If I Had a Real Workspace, Maybe I Could Get Some Real Work Done

I'm completely, totally overwhelmed by the HUGE mess in our office that all the stuff displaced from Ike's room redo has made. Hangars are piled high in plastic drifts, second tier art is stacked against shelves, and boxes of crap lurk in every corner. I know I need to hunker down and get busy in there, but HB has been gone all week and I am on single parent duty until Friday. In other words, I barely have two spare seconds to rub together. So, let me get to the point. While many of you may be dreaming of fantastic bedrooms, or glorious kitchens, or vast and perfect living spaces, I am fantasizing about a clean and well organized office space -- well, that and daycare.

This would do (for the office... it's a little spartan for a daycare facility):

Marie Claire Maison

It's very film noir, yes? I could do without the fleet of rotary phones -- I'm not a switchboard operator. But I love the walls, the floors, the jielde, the amazing card catalog, and that killer desk. That sucker is like the Moby Dick of Art Deco. Moby Dec? I want to spear it and bring it home with me.

Anyway, that's what I'm thinking about. One room in our house is totally finished, and now the rest of the house is looking shabby by comparison. This is how we roll in perpetual renovators anonymous.

Music to Paint By

Painting is hard work, and you absolutely need the jamz to make it happen. Hatching the plot to paint is really the most fun part of the process, and then when you actually get down and dirty, things start to suck. I'm nothing if not a sharing care bear, so I'm going to hook you up with some of my favorite songs from 2010. Now, these are not the songs I chillax to. These tunes will make you fist pump... maybe even against your will.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ld-0na1mpI

#1. Kicktart even your most tedious projects with Riot Rhythm from Sleigh Bells. If you are tired and old and like your music elevator style, then don't even bother because this shit will blow your eardrums out. But if you want to recast the tragedy of junior high with you in the lead role as the coolest, most badass bitch ever to rule school, then click the link. And then kick some ass. Or, you know, maybe roll some paint on a few walls.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr6hNjOLLeM

#2. Now that your heart is pounding like you just downed a case of red bull, smooth out your paint strokes with Superstar by Ghostface Killah. The latest album from this Wu Tang alum combines classic funk and soul samples with all the street action you've come to know and love from GH. Bitches and hos, take note!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rH_7_XRfTMs&feature=related

#3. You need to make it down the home stretch, but it's also time to start the cool down routine. Enter Sprawl II from Arcade Fire. Is it a little less spazzy fresh than my other two choices? Hell yes, but its fearless beauty won't let you down. That trim is going to be glossy, perfect, and done in a flash.

Hope you enjoyed today's musical stylings, or at least that your ears still work.

Come back soon to see Ike's big room reveal! It's all done, I'm just waiting for the sun to come out so I can take pictures. Maybe you could suggest some tunes for photographing interior spaces? That would be awesome.

What Weekend?

It's Monday already? Well, that's stupid. Ike's playroom is coming along, but progress has been slowed by a tragic sliding accident -- Ike is ok, just a little busted up and in need of extra cuddle time. In between the big sad tears we managed to paint his room and put the furniture back into place, but there's still a lot of finishing work to do. Plus there are drills and ladders and paint cans everywhere, and we're out of milk. And now Monday is here. Poop on that.

So I'm going to get to setting things straight over here, but I promise you'll be the first to know when Ike's pad is complete. Hopefully it won't take too long to turn our house rightside up... as long as we stay away from the dastardly slide.

The amazing glass encased dioramas are by Thomas Doyle. This guy understands how stressful home ownership can be.