Wednesday, July 23, 2008

I have space!

I had two projects going today, and I got one of them done.

Yesterday I was trying to find something to do, and getting cranky because I didn't have anything to do. There wasn't any cleaning that needed to be done, or anything...actually I ended up bagging up the big thing of flour we had bought, but I hadn't remembered at first that it needed to be done. So I bagged up the flour and got Colin dividing the cat food up into bags also. We buy a 15lb. bag and then store it in smaller plastic bags so it doesn't go stale.

After that I didn't have anything to do again. I would have sat down and sewn something, but I needed a table for that and I was at a standstill on fixing the table I needed for sewing...SO, no sewing till I got the stuff for the table.

So I decided I'd get that little cabinet in my bathroom painted. These next two weeks and the last two weeks of August are probably the most time I'll have completely free for a while, so I thought I should probably get the thing painted. So I pulled all the stuff out of it (toilet paper, soap, and shampoo, it's great for holding toilet paper) and took it out to the garage to paint. Of course, I had to do something with the stuff I pulled out, which is why I now have this mess, sculpture, mess in my bathroom.









"The Invisible Cabinet"? "Bathroom Cabinet: Unplugged"? Yeah, whatever...it's a mess...and I just hope no one splashes water all over the toilet paper before I get it safely back in the cabinet.

So I've been sanding, priming, and painting the cabinet yesterday and today, and I also got the table fixed today. It's just a big folding table, but part of it broke (I'm not going to bother trying to explain what exactly broke on the table, you'd have to see it to understand)...suffice to say, what kept the table leg from collapsing broke, so one end of the table wouldn't stay up properly. There wasn't really any way to fix it, other than to come up with a different way to hold the leg where it was supposed to be...so Dad got some conduit clamps to put it back together. Unfortunately, the 1" were too big and the 3/4" fit around the table leg, but weren't deep enough to be flush with the table top...grrr. So I had to put some washers (which we didn't have) under the clamp so the screws (which we didn't have either) would work properly.









I went to Lowes last night and got the washers (correction: I got some washers) and the right size of screws. I then paid for it with the American Express card (that Dad had given me to use at the gas station because they get a rebate on it) instead of the Mastercard that has my name on it and is for things like this where I'm not actually paying for the items, so it comes out of my parents' account, but I don't have to use either of their debit cards. So I had to sign Dad's name for it (ooo, forgery!). First instance of my brain not working properly last night. I then went and got gas (I remembered that!), used the right card, and it wasn't until I was almost home that I realized I should have used the other card at Lowes. Duh.

Then this morning when I was fixing the table, I realized that I had only gotten enough washers for one clamp...while I had two that needed to be installed. Second instance of my brain not working!

Oh well, it all turned out fine anyway...Dad had enough other miscellaneous washers of various sizes that I could use them on the other clamp. It amazes me, it really does, how I can remember some things, some times, perfectly well and then make mistakes like that. It's really annoying!! :(

Anyway...after I got the table fixed, I had to get it set up in my bedroom, which meant clearing off the current table and folding it up. Which wasn't too bad...I'd been meaning to get some of the clutter off my desk anyway and this was a good reason to. I got rid of some stuff and put other stuff away and in the process rearranged all the wires from my computer, and phone, and various things plugged into the USB ports on my computer and keyboard, and headphone wires... I also accidentally turned my computer off at one point because I was moving plugs on the power strip and plunked one of those big plugs (I know there's a name for those, I've heard Dad say what they're called...) down on the switch for the power strip and turned it off. Oops.

But it's all nice and neat now, and I have room for my computer and the sewing machine, and I won't have to squeeze the chair all the way around to the other table to sew, I can just slide over to where I need to be.









Lovely! A whole nice workstation...what more could a girl want? Oh, actually, I could want my favorite headphones (hanging on the shelving by the table) to not be about to die, but there's not much I can do about that. :(

As long as I can keep this clean and there's actually enough room to sew, this will be so much nicer than what I had before. I like this table better too...it has a nice dark laminate on the top, while the other one had a really cheap fake wood laminate. As you can see in that picture, Gracie was checking it out after I finished...I think she approved. I also put new rubber feet on the table and they really smelled strong. I said it smelled like new shoes, and Colin said it smelled like new tires...both probably, but either way it was giving me a headache...thankfully they aren't smelling so much anymore.

I thought about setting up the desk with the monitor in the corner, and the keyboard out on the desk where it is now. That's how Dad has his desk at work set up, and it does save space, by putting the monitor into a corner. I tried that though and found that wasn't going to work at all! I don't know if you get used to it after a while, or what. I had a feeling I would end up either facing the keyboard and turning my head all the time, or facing the monitor and twisting to type on the keyboard...and either way ending up with some strange back problems in the process. Plus I found I wasn't able to type properly without the monitor right in front of me, because it didn't feel like it was connected...which was a really strange feeling. I don't know how people can have the monitor and keyboard arranged like that! I guess if you do, you've obviously gotten used to it being like that, but I don't think I could do that! :p

So, I should be able to finish painting the cabinet tomorrow, I've got my desk all set up, and my brain seems to be working today. Wonderful! :p

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yay! More room to sleep under the desk :)

I have my monitor on the corner of my desk...when it is right in the front the back part sticks out too far and the desk has to be pulled away from the wall. Which takes up even more of the tiny amount of empty space we have in here...I've gotten used to it though. I don't really look at the keyboard, either, so that probably helps.

N said...

Ha-ha!! We'll put the bed under the table length-wise next time! :P Oh wait, that's right, those airbeds are longer than I think they are...

Yeah, that's what I had to do with my other table...pull it out from the wall so the monitor sort of hung over the back. This table is deeper, which is nice.

I don't really look at the keyboard either, just somehow the disconnect between the keyboard which was right in front of me and then the monitor being miles away (not really, but that's how it felt!) threw me off. It was very strange, because I wouldn't have thought I'd have any problem with it either.

I have really good hand-eye coordination, so I think maybe it was just not working with that! :D

Anonymous said...

Hey natalie! have fun painting your bathroom cabinet! i need to sand, prime, and paint the vanity/cabinet in my bathroom soon.