The Secret Bed

 I have needed a new bed for a while. It is one of those investments that isn't just a money thing. The quality of the place where you rest really does matter. I feel like the ability to assess your bedding needs should be taught in school. Then again, there is quite a lot that we need to know that we simply are not educated on unless we have an exceptional parent. 

My Mom and Dad didn't teach me a whole lot about beds. From time to time my Mom would decide I needed something. That something could be new towels, new blankets, a bathrobe (once), or a bed and with little to no consultation said thing would be gifted to me throughout my life. I appreciated this a great deal. Occasionally, I slept better. 

I cannot believe I made it to nearly 42 years old without ever having to buy myself a new bed. It made me feel a little ill equipped to make a decision. We typically find things out about ourselves through experience. I knew enough from past beds to be absolutely sure I didn't want a water bed. Don't get me wrong, I had a few back in the day. Nightmares, strong hands, and a water bed finally made a very wet combo and I got a regular mattress. 

I also was confident I did not want a pillow top. I had a pillow top two beds back. I hated the blood thing. Sheets were always a pain in the butt. The extra cushioning held almost no benefit to sleeping. It got in the way of other activities. It was also stupid heavy in the King Size which is heavy to begin with. Lastly, as the thing got a few years old it began to have bunching in the pillow top no matter how often I rotated it. Super frustrating and it made me certain I did not want a pillow top. 

I haven't been super in love with memory foam mattresses. The one I was using after the pillow top was uncomfortable. The first time I decided I wanted to try it out I dropped on it figuring the foam would be a soft landing. It damned near knocked me out. It was like hitting slightly forgiving concrete. Maybe that first flop made the mattress mad. Since then it just wasn't comfortable. My shoulders, back, and hips were really suffering for about the last year. 

I did a bit of research. I looked at reviews. I waited for a sale. I bought a Nectar mattress. When I was checking out on their website I realized I didn't just want to put a new mattress on the old bed. I wanted a new frame as well. 

That took a lot less research. I knew I wanted something simple. It took me about fifteen minutes to pick out what I wanted and order it. I have simple tastes in furniture. I typically go for functional and sturdy. Come to think on it that is my taste in guns. It is my taste in quite a lot of things. That may make me boring. 

Here is the funny part of the whole bed thing. I didn't talk to anyone about doing this. For most decisions in my life I consult with everyone I know and trust. I ask for opinions. Not this time around. I read about the mattress. I picked what I thought I wanted. I ordered it. 

Not consulting anyone was out of character for me. It felt way too good. Even after I placed the order, I decided to carry on not saying anything about it. I got more excited with every email and shipping update. I was keeping a very unnecessary secret and loving every minute of it. 

A day or so after the mattress and frame were ordered I decided to also pull the trigger on a bedding set. I got a set of bright orange sheets and matching comforter. I have been really enjoying vibrant colors lately. It is probably because I am home so much. Bright, joyful colors help with my positivity. My traditional choice of bedding colors have run to brown, black, blue (typically navy), and gray. How freaking dull is that?

I have to point back to painting Teagan's room Princess Pink for realizing how much color evokes emotion in the house. Painting my office Lunar Tide happened next. Both of those rooms still make me smile even though Teagan has taken some artistic license with her walls and various crayons and markers. Hey, no sweat. She has to deal with it.  

Its funny. I have been holding my breath on doing so many things. I wasn't sure I was going to keep riding my motorcycle so I had held off on giving it a seasonal tune up and putting tires on it. I wasn't sure if I was going to trade my Veloster in on a truck or SUV. I wasn't really sure what I was going to do about a great number of things. 

Ordering that bed was me doing something even if it was wrong. Based on having slept in the bed one night now, I don't think it was a wrong decision. I think it is a very nice bed though I am waiting for a few accessories to show up on Monday. I got a deal that came with some fancy pillows, sheets, and a protective mattress cover. They apparently just take longer to get here than the mattress itself. 

Anyway, so many of the things I want or need to accomplish are dependent on other things. I am a very patient person, but I do get frustrated when my to do list is stuck in a log jam. I have a strong belief that a satisfying life doesn't come from having a life without trouble or difficulties. On the contrary, I tend to enjoy having difficulties because it gives me an opportunity to spend some time figuring things out. I get to develop a plan which is pleasant. Then the real satisfaction comes when I overcome the trouble and eliminate the complication. 

Buying that bed felt like I was doing something to shake things up. I think it will be the first of many dominos to fall. I have had this general plan to swap my bedroom and my office. The new bed is encouraging me along that road of improvements. Since ordering it I have gotten new tires on my car, ordered tires for my motorcycle, and gotten half way done with changing out the speakers in the car. 

Those speakers were busted when I bought the Veloster. As I said before I am patient. I bought speakers for it a few years back and have just had so many other things to do. Today the weather wasn't awfully cold so I got out and removed the door panel and with Dad's help I got the driver's side door speaker replaced. I plan to knock out the Passenger's side tomorrow. I also need to take a look at the wiring for my effect lights while I am at it. It would be nice to have the pleasant blue glow back in the cab. 

When I change the motorcycle tires out in the next weekend or so I will also install the lighting kit I got for my birthday two years ago. I also need to work on the camera system and figure out why it is not reading the micro SD card. That will be a mostly pleasant day of wrench work though I admit I don't love the actual mounting and balancing of the tires. It will be worth it not only for the ride but also because it will be the first time I work with a motorcycle that is shaft driven. Gosh I cannot wait to put on those Pirellis. I might even get inspired to order the second GoPro I have plans for. Who knows?

It is nice to have some motivation. Things have been piled up and awkward for much longer than I would like. It feels like some of these accomplishments have begun to shake things free. I feel like I can tackle some things which have been beyond my ability to motivate myself to do. 

In a way that feeling has been exacerbated by my stress relief outlets. Final Fantasy VI Pixel Remaster dropped in February. I savored it. Really. I put quite a lot of grind into it.  I did not go for the full achievement run. I did quite a lot before I got tired of end game griding and just kicked the clown out of Kefka. Then I downloaded the original version of Final Fantasy VII and forgot how much I struggle to settle in to the art style. 

Now, I totally understand that Final Fantasy VII is a sacred calf of a game. There is a reason that Square Enix has been able to milk that title far more than any other property with spin offs, cartoons, mobile games, and merchandise. Had Final Fantasy VII not been a break out hit with the Playstation being introduced the landscape of both Sony's gaming empire and the Final Fantasy franchise would likely have gone much differently. So I get it. 

It is a tough one for me to play. Just like coming off the series of six Pixel Remasters, back when I first saw Final Fantasy VII on the Playstation it just looked... simple except for the cut scenes. In comparison to the really polished 16 bit style of FFVI on the Super Nintendo those first generation Playstation graphics seemed crude to me. 

Twenty Five years later on my 2nd or 3rd play through of the game I find myself slowly warming to it. It was somewhat faithful to the chibi character style of the first six games while moving into three dimensions. It also moves into the next level of technology from Final Fantasy VI where we say trains, mechs, and airships (although the airship has been a staple since the original). Final Fantasy VII gives us guns, cars, motorcycles, helicopters, and electronics. In sequential order it feels appropriate and progressive. Materia follows the Esper system well for giving the players magic. 

For all of that it takes me several hours of game play to get into VII. Feeling stuck on my video games is not a fun feeling. It robs me of idle time fun. In a similar way I have been in a slump on my reading, writing, and drawing. 

The reading part is frustrating because that is my greatest outlet. I cut way back on my comics. They are an unnecessary expense and I have found myself less and less interested in them. That happens with me from time to time. Could be because I am a bit old for the hobby. More likely when you have read comics as long as I am it is hard to get fresh appreciation for super hero books unless the publishers have truly great artists and writers behind my favorite characters. I could write for hours about that, but I want people to actually read these posts so I won't. Anyway, I went from reading about 60 comics a month down to about two dozen. Of those, I am happy with the majority. 

In the personal growth field I finished a great read with Verbal Judo. I probably should revisit Atomic Habits to get myself back in shape on the topic. I didn't give that book the best treatment on the first time through. I just am not particularly inspired to push forward into another personal growth book. In fact, I think inspiration is the problem. I want something inspiring rather than procedural. Even writing that has me thinking about a good next read. 

On the pleasure reading front I got into a slog with Of Saints and Sinners by Christopher Golden directly on the heels of the second Discworld novel. I probably should have gone after the lighter fare of an Iron Druid Chronicles novel by Kevin Hearne or maybe done another reread of Ready Player One.  I almost, by not quite feel like running through Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  

I have been penning an outline for a fantasy novel. It is slower work than I would like. I am making much more progress by hand than I was at the keyboard and the work is better for it. It doesn't feel frustrating just slow. Imagine that, crafting your own work of fiction takes time and dedication. 

I am over a month since I was drawing regularly. I am not as excited to draw. I have a plan to fix it, but haven't kicked it in gear. Again, I need to revisit Atomic Habits. 

With all that feeling stuck changing out the bed feels good. It is going to feel even better in a minute when I go climb into it and get some rest. 

Thanks for reading.