Thoughts on Appreciation & Gratitude:
Today I'm reminded that I don't really appreciate a benefit until I've managed to do without for a time. I feel this with my apartment after being "homeless"; living in women's shelters for three and a half years and today I feel this with my bedroom window...
I've just fixed this window for the summer... I know this doesn't sound like much, but it makes a big difference to me. This window is HUGE occupying almost the entire west wall of my small bedroom. The bitterly cold. winter winds and the blisteringly hot, afternoon, summer sun beat in mercilessly. The frame is warped so it doesn't either open or close properly, allowing both wind and flies to wander through at will. A real window which works doesn't seem to be in the cards for me, so I've jury-rigged a solution which is more air tight but still allows me to open part of the window in summer and close it in winter...
Two years ago I covered half of the window with some cardboard covered on the outside with plastic bubble wrap and finished with aluminum foil. Once this was caulked in place, it made an enormous difference to both the amount of heat in the summer and cold in winter.
This past autumn I manufactured a fix for the part of the window which can still be opened and closed, even if it doesn't do these things very well. To a wood frame, from some old quarter round molding I found in the basement, I added some more bubble wrap with scrunched up plastic bags taped along the edges. Using thumb tacks and more molding to hold it in place, this pressure fit into the opening not too badly. This winter was a REAL test and it worked pretty well.
This spring I added another piece of cardboard finished with foil on the outside, to fit next to the piece of cardboard which was already in place. I'm in the process of doing artwork on the bedroom side, so it will look OK.
Just now, I've removed the bubble wrapped frame from the part which opens and closes and stored it behind the cardboard piece I added this spring. I then added a dark, bamboo shade with heavy drapery behind. The bamboo, by itself, I think will work well to block the street lights at night while allowing air to flow through and I can pull the drapery behind it when I want to block the hot afternoon sun... I'm planning another piece of artwork to use at the top for a valance over the entire window frame... someday...
Although what I've done functions more or less acceptably and will eventually look fine once the artwork is "finished", I know if a REAL window is ever in the cards for me, I'll appreciate its functionality, in a way I never could have before... Having done without, I won't be taking it for granted...
I've just fixed this window for the summer... I know this doesn't sound like much, but it makes a big difference to me. This window is HUGE occupying almost the entire west wall of my small bedroom. The bitterly cold. winter winds and the blisteringly hot, afternoon, summer sun beat in mercilessly. The frame is warped so it doesn't either open or close properly, allowing both wind and flies to wander through at will. A real window which works doesn't seem to be in the cards for me, so I've jury-rigged a solution which is more air tight but still allows me to open part of the window in summer and close it in winter...
Two years ago I covered half of the window with some cardboard covered on the outside with plastic bubble wrap and finished with aluminum foil. Once this was caulked in place, it made an enormous difference to both the amount of heat in the summer and cold in winter.
This past autumn I manufactured a fix for the part of the window which can still be opened and closed, even if it doesn't do these things very well. To a wood frame, from some old quarter round molding I found in the basement, I added some more bubble wrap with scrunched up plastic bags taped along the edges. Using thumb tacks and more molding to hold it in place, this pressure fit into the opening not too badly. This winter was a REAL test and it worked pretty well.
This spring I added another piece of cardboard finished with foil on the outside, to fit next to the piece of cardboard which was already in place. I'm in the process of doing artwork on the bedroom side, so it will look OK.
Just now, I've removed the bubble wrapped frame from the part which opens and closes and stored it behind the cardboard piece I added this spring. I then added a dark, bamboo shade with heavy drapery behind. The bamboo, by itself, I think will work well to block the street lights at night while allowing air to flow through and I can pull the drapery behind it when I want to block the hot afternoon sun... I'm planning another piece of artwork to use at the top for a valance over the entire window frame... someday...
Although what I've done functions more or less acceptably and will eventually look fine once the artwork is "finished", I know if a REAL window is ever in the cards for me, I'll appreciate its functionality, in a way I never could have before... Having done without, I won't be taking it for granted...
This Post's Flavor(s): difficulty/pleasure, human, small, process
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