As I noted, I got a package from DFTBA. One item is a Prompt Book from Life’s Library. The first one:
Where are you right now? Describe it in detail.
The ironic aspect of this assignment is that, as soon as I agreed to write about the place, I knew I had to change it. It was a mess. Now, it’s hardly tidy – too much stuff in a small space – but much improved.
The room is the office. It’s about a nine-foot cube. The most obvious features are built-in books on at least part of every wall.
East Wall
Except for the end of the north wall bookcase, there’s a bare wall for about a meter. The one front window, which the girl cat likes to look out. Below that is the radiator. On top of the radiator frame are boxes of CDs I recently got from my late FIL’s collection. The bookcase starts next to the window, only three shelves, mostly unsorted books most recently at my in-laws’ house.
On top, indeed on the top of all the bookshelves throughout are Hess trucks, in chronological order.
Below those three shelves is a four-drawer file cabinet, painted blue, positioned at a 45-degree angle. The top two drawers are mine, the lower two are my wife’s. Part of the straightening involved making sure my wife could access her stuff.
South Wall
From left to right, books, and more books. The first shelves are likewise three rows, primarily my wife’s books. The next section goes to the floor, seven shelves. the top two and the fourth are miscellaneous, the third, my wife’s. The last three are for the tallest books, so music reference, some comics-related items, and books about Sondheim and the Beatles.
The next sections, more than twice as wide, are four shelves of pop culture; music, film, television. It’s where my Mozart Requiem and Handel Messiah scores reside.
Then the built-in desk – more a shelf – with the laptop, and a lamp. Pencils/pens in an Avengers: Age of Ultron cup from Subway. Below that is a shelf of photo albums from the previous century, which I haven’t looked at in years. The last section of five shelves has a number of Marvel Masterworks and more pop culture.
West Wall
The last of five long shelves are primarily my wife’s books. There’s also a section of anti-racism books. The shelf below holds the phone, the boom box, and pictures. Below that reams of paper. I used to have a printer on my desk, but recently it ceased to work; I suspect it was zapped by lightning.
Below that, some old, tall books I’ve read but still want to keep. In front of those books, the garbage can, the shredding bag, and the recycling bin – formerly filled with 17.5 pounds of cat litter.
Right of that is a little bit of wall with the light switch, then the door. My daughter recently fixed the knob, which was, alternately, too tight and too loose.
North Wall
It’s empty for the width of the door, except for a folded table. Then a separate bookcase from near the ceiling to floor. If you’ve been on ZoOM with me, it’s what you see in the background.
There are two sections of eight rows. Section one has, from top to bottom, trivia books, religious books including several hymnals, philosophy, and children’s books. Section two contains history, biographies, language, and pop culture paperbacks.
These book delineations are imperfect and are based on factors such as book/shelf heights, and recency of acquisition.
This room is where I almost always blog. It inspires me, AND it’s where I access my fact-checking resources. And all of this claustrophobic writing reminds me of this song.
I understand, but I am mainly plagued with wall to wall records, CD’s and tapes, of the cassette, 8 track and reel to reel varieties. I have been collecting since 1957 and where some of my generation were heavily into alcohol and/or drugs (though, I’m guilty of a little of that, too, back in the late sixties and early seventies), my ongoing, heavy addiction was music…
I find that your choice of song is, painfully, appropriate to my situation, as well.