, books that had meant something to Mum but that meant much less to me, some of my own that I know I'll never read again... so nearly 70 books are on their way out the door.
Next week is supposed to be Bathroom Week. I decided this morning that there is nothing crucial that needs to be done to the bathroom, nothing that can't wait (I need to wash the shower curtains but that can happen any time). So I've decided that I will be creative with my Hybrid Cure (creativity *is* supposed to be one of my hallmarks, after all) and declare the first part of next week to be an extension of this week. The second part of next week is unavailable, and I will be offline. (For a reason that delights me, and that you will hear about in due course.)
So, let's look at the tasks of Week Five and Week Five and a Half, with renewed vigor (having given myself the aforementioned kick in the butt):
Borrowing from Alana's post which kicked off this week, with my comments in italics...
From The Book:
In Apartment Therapy, The Eight Step Cure, by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan, Week Five deals with the Home Office, however humble it may be. The following is from p. 156.
Bones:
Take care of repairs this week. As previously admitted, my Cure is not worrying about repairs. I'll deal with them after the basics are done here.
Clean office area and related closets. The closet was dealt with in a previous week. Yay. "Clean Office Area" is waiting for "De-clutter Office Area" to be done. When the shelves are finally up, I think we'll all be amazed at how quickly I'm able to move along with the de-cluttering.
Vacuum, dust, and mop throughout. Later. Maybe in Week Seven, I'll get to the "Buy New Vacuum" step in this Cure, then, let the good times roll! Breath:
Declutter files An ongoing effort. Massive mountains of paper must still be turned into molehills.
Tackle cord octopus. Cord-topus will be dealt with when old computer goes to a new home, and wireless access is set up, both of which are in the grand plan.
Try a one-day fast. That's media fast, not food fast. I haven't actually sat down and watched an entire program on television since January 1, 2010. I don't feel the need of fasting from TV watching, somehow. I have tried a fast from computer use in the past, and have been able to do it, but will not be doing it this time around.
Heart:
Buy fresh flowers. With Mother's Day coming up on Sunday, I may buy some flowers in memory of my mother. This is the first Mother's Day since she died, and I'm mostly trying not to think about it.
Choose at least one soft or hard thing to add or subtract.Here's where I get into the tenuous territory of not really understanding how to determine whether soft or hard is needed. I just do things with the apartment until it feels right to me, not until it matches some mythic mathematical formula. Head:
Cook three meals at home this week. Cooking and eating are an ongoing exercise.
Eat at home Sunday through Thursday. Since I eat at home 95% of the time, this is not really an issue. Eating *healthily* whether I'm at home or out is the real issue for me.
Go to bed early and read before sleep. Oops.
Optional: Look into wireless technology. This is one of the dominoes that is waiting for several other dominoes to do their thing first.
So -- what is it I really want to accomplish in the next few days? If the shelves get set up: Books can be moved onto one portion of said shelves. Keepsake boxes can be relocated from their current positions on chairs in the living room, and the filling of them can continue in the storage room. Other things that are currently stored (or "put") other places can be put away on the shelves. Filing can continue more easily.
If the shelves don't get set up: The books will stay on the bed for now. The keepsake boxes will stay in the living room, and I'll walk back and forth with things for them, as I am doing now. (That way *does* give me more exercise, I'll admit.) Things that are elsewhere will stay there for now. Filing will continue, but not as easily.
Okay, that's enough talking. On to action. *SCB kicks self in the butt*
You may have noticed that there was no sum-up of Week Four with "After" pictures. That's because the living room is nowhere near ready for its close-up. By Week Seven or Eight, I should be able to wrap up the living room.
I will wait for Alana's post to truly start Week Five, but for now, I'll post Before pictures of the home office, aka Writing Room. These pictures are so very "Beforeish" that it's embarrassing to post them, but... by the end of the Cure, I hope you'll be able to see a vast improvement!
Once again, there is much that has to await the setting-up of shelving in the storage room, but I can certainly keep myself busy this week sorting and filing papers. If I can get the bulk of those wrangled into storage containers of one sort or another (or discarded/shredded, as the case may be), I will be VERY happy.
Some day, the bed in the Writing Room will just be a bed, instead of being a holding/sorting/piling station. I look forward to that day with eager anticipation. Here's the long view, from the door, and a close-up. Yes, that's my Christmas tree. What? Doesn't everyone have a Christmas tree on a bath-bench in their home office? It's the latest thing in home decor! (The tree will go in the storage room, once said room is ready to receive it. I promise.)
And guess what? I have a lampshade question! (Don't I always?) I had this lamp of Dad's rewired, and I want to use it in the Writing Room. It's unique, and I'm sure there was a story about it -- unfortunately, it's a story I never requested. It's black marble, in a very interesting sort of style -- can anyone name the style for me? Or was the lampmaker just playing about with bits of left-over marble? Anyway, what shape of shade would you suggest?
Since this Hybrid Cure is also very much about the Storage Room, let's take a look in there, shall we? (Much as I hate to even suggest that...) All the papers that were removed from various containers in the far end of the room had to go somewhere -- and now they must be dealt with before they can be put away. Oh my.
And, much as I hate to say it, two of the drawers in my dresser in the bedroom are filled with papers. I'd really like to be able to use them for clothes. I think I'll start with them today. (And no, I have not taken a picture of them.)
That should be enough to be going on with, don't you think?
