Office Work

I spent this past weekend updating the office. Sean and I have a habit of discussing what needs to be done around the house and then sort of doing it all in one insane whirlwind rather than a little at a time. We needed furniture this past winter. We went to the store and came home with two couches and a massive Thanksgiving worthy dining set. Now we're redoing the office, getting two new kitchen appliances and contemplating tackling the ever-more-lumpy driveway. Maybe next spring we'll paint the exterior and re-floor the entire interior, you know, just for fun and heart attacks.

Anyway, the office is my secret shame. It is the place to pile bills and old books and kitschy toys and anything that doesn't have a home elsewhere. It wouldn't be such a problem if it wasn't one of the first things you see when you come into the house.

After one too many attacks of claustrophobia incited by the dark brown (faux!) wood paneling/dark brown carpet/ low lighting and piles of junk, I decided I'd had enough. I told Sean I'd be painting it blue. What I meant to say was that I'd be painting it blue, clearing it out, rearranging the furniture and adding some lovely paisley throw pillows for good measure. I was three steps into this plan before I realized that I was effectively ruining his man-cave. That kind of dingy, cluttered, electronic filled place where men go to be men? The man cave. And now Sean's was "river mist blue" and just waiting for it's throw pillows.

What was done was done, and Sean did his best to assure me that he didn't mind and besides, if we ever finish the basement he'll just flee down there with his piles of stock reports and his USB cables.

I really did have good intentions. This all started as an attempt for some "togetherness" and frankly, the place was a fire hazard. We both spend a lot of time on our computers. He in his man-cave and me, well, wherever I want since I've got the laptop. I thought that by rearranging things a teensy bit I could have a little workspace in there too, someplace to share with him when we're both on the internet. It's just that we have very different tastes when it comes to making a room feel comfortable. Sean and Queen Victoria would have been decorating BFF's. I prefer something more modern and colorful. He's all about wood paneling and leather bound books, I like clean lines and bold colors.

We've been pretty good at accommodating each other, at least until this weekend when I knocked down his fort and put up a doll house. I've learned my lesson now, and I appreciated the fact that he did his best to assure me that "River Mist Blue" and paisley aren't so bad.

It's hard sometimes to figure out how to compromise when you can have such disparate ideas but I've realized we both want each other to be happy and that provides the flexibility needed to find common ground.