HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

December 18, 2020

Who would’ve known that 1) My dad would move into our apt in Playa Vista, and 2) I’d lose my dream job I was happiest in within 90 days?

While I anticipated my dad to move in with us, I guess there are a few weird things about having a family roommate. But if anything, it’s taught me an incredible amount of patience and gratitude for family (oh, and also boosted my crappy Chinese) There are plenty of articles discussing why parents/in-laws shouldn’t live with newlyweds, but esp. with our climate of COVID, there was no denial in letting it happen.

While we couldn’t really do much about our kitchen (lighting), I wanted to make the most out of our living room space, balcony, and bathroom (basically, every room that we’d spend the most time in except closets) Yes our walk-in closet is perhaps tripled or quadrupled the size of our NYC apartment.

As for losing my dream job – yes it was heart-crushing and confusing as shit (I wondered what is a good designer or good job now) but I also wondered if losing a job end of October was the worst timing possible. (Who the hell is hiring at the end of the year?) I don’t think there should be a debate of when is the shittiest time to lose a job – especially during COVID, losing a job is shitty for everyone, in every way, anytime…period.

Naturally, there was a positive push over procrastinating all the “dream” DIY ideas; Finally, I was getting my hands craftier than ever (I tried making sourdough bread, and so far – 30+ days later, it’s still a complete funky-smelling failure in a mason jar) but who the hell knew it would take so long to paint abstract art?

Fb marketplace couldn’t have been more of a lifesaver in terms of selling things that no longer spark joy, and things that we tremendously needed. Thankfully, I still had my wine bar that I got from CB2 back in 2016.

Aside from being obsessive about midcentury modern / Scandinavian + Japanese designs (No matter where we go from here, I will always keep our Scandinavian design sofa and Marimekko pillows) I also joined the bandwagon for becoming a plant mom. Finally, we get enough sunlight that we can have plants and I am so relieved that while we’ve been living here since August, only one plant has passed.

Fortunately, O and I brought some of the main things we loved about our NYC apartment, including the Muji media stand that I’ve never seen him so adamantly wait and plead for something over $200 – let alone in SoHo.

While my first gut was to get a real piney Christmas tree for the sniff – O made a great point about it damaging the environment. I picked up an artificial Christmas tree from Target (and…several other things incl. a gingerbread house, then another trip for the “side table” that we use as a stool for our entryway. I can’t tell if I hate or love Target.

While I loathe writing cover letters and prepping for interviews, redecorating and celebrating the holidays at home  (immersed with so much nature) with my loved ones is certainly sweet. I tend to forget that although LA is notorious for traffic and being stuck in traffic, there are also plentiful hikes and lush trees. Cheers to making a home a haven, and a little corner to work – for work. And as everyone spends more and more time at home (especially you other fellow Californians) I wish the best for your home and crafty projects; weeks in, they’re making a huge positive impact for me as the extrovert who always wanted to go out.

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