bethanyseawright's Profile

Thank you @denisegk for your lengthy, considerate and well thought out comment.

You are correct, I did not intend to sound condescending or callous in any way. If my tone is to blame, then I apologize to those that were offended. It was never my intention to offend. These housing conditions are appalling, for all of the reasons that you’ve listed and more. As for the “inspired by the ingenuity” statement, what I meant was that I am inspired these residents’ ability to do the best they can with what they have under these severe conditions. They have found ways to adapt their (on average) 4’x10’ spaces as needed to house their families. In many cases, that’s by building up. Should they have to do this? No. Is it safe? No. Is it healthy? No. But these residents, these problem-solvers, have done what they've needed to do. And I find that kind of ingenuity inspiring.

Another issue seems to be this - this post links directly to another post. And whenever we share information in this manner, we try not to simply repeat the information in the outside post, but to send the reader to that post for more information on the subject. To that end, I wanted to provide enough context so that readers would understand what they were seeing, but not so much as to rob the original post of its value. Perhaps I could have framed the post a little differently, but I did not intend for my post to be the final word on the subject. I wanted to draw attention to a different aspect of small space living and to provide a conduit for those that desired more information.

Whoops, sorry about that last comment. Shawn was trying to comment (on himself, no less), and it went under my name.

@SoBelt - Did you and your husband agree in advance about how you would use the entertainment center at the time that you bought it? If so, if it were me, I would try to calmly ask him why he decided to use it differently. If not, and it was a matter of what you were imagining versus what he was imagining, then I would try to see if you could come to a compromise after the fact. Do you have any idea why he gets touchy about the subject when you try to discuss it? Does he know that you would "love for him to have a man cave," if it were possible and that you're not trying to take away his toys but trying to make a space that's more functional for the both of you?

@devienne The floor plan of our living room was made using Sketchup - http://www.sketchup.com/

Thanks, @memarie!!!

Links have been fixed.

@Stormi Thanks for sharing! There's one cabinet door under the sink where this might work (if we rearrange things a bit)...

It will come as no surprise to anyone that read my first week diary entry http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/bethanys-cure-diaryweek-1-182382 , that we have decided to tackle our basement decluttering this month. True, it's bending the rules a little (in that it will take much more than a few hours), but it is the project that will make the biggest difference in how we live our lives, and the one thing we were determined to get taken care of this month.

@rainywoods Thank you, I totally agree! That's part of our problem. Unfortunately, everything's been on hold for the last year while I was working on my thesis. (It's taken until now, for me to even be ready to address the school work madness, a major contributor to the problem.) We have organizational systems in place that work for us (when they're accessible), but a major decluttering is definitely needed!!

@LITTLE LULU The mushroom is from Anthropologie -

http://search.anthropologie.com/controller?N=0&Ntk=primary&Nu=p_group_id&Np=2&Nao=0&Ntt=toadstool

You're welcome, Patrick! It's such a great space - so thoughtfully designed, and with tons of inspiring ideas for renters and homeowners alike!