Coming to a Close

Well, my time in my little room, and quite possibly, NYC is coming to a close soon. I wish I had been better at keeping up with this blog over the past 5 years, but I'm glad that at least in the first year, I posted rather often, because it's pretty interesting to look at back at photos and thoughts. Now that I'm dismantling my room in about two weeks, it's interesting to look back at the post from August 2010, where I felt like the line from the Talking Heads song was permanently stuck in my head ("MY GOD, WHAT HAVE I DONE?").

I don't think I posted many updates on how I ended up making the bare room that felt like a prison feel more like a cozy home that I am now sad to leave. I think in that original post I talked about pushing the bed into the center of the room so that it felt more like a hotel room and less like a dorm/prison. Well that lasted about a week, before I felt like I couldn't sleep well because I was "floating" in the center and not anchored to the wall. I think it's because it's a twin bed so it's too narrow to just put in the center of a room. So I ended up pushing it back to its original location, to the wall. Here's a quick summary of other things I gradually did to make the little room feel like home:

1. Bought a TV (after the first week...I realized it was too quiet without one)
2. Added about 5 different lamps to adjust the lighting for different situations (studying vs. lounging vs. winding down for bed)
3. Bought the couch (see May 2011 post)
4. Added blackout curtains using a tension rod, around June 2011 (what a lifesaver)
5. Added a mirror and shoe rack in the entrance (this was such a small addition, yet somehow it made a huge difference...the entrance looked cleaner and more organized)

That's it I guess. And that was all in the first year. And then after that, it was just time...time to sink in and get accustomed to a routine and feel like things are just right.

Well, five years is a good run and it's not like I would want to live here forever. For starters it would be nice to have more space and a real kitchen and a bed for grown ups. Still it's sad to leave especially knowing that my future is a bit uncertain at the moment. I'm just taking things about one month at a time.

Some random photos from the past few years:

Central Park, January 28, 2011

Brooklyn Botanic Garden, April 13, 2012

DUMBO, September 29, 2012

Chinatown, February 3, 2013

Coney Island, July 26, 2013

Park Slope, Brooklyn, November 3, 2013

Certainly there's not such a drastic change in seasons in L.A.! It's quite beautiful in the photographs, even if it's freezing for a couple months and sweltering hot for another couple months. More posts and photos to come...