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Switching rooms
In anticipation of summer, the lad asked me, this morning, if I’d be at all receptive to switching bedrooms. He has found it a bit crowded in his room when his friends come over. And I have to admit that I’ve often thought that they’d be better off in my room, too. Judging by the expression on his face, he didn’t actually expect me to entertain the idea. But I said, “Well, yeah, I’d be receptive. I’ve been thinking I’d rather have your room, anyway.”
Well, I must have been out of my mind.
We are both, regrettably, pack rats. While I’ve managed to restrict most of my pack rat-ism to under my bed, the lad isn’t quite that contained. I think we could fill an entire house with the stuff we’ve uncovered. Moving is like that. And, meanwhile, we have pieces and parts of beds and desks and whatnot scattered between the two rooms and filling up the bathroom. Eventually order will be regained, but I’m not sure that it’ll be in time for me to fall exhaustedly into my own bed tonight. I’m not sure that I’ll have a bed to fall exhaustedly into tonight. I’m not sure that I’ll even care at that point.
On the bright side, when we are finished, those two rooms will be cleaned out and spare. When you want to get ruthless about getting rid of stuff, moving rooms is a really good way to do it. It’s probably worth the effort just on that score, alone.
I finally had to take a break, though. The lad’s music is...shall we say...loud. And not exactly my cup of tea. I can listen only so long before my head begins throbbing in time to the pounding beat. I suddenly feel like an antique. My poor head. At least he has had the grace not to make fun of me. I figure that since he’s doing most of the heavy lifting, the music is his choice. But ohhh...my head. “Good Music” is a highly subjective thing. I do try, though.
Pretty soon, I’ll go back up and start cleaning some more. I’m rather looking forward to getting my new room all tidy and pretty. It’s a cozy space and I think it’ll be just perfect when I’m finished with it.
When I was a young man, I would frequently find little ‘features’ in my bedroom which my sister would find attractive. We ended up switching rooms a lot. First, in room 1, I had a closet, she didn’t. So we switched rooms so she could have a closet. In room 2, I found the phone line and got a working jack installed. We switched again. Back in room 1, I had an additional window I could vent during the summer for a cross breeze. (No central air.) Switched again. Then I decided to put the attic door, which happened to be in room 2, to use. 2 rooms for the price of one. Guess what happened?
You get used to it… 
This kid has a great eye for design, I’ll grant him that. His room is finished. My bed is, at least, put together. But I helped him most of the day. He goes back to school in another week and it would be nice for him to enjoy his new digs for a few days.
I have never seen that room look so good or so orderly. Somehow, he managed to fit his bed, a very large L-shaped desk, a sofa, a table with chair, a DVD shelf, a TV stand with television, a comfy chair, and his footlocker as a coffee table. And there is still plenty of room to spare. It looks like a well appointed studio apartment and I’m totally impressed. Maybe a little envious. 
My brother and I never swapped rooms. He had the attached bathroom and wasn’t going to give that up no matter what. Funny thing, though, when he left home for college, I never did take it over. It was the neatest room in the house, too, with a gable, window seat, pitched roof, and the attic entrance. What I could have done with it!
LOL, this wouldn’t have happened a couple of years ago, before you got the flat screen and moved the puter into the dining room. You used to live in there! It also makes for a smaller room to heat/cool when he is not there! The closet? how did you ever give that up though and down size after 14 years!
Yes, it’s true...since the lad left home, I’ve spread out around the house a great deal more. My bedroom only needs to be a bedroom. I was very cozy and comfy in my new room last night. I’m going to have fun making it pretty.
And yes, my new room will be easier to heat. I can keep the other door closed and that’s a third of the house right there. On the other hand, when he’s gone, I could use his room for a sitting room, too. In the event that I’d actually like to watch a movie on a large screen on occasion.
Switching closets wasn’t too difficult. As I said, there’s a point in the moving process where one gets a bit ruthless. There’s no time like moving day to pare down to the essentials.
I still have a lot of sorting to do in my room. And, probably, some more paring down to do. It will be easier when the lad has gone back to school so I can spread my sorting piles out a bit. There’s a bucket of paint in my near future, too.
Of course, that does leave one question remaining...NOW what am I going to do with all those boxes of books in the attic?!? Maybe built in bookcases on either side of the chimney downstairs is the solution.
Yes book cases would be a lovely touch. But but… would the wood stove dry them out to much? And if you are to do it I would suggest getting the hearth taken out and going flat with it! Come on, you know you want to! LOL. It opened up my living room a lot when we did it.
You *really* want that hearth gone, dontcha? 
I am beginning to come around to that idea. But what a project. The stove weighs 500 pounds!
I’ll have to think more about the bookcase idea. Hadn’t considered what the heat might do to the wood.