In Search of Ingenuity

It’s been a very quick three weeks since moving into this wonderful apartment. What I have discovered is, I need two more hands and more muscle. My son is always after me to build more muscle and now I wish I had listened.

I’m pretty strong for a woman my age and in good condition for the condition I’m in. When fatigued, the tippyness gets more acute so I have to be more careful. Who would have thought Bells Palsy could do that to a person. The need for two more hands and more muscle has to do with getting boxes and cabinets up the stairs, as well as moving furniture around.

Since I have no extra hands and become a little soft since becoming ill, I used a little ingenuity. I took those cheap, little, though quite heavy cabinets, pivoting them corner to corner up the stairs. Boxes of books and fabric went up the same way. I didn’t have enough hands to take a picture of myself but my grin was massive. Nothing was lifted and I was able to balance against the railing.

So here is the almost completed sewing station made from those upcycled cabinets that were pivoted up the stairs.

Have you ever met a woman who liked the way the furniture was placed the first time? After looking at my dresser hold up the TV for three weeks, the realization that I hated it there, set in. I also want to bring the triple mirror that goes with it up from the garage before a box falls on it.

So I figured out how to maneuver it out from the wall, slide a smaller dresser behind, slide the TV directly onto the smaller one, then slid the dresser into the bedroom. There were beads of healthy perspiration involved but by golly, the job was done without unhooking any cable equipment or the TV. Good thing because my daughter is my tech support and she had other commitments at that moment.

Just to show you it was no lightweight dresser. Solid oak and heavy.

Yes, I took the drawers out before moving it.

I have moved entire houses of furniture around without heavy lifting for years. Never from the outside in, but now I see it can be done. So, how do you hang heavy pictures alone? It’s like a puzzle, creativity in a different form. When it’s done, I get to spend more time writing, sewing, and all the other fun things that will make a long wet winter enjoyable.

A lot of determination and a little perspiration can go a long way with a healthy dose of ingenuity.

“Any problem can be solved with a little ingenuity.” MacGyver

From my heart to yours,
Marlene