The Bookshelf

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas! I did - and I got some great gifts for my apartment! Hopefully I'll get to all of them, but I'm going to start with the present from my dad and stepmom, since it's been consuming most of my night.

I have been coveting a particular bookshelf at Pier 1 for months, and now that it's sitting in my living room I'm so happy. Thanks Dad and Nicole!

Okay, let's preface the story with this. Me, little 5-foot-tall Meghan, dragged this box....

....up these stairs....

....all by myself. For a little context, that box was a good 4 inches taller than me. Luckily, I remembered to lift with my back, with a jerking, twisting motion.

I've never put a real piece of furniture together before, so I was little nervous. But I was so excited about the bookshelf that I decided to go for it anyway.

I wasn't sure what any of these were for, so I just threw them away.

It was pretty easy and straight forward up until this point. When I had to put the other side on is where I ran into trouble.

Both of those triangular shelves had three little dowels on each side that had to fit into the sides of the bookshelf. It took me about 45 minutes to get them all in. Either one fit in and the other five didn't, or five fit in and one didn't. But I eventually figured it out.

Voilà!

And then the best part - putting stuff all over it! The style is called "bookseller" because those triangular shelves are obviously meant to hold books. I think it's really unique and pretty, but I need to get some more books now that I have two bookshelves to fill!

So far I'm really happy with it. I think it looks so nice and really goes well with the rest of my furniture. I felt like my living room was missing just one more piece, this makes it feels complete.

Now, who the hell is going to clean up this mess??

Tão Ciumento!

That's how you say "so jealous" in Portuguese. I am so jealous of my mother because in August, she moved to the Azores. For those of you not in the know, the Azores is an archipelago of 9 islands about 900 miles off the coast of Portugal.

My mom lives on the island Terciera. She has a villa right near the beach, is enjoying 60-degree weather in December, and has been doing all sorts of fun things like going to bull runs.

While she still needs to send me some pictures of her fabulous villa furnished (since I took most of her furniture....), here are some pictures she sent of me of her new place and the neighborhood. Needless to say, I'm already planning my vacay.

And here's our dog Topaz, being very pouty at the airport. Poor Toto, I'm sure the 5-hour flight was not fun for her. But I hear she's having a blast and making lots of new friends in her new island paradise home!

Fa La La La La

Day....

and night.

I am really happy with the way my icicle lights look on my balcony. I decided not to do a tree this year, so it's nice to have a little something luminescent. Though I do have those nice big living room windows, so if I decide to do a tree next year, I'm sure it will look really pretty.

With my lights finally up, I'm starting feel a little more in the Christmas spirit. So I thought I would share my holiday/winter playlist. I think it's rockin this year!

"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" Bebo Norman

"Mushaboom" Feist

"Changes" Seu Jorge

"Amazing Grace" Sufjan Stevens

"It Was a Strange Time in My Life" Jens Lekman

"It Really Is (A Wonderful Life)" Mindy Smith

"You Really Got a Hold on Me" She & Him

"Love Came Down at Christmas" Jars of Clay

"You, Me, and the Bourgeoisie" The Submarines

"Carol of the Bells" The Bird and The Bee

"That Was the Worst Christmas Ever!" Sufjan Stevens

"Winter Song" Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson

"King of Carrot Flowers Part 2 & 3" Neutral Milk Hotel

"Winter '05" Ra Ra Riot

"You Could Be Happy" Snow Patrol

"Tidal Wave" The Killers

"No Christmas While I'm Talking" The Walkmen

I have two songs from Sufjan Steven's 2006 Christmas album (Sufjan Stevens: Songs for Christmas) in there. Buy it - it's gorgeous.

It's ALIVE!!!!

I am happy to report that neither I nor my cat are dead. For myself, there is no excuse for neglecting my blog for almost 3 months, other than I've been oh so busy and stressed out with work and such, and for a while my apartment was looking slightly worse than a city dump.

As for Mollie, I was genuinely worried that after I arrived home on Saturday from my three-day Thanksgiving vacation at the Harper-family celebration in Ohio that Mollie would not be alright. She was acting very strange in the days before I left and I was afraid that at 12 and a half years old, it might just be her time. But when I opened my door she ran out of my bedroom and proceeded to chastise me very loudly for the next few hours. So I think she's fine.

Anyway, now that Christmas is coming, I'm back to blogging! I'm planning on hanging some icicle lights from my balcony in the next few days, so I'm sure that will be a terrifying disaster I'll just have to write about.

1,693 Page Views and Counting

Mollie says, "Happy One-Year Anniversary Home Sweet Blog!"

Well, she's actually saying, "Meghan, I want a drink out of the faucet!", but the picture was so cute I had to use it. I can't believe I've kept this up for a whole year. Thanks to everyone for reading!

Très chic!

Oh my god! Is that Mia Farrow circa 1968? No, it's my sister Kaitlin and this is an update on her apartment. The last time we saw it, she had just barely moved in. But during my visit to Laramie a few weekends ago, it was clear she has been busy.

I like what she's done with the place. It's kind of a bohemian/"lived in" look and I think it really fits well with the space (and the new hair).

Well done!

Busy as a Little Bee

Okay, just because I haven't had time for blogging lately doesn't mean that I haven't been doing anything with my apartment. I've actually gotten a lot done in the last two weeks! Where to start?

Oh, yes. I got a great frame for my "Starfish" picture. After a diasterous attempt to hang it on my dorm room wall junior year of college, the previous frame was literally in pieces. I took the picture when I was 14 on a class trip to look at the tide pools in Homer, Alaska. I would like to try hanging it on the wall in my bedroom, but I'm kind of nervous. That misadventure will probably merit a blog post all its own.

Here are some pictures I did manage to hang. I was having a hard time figuring out what to do with this bizarre corner in my kitchen, it's kind of dead space. I was also having a hard time deciding where to put my "Virginia" pictures. And what do you know - the two problems came to together to form a solution! I think they look really cool above my sink. And because I just used matting, not frames, I was able to hang them with just wall stickies.

I also finally re-covered my bulletin board for my work desk. I decided to go with the green fabric, but I might try out the brown later too. Instead of trying to take the frame off the board to wrap the fabric around the cork, I took the lazy way out and just superglued it down. Unfortunately, (as I knew it would) this left some superglue seep-through on parts of the fabric. To cover this up, I bought some fake flowers and put them in clusters in places where the glue stains were particularly noticeable. Overall, I think it looks really cute and definitely matches better than the Paris pictures. Please also note the Crate & Barrel soap dish that I am using to hold my paper clips.

Believe it or not, I've done more, but I think I'll have to talk about it later. Oh, one more thing. I had to attend a tech trade show Friday morning for work. (Does CEDIA mean anything to anyone? No? Okay.) Instead of trying to fight rush hour traffic and then trying find a parking spot downtown, I decided the sensible thing to do would be to ride the Lightrail. For someone who gets lost as often as I do, the thought of taking a 45-minute train ride to downtown Denver and back all by myself was terrifying. But I loved it! As I sat there enjoying the ride and catching up on Project Rungay on my Crackberry, I felt very much the sophisticated city gal. I'm not sure a sophisticated city gal would take a picture of waiting at the station, but give me a break - this is all new and exciting!

Ready to Roll!

The DNC is coming to town next week and although I didn't get a ticket, I've still got to represent! I guess I'm not too disappointed that I don't get to go, considering I already got a front row, press box seat to Obama's campaign rally in Laramie a few months ago (Oh, Bama!).

In case you haven't guessed already, this is a tree-huggin', queer-lovin', Iraq War-hatin', Pro Choice-votin', bleeding heart kind of home. And proud of it. I can't wait to vote in my second presidential election! You're all registered to vote, right?

My amazing bumper sticker came in the mail today. I've never had a bumper sticker on my car before, so I'm kind of excited. For your very own "Sorry W" sticker, visit the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Web site.

Democratic National Convention
The Democratic Party

It's in the details, darling

On Sunday I got totally, completely unpacked and it feels so good! Now that it's done, I am appalled it took me as long as it did. It's nice because now I get to focus on the little things that make it feel like I actually live here. I'm exciting start doing more, but I can't rush things (like that would be a problem anyway....). So here are some little things I took care of this weekend.

I finally got a bedskirt. You know, like an adult.

I love this little telephone stand. I need to get a longer phone cord so that it doesn't have to be stretched across the wall like it is now, and I want to get some fake plants to put in the vases.

My blue telephone pole insulators look really pretty when the sun shines through them. I want to find some more in different shades.

And now, the pièce de résistance - the closet. I think this was the part I was putting off for so long because it was such a complete disaster for so long. But now it is all organized and it is huge! And check out the built in shoe rack. Green much?

Birthday Presents in Action

I know I mentioned some of the great things for my apartment that I got for my birthday--and here they are!

The stone and wire cricket found a home in my living room. He may later move to my office, but I like him here for now.


I bought this little ceramic owl today with some of the money my dad gave me. He will definitely be going to the office on Monday. The Buddha for luck and the owl for wisdom. I'll be unstoppable!

And finally, the barstools that I am still so excited about. The style is called "Durango," which I guess is my homage to Wyoming. They are really comfortable and I think they look so nice with my other furniture. My mom also got me a table-height chair in the same style that I use for my desk chair.

I wonder if I can get some more good stuff for Christmas....

Work it!

Since I spend more waking hours at my desk than I do at home, I thought I would do a post on how I've been "decorating" my little cubicle. For some reason that wasn't intentional, I have gone with an Asian theme, but I like it and I'm going to run with it. Maybe it will help calm me when I get frazzled.

Let me start by saying that the building where I work is awesome. The whole ceiling is a skylight, there is a water fixture with a waterfall in the lobby, and it has a very open-air layout.

So here is my desk area. Keep in mind, it is a work in progress, but I like what I have so far. One of my favorite things is the name tag I made for my cubicle. Everyone gets to make their own. Recognize the flower?

I think my next task for making my desk more beautiful will be changing my bulletin board. It's still decorated from freshman year of college when my dorm room theme was black and white Paris. I want to get some pretty Asian-print fabric to cover it with. I would also like to get something to cover the walls of the cubicle with. That blue is not a great color.

So there it is! Hopefully my lucky bamboo and little resin Buddha will bring me luck in my new job. By the way, I took all these pictures on my Crackberry. Not a bad little camera on there!

UPDATE: On Saturday, I went to a fabric store and picked out some cloth to cover my bulletin board with. But I can't decide between the green and the brown! I'll bring my bulletin board home on Monday and see which looks better.

Happy Birthday to ME!

This has nothing to do with my apartment, but today I turned 22 and I got the cutest birthday cake.

Adorable, right? Those are real flowers on top and a ribbon around the bottom. It almost hurt to cut it! So thank you to Kaitlin, Kim, Dylan, Skyler, and John for a lovely cake. I can't wait to eat the rest of it!

But I also got some cute things for my apartment for my birthday. I got some fab barstools from my mom, a gift certificate to Pier 1 from my dad, a really cool ornamental wire and stone cricket from Kristen, and a card from Kaitlin that I'm going to make a great magnent out of. Lucky me that I have friends and family with such great taste!

Evolution....

Things are finally coming together! Details coming soon....

So, so close

As I type this, my mother is driving across the country bringing me my furniture. She should be here tomorrow afternoon. I am SO excited! I really can't wait to see what my apartment is going to look like with some furniture in it. Goodbye squalor, hello style!

Hallelujah

Alright, I finally got my satellite! Sixteen dark days after moving I have television again. When I think about all the "Project Runway" marathons, "Judge Judy" reruns, and "Living Lohan" I've missed it makes me sick. Just sick.

Passing the time

Things at my apartment have reached a disasterous stand-still. Unpacking has all but ended because I simply have no place to put anything. Plus, it's too damn hot to do much anyway. So what's a girl to do to fill the hours? I have been exploring my new neighborhood, seeing what's out there. I've been to a farmer's market, went to some garage sales, visited the nearby mall, etc.

I've also been to my local library almost everyday. That's because since I still haven't had my cable installed yet (a long, frustrating story....) I have been checking out lots of movies. Thankfully, this library has a pretty decent selection. And since I have nothing to say about the state of my apartment because things really haven't progressed since I moved in, I thought that I would offer some quick thoughts on the ones I've watched so far. In no particular order:

Slither (2006)
Starring: Nathan Fillion, Elizabeth Banks
A really good B-movie, low-budget horror-comedy. Not very scary, but pretty gross. Who doesn't like some gratuitous blood and guts every now and then? YYY

Thumbsucker (2005)
Starring: Lou Pucci, Tilda Swinton
I'm all for too-cool-for-school indie dramedies, but this one was a little "Look at how quirky I am" for my taste. YY

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
Just as good as everyone said it would be. Beautiful, dark, sad, and just a little scary. I can't believe it took me so long to see it. YYYY

Lars and the Real Girl (2007)
Starring: Ryan Gosling
So much better than I thought it was going to be. Watch it when you're feeling low, it's definitely a feel-good movie. There are literally no mean people in it. YYYY

Sicko (2007)
Like Michael Moore has made a movie I haven't liked, and this one is no different. Really disturbing. Maybe I should have looked for an apartment in Canada. YYY

The Simpsons Movie (2007)
I have to say, I was expecting something a little more grand. Plotwise, the movie was basically just a really long, normal episode. But the animation is quite impressive, and of course it is funny. YYY

The Orphanage (2007)
I loved this one because my favorite kind of movie is a really good horror story. If you liked "The Others," you'll probably like this too. But remember, you'll have to do some reading! YYYY

Grindhouse (2007)
Starring: Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez, Kurt Russell
I actually liked "Planet Terror" more than "Death Proof," which seems to be the opposite of everyone else. Though very different, they are both grisly, bloody, over-the-top, and really cool. YYY

November (2005)
Starring: Courtney Cox-Arquette, James LeGros
Almost unwatchable, and I was trying to be a good sport. Think "Memento" meets "Donnie Darko" meets indie crap. Y

Waitress (2007)
Starring: Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion
Kind of in the same boat as "Lars and the Real Girl." It's adorable. YYY

The Matador (2005)
Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear
Not at all what I thought it was going to be. It's different, funny, has a twisty-turvy (in a good way) ending, and part of it is set in Denver. Sweet. YYY

So that's it so far. And I've still got "The Constant Gardener," "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," "28 Weeks Later," "Friends with Money," "21 Grams," and "The Cooler" to go through. How many days until my furniture gets here?

It's a tickity-tack hot tranny mess in here

I'm finally all moved! On Tuesday afternoon, I packed up everything in my Laramie apartment and hauled it the two and a half hours down to Denver. I can't believe that I'm finally in my apartment. It's really exciting but also feels kind of weird.

And I got my Internet hooked up this afternoon so I can finally blog about my moving pains. Actually, the move wasn't that bad. I got a lot of help from my sister and also my aunt and cousin once I got down here. Plus, it didn't hurt that I really don't have that much stuff. My entire life fit into an Explorer and a Civic.

So here are some pictures of what my fab apartment looks like right now. Sad, isn't it? The kitchen looks nice, but the living room is a nightmare and there's nothing to do about the bedroom. But it's hard to even start unpacking some things when you don't have anything to store them in (i.e. furniture). A lot of it is just laziness too, I have a lot of time to kill so I'm trying to pace myself.

I think my next big unpacking project is going to be my closet. It is so huge! I am going to have to get some more clothes and shoes to fill it up with. Maybe I'll tackle that tomorrow.

Well, I look forward to blogging more about this apartment's transformation from a glorified storage unit to a sophisticated urban dwelling!

PS Talk about moving pains--I think I broke my arm!