Feeling all handy

A while ago, I decided it was time to get a dresser. I was tired of having clothes all over the place, and figured at least with a dresser, I could shut the mess away from view if it didn't motivate me to fold them and keep them all nice and orderly. I also figured if I had a dresser, there would be another surface on which to place things (no, I'm not making this up. This is really one of the reasons I wanted a dresser), which would be immensely helpful given my current arrangement of little furniture because I have no idea how long I will be here, even though I've been saying that for a year and a half.

I considered buying a used dresser, but most of them were huge and too hard to move with limited transportation access and cost a lot more than I wanted to pay for a used dresser. Instead, I caved and went the Ikea route. I didn't need anything flashy, so I could go with low end whatever and make do. But, when I got to Ikea I found out almost all their dressers are pressboard, except one line, which is pine. And it seemed really absurd to spend money on pressboard when I could have spent the same amount on a huge dresser made of wood. Maybe. And it's nice to have furniture that doesn't sag. So I spent twice as much as I'd planned and bought a pine dresser that needed to be stained, varnished, and assembled. And part of the justification for this was it would be nice to have a project. (Again, yes, I really did think this). I knew there would be a nice sense of satisfaction in completing it,it would give a sense of ownership and pride, and the work would be good for me.

All of which was true, although I did learn a few things. First, when you live in an apartment with limited space and it is October/November and too cold to work outside, you should stop and reconsider the timing of your furniture project. It worked out just fine and warm weather may not have really helped in the end, but still. Apartments are not conducive to furniture assembly. 

I also learned that screwing in screws that refuse to go straight into the whole requires a LOT of muscle, most of the muscle being contributed by ones I don't use that often, it would seem. I'm sore. This led me to the third very important thing that I learned: it is time for me to get a drill. (Of course, having a drill might compel me to find reasons to use it, but that could be a good thing, right? Sure.)

Anyway, I finally finished my project yesterday, and it does look really nice (although I'm sure if you looked closely you'd see how amateurish the effort was). It was really satisfying, and I'm pleased with it, and it's great to say, "I did all this work." And, without any apologies, I'm going to show it off. 

Ta Da! (Notice the piles of stuff on top. Told you I wasn't kidding about that). So, now that that project is done, I guess I should come up with another one. Hmmm. Maybe I'll try writing that great American novel everyone talks about...