A Room of One’s Own

I have been redecorating my office. Disturbingly, this is something that has not happened for 27 years.  I found myself looking at the inside of a door etched with the frantic nail scratching of a sweet dog, long since passed, who was frightened by thunder; paintable ‘Anaglypta‘ wallpaper now stiffly rippling with age, rising up like Japanese Wave Art across one wall; loopy, repulsive carpet when peeled back, reveals an ancient spotty underpad that always reminds me of Pimiento Loaf.  (You know the one: a beige deli ‘meat’ with festive coloured bits sprinkled throughout. Spoiler: Those bits will not be maraschinos …)

Beneath the underpad is random, dirty flooring comprised of a variety of planks that likely originated from the garage of some drunken uncles who installed many years before …

There was much for me to do.

I have been waking up very anxious lately and decided that I needed a genuine project to distract me from the endless pulse of shocking news coming out of Ukraine.

Sometimes it can be helpful to harness anxiety, funnelling that twitching, ballooning, nervous energy into getting something accomplished …

And so I began.

There’s something about the solitary act of sanding baseboards with the radio on, very early in the morning that really settles me. I don’t know if this ties into the Buddhist “chop wood, carry water” adage but it’s very satisfying. I had a box of jammy-custard biscuits and hot coffee nearby, switching to hot water in the afternoon so that I didn’t spin out on excess caffeine …

I also discovered a number of podcasts (particularly Grace Dent’s Comfort Eating which was extremely cheering) and then in the afternoon, I enjoyed some quality time with George Stroumboulopoulos who remains the epitome of cool and a crush that has been going on a very long time now … sadly, mine, that is, not George’s.

Once the sanding was complete, I painted the trim and coving and then enlisted The General’s guidance about how to tame the Anaglypta tsunami. With the aid of a sharp blade, much courage and sheer determination we sliced the curves of wallpaper, painted a diluted glue mixture beneath and slowly massaged back into position. Very rewarding. The paint, (I will never be unfaithful to Benjamin Moore as it’s like painting with an expensive French face cream) completely removed all evidence of our tampering and looks fresh and new again. The colour is “Lancaster Whitewash” which I have throughout the house as I like it so much.

Today, most exciting of all, Frasier and Niles arrived wearing steel toed boots and carrying all the paraphernalia of the construction trade ready to install new flooring for us. They worked cheerfully together and paused only briefly for coffee and sandwiches; really, I was so moved and grateful for their help but they seemed happy to spend time with one another even though they were both sacrificing their Saturday. The new flooring is rich and gleaming and no longer looks like it came from a cabin that was more “throw-up” than “Thoreau” …

A few months ago I purchased a tiny crystal chandelier (I’m going for an eccentric Bloomsbury-salon vibe as far away from ‘suburban office’ as can be) so that too, is now in place. My geraniums have been very resentful to be moved from their sunny window during all of this but soon they will be reinstalled with all my books and all the assorted bits that make the room feel like me.

I feel so lucky every day to truly have a ‘room of my own.’

6 comments