Spending My Inheritance

Surprise! It’s me again. Siri Paulson is taking a well-deserved wrist break, so we’re switching spots.

Last week, I posted about my wonderful grandfather. I would talk about him more, but I don’t need another cry right now. So I’ll talk about the fun he and Grammy (they plotted the inheritance together) gave me.

Friends, for the first time since I lived in a studio apartment where my bedroom was my living room, I have a TV in my bedroom. I bought a TV and a blu-ray player, a new keyboard (because my other new one is driving me up the wall and round the corner) and a new set of PC speakers because only the right one works of the current pair.

I also bought my daughter a TV for her room. She can now play videogames in her room and stop rearranging the furniture in the living room which she never then puts back so no one else can use it! I mean seriously, when you walk into the living room and the couch is a foot from the entertainment center…!

Ahem. TV in my room. It sits on top of the hutch of my desk, so I won’t be terribly tempted to watch it when I am trying to work. My neck would start hurting pretty quickly, I imagine. It sits perfectly for me to watch it from my comfy, awesome new bed, though. Last night I snuggled up with my eighteen-year-old cranky teenager and watched Moana.

I can set it to just show me fish, too. I have that aquarium I dreamed of, with none of the work!

Cosmos looks amazing on it. So does Planet Earth. And a new show I started this morning, what was it? Edge of the Universe, or something like that. Started out talking about planet hunters. Super cool.

I’m ridiculously excited about the possibilities. I mentioned the cranky teenager, right? Well, partly because of her and partly because the living room has been low priority so far, the living room isn’t a terribly welcoming place. I rarely watch TV or movies because I don’t have the motivation, but part of that is not having a good place to do it. Watching stuff on my computer as I sit in front of it makes my head hurt. Watching stuff on my phone or the little netbook doesn’t seem worthwhile.

Will it hurt my productivity? Honestly, I can’t see how that can get much worse. >_>

I’m actually working on ways to set some boundaries, so instead of spending the whole evening/day off farting around not watching movies or reading because I’m intending to get something done and then not doing it or anything else, I’ll get stuff done and then go have some veg/feeding the muse time.

Balance. It is really, truly, all about balance. A starved muse can’t create.

So. I’ve got my room nearly in order, I think. Four foot by four foot chalkboard for plotting problems? Check. Bulletin board for free associating story ideas? Check. New desk that didn’t work out (sigh for the rolltop!) replaced by old desk that did work? Check.

Better-fit keyboard? Working speakers? Check, check.

Reward for after work?

Check.

Onwards. 🙂