Displacement, Used Furniture & Dreams.

I suppose it's the fact that I just moved out of my apartment in Olathe, back home for another six months: I still feel like I'm in some kind of funky transit. Almost all of my clothes came with me, but all of my furniture went east to Columbia into my brother's condo. It's a relatively large place to fill so we're talking about my completely awesome sofa and bench, super-comfy bed, rolled-steel bookcase, and dining room set. That stuff went away a week before I actually left the place so I made do with a thick sleeping bag surrounded by bags and boxes for a few days, which I didn't really mind at all. (My inner minimalist nods in approval.)

Most of the rest of my non-essential personal belongings remain in the otherwise-empty apartment, which I technically still occupy until the end of the month. I'll go get the rest of my crap over an upcoming weekend, but in the meantime I'm left with an almost-disquieting sense of displacement because so much of my stuff feels like it's everywhere. I realize that's pretty overblown and sounds alarmingly materialistic -- and I swear I'm not -- but there it is.

That's probably the reason I found myself looking at furniture for sale on Craigslist. I've never really used that site for buying stuff (leave that to my sister) but I'm looking ahead to when I get my own place again after graduation this summer. Since I'm not planning on taking anything to Seattle other than what can fit in my car, I'm going to have to start over with regards to household items and furniture. This is pretty exciting -- the prospect of starting completely fresh, free to design and arrange my new place to fit my own standards and aesthetics. With the limitation of budget, of course ...

... which is why Craigslist is so appealing at the moment. During the hour or two of my fantasy used-item window-shopping experience, I found several relatively inexpensive pieces that would look great arranged together in an apartment. I had visions of repainting end tables, installing shelves, reupholstering bar stools and hanging original art on my new unblemished walls. I saw myself visiting consignment stores and finding the perfect office desk, ready for a second life. I wanted to take "before" and "after" photos of my glorious handiwork and submit them to the galleries on Apartment Therapy. Okay, so that last one's far-fetched, but the homes (even the tiny 500-square-foot spaces) featured on that site are seriously tasteful, carefully maintained and well-appointed -- and always leave me all jealous and whatnot. But they give me something to build toward.

I know I have a number of months to go before I can even begin to start outfitting my new crib from the ground up, and years before I can even think of being able to afford an actual home that I can, you know, do things to -- but it doesn't hurt to be prepared.

Maybe I should stop browsing Craigslist and AT. Ah who am I kidding -- it doesn't hurt to dream a little :)