DEN

For the birth of our second child, my wife and I attended a Hypnobabies class, which was a great choice for us. One of the relaxation techniques taught in the class, was choosing a cue word for peace and calmness. When I said or thought of the word, I was to relax and be more at ease. My word was “den”. The den in my mind was my “happy place”. Not long after I chose “den” as my cue word, I saw It Might Get Loud. Have you seen Jimmy Page’s music room?

Hell’s bells and bee’s knees. Wow.

Jimmy Page in his music room

After seeing this, and during the time leading up to my daughter’s birth, when I cued “den”, I imagined myself looking on the shelves of Mr. Page’s music room. Thanks for letting me drop by, James.

I have music, more than some and less than others, and little room for it. I am still in a 2-bedroom condo. Which leads me to my next point: we still live in a condo.

HOME

My wife and I have lived in our condo for almost nine years. It is bigger than some and smaller than others. It has been our refuge and home, as long as we have been married, and we love it.

Way back when, we had our hobby items in the second bedroom. It was cool to see my music collection, and my wife’s things have their own place. When we had our first child, everything was moved out. I had hoped for a space where we (my collection and I) could hang out and have quality time. As the space for these treasures diminished at home, I worked on the plans for my den.

During my brief Sims phase, I spent more time designing houses than with the people. The plans centered around the den and worked outward. Please don’t think that I love my music more than my own family. They are first on my list. When life is going well, it is nice to have diversions and/or hobbies, and music was and is my hobby.

REASONS TO MOVE

There are two things I don’t like about our current home: we have less space for our George Carlin “stuff”, and we have neighbors below us, above us and at two sides. Being surrounded has been a plus inasmuch as our home has never been broken into and burgled, but we share so much with each other…

Our upstairs neighbors have two children, about the same ages as our kids, and wood floors. The father admitted to us, last Sunday, that his baby has, “a pair of pipes.” That is the nice way of stating that the kid shrieks like a banshee and upsets everyone around (and below) him. If my neighbors are reading this, greetings. Maybe we should have a healthy contest to see who can move out of the complex first. “Complex” is right, ha ha!

There are several requirements for our next home: a “big” kitchen (relative to our current one), a space for reading and a garden. These three areas are for my wife. We agreed that if she can have her kitchen, I can have my den.

So, in order to be able to move, I need to curb my spending habits and save money. Luckily, we are debt-free and our kids are paid for, so no repossession threats from the hospital or mid-wives.

GOALS:

• Purchase no books or magazines
• Qualify all music purchases
• Don’t see a movie just to see it.

I hope that spending time with what I already own will be a great distraction from what I do not. Another thing I hope to achieve is to take a good, hard look at what I truly listen to, so I can make more educated choices with the music I do decide to purchase.

BLOGGING

Here, at this blog, I will review one album a week, every week, through 2010, in the hopes of appreciating and chewing more marrow off favorite cuts.

RESULTS:

• I should have a well-qualified 50 Favorite Albums list, by this time next year (Lists are fun!)
• Moving to a house with a den?