(Re)Arranging

I have this habit where I decide I don’t like something in my house any longer, and I just cannot stop thinking about it until it’s taken care of (some may classify it as obsessing, but my issues with borderline OCD don’t need to be tackled here).

This week, it was my desk lamp. I had a perfectly acceptable silver-finished task light beside my computer. Totally functional – great for reading papers, shedding some light on my keyboard – the basics. But I was done with it. I’m not writing papers or cramming for an exam. This is my home office workspace – the place I need my creative juices flowing freely. And I don’t need task light – I wanted some soft, relaxing ambient light.

Pretty much I wanted a lamp just like this one I had upstairs on the side table by the best bed. Since the nearest IKEA is about 3.5 hours away, I couldn’t just hop in the car for a quick trip. I had thought all week about running to Target to see if I could find something similar. And just this evening it hit me – swap the lamps already!

I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. I mean, yes, a desk lamp isn’t ideal for a guest bed table, but honestly – we have people sleeping there about twice a year. And I am sure they just appreciate that there’s light available.

So I’m sitting at my desk, and it feels like an entire new office with this little lamp just to my left. Never mind that I have papers stacked up just behind my right shoulder, or a pile of toys I need to pick up before going to bed just by my left foot. This lamp is right in my line of sight and I am happy as a lark.

The moral of the story: often I already have what I need here, in my house. It just needs a little elbow grease (either in terms of fixing something up or just moving things around). I didn’t need to spend $25 on a new table lamp (and an hour plus elevated stress level hauling two kids around Target looking for the perfect lamp). I already had what I needed, and it was simply a matter of a bit of rearranging to make it work. Now if only the lamp could work on my to-do list while I slept.