Introducing the new bed!

Thar she blows, the new bed and mattress! First real, grownup purchase we have made for ourselves in many years. The bed actually overpowers the small room, but I don't care. It's worth it for the comfort and size. It's so great to have a headboard, when you are reading or watching TV in bed! It's much higher than the old one, so I feel quite elevated, like I'm in a pickup truck as opposed to my Subaru wagon. But I'll get used to it. The good thing is that my back doesn't hurt as much in the morning. I'm hoping this helps lessen my sciatica problem.

Still working on those mystery socks and not getting very far. I restarted the So-Called Scarf, now that I've got the hang of the stitch pattern and don't keep dropping stitches, creating uneven ends. I also, even in these economic hard times, ordered some sock needles from Knitpicks, as well as the Chullo Hat kit. It just sang to me!

Just got over the endless birthday celebrations, including mine, 2 birthday parties for son #2 and my brother's Oktoberfest party. Enough already, with the parties! I'm ready to do something else, like rake leaves!

Endings, birthdays, beginnings

Today's my 48th birthday. Can't believe I am this age, although I do like even numbers and 48 is divisible by many numbers. In the picture above is the hemp ponchette that I knitted this summer and finished in September. It's supposed to have the ends sewn together to make a poncho but so far I haven't sewn it together and am not sure I'll do so. I have to say, the hemp gets softer as you work with it. I will ravel the details 'cause I can't remember them all now. It was a fun and easy knit, once I got the lace pattern figured out.



Above is the broken bed....it's an old platform bed from my early 20's that came with me to lots of places. But the particle board started ripping and THAT explains why I was sinking into the bed at night!!! The new bed is a real grownup bed, made of cherry in the Mission style. I'm amazed at the idea of us being real grownups. Pics of the new bed once it is in place.

Son #2 turns 6 tomorrow. He is already so excited about multiple birthday parties (the family party and the friends party), gifts and being a big boy. He can't stop talking!

And, lastly, my favorite jazz pianist in the world, Dave McKenna, died over the past weekend. Dave was a special guy, a humble person who could spin out the most amazing webs of music on the piano. He was a pianist by ear only, had never learned to read music. Somehow, he could shift major and minor keys, and adjust all his songs. He created medleys of songs with similar names (with "snow" or "winter" or "delight" in the title) and would weave them together like a magician, with no sheet music to guide him. Dave used to play at different places on Cape Cod, as well as at the Copley Plaza hotel in Boston, where I would see him. I was a college student then. The Oak Bar had no cover, free hors d'oeuvres in the early evenings and expensive drinks. My friend Barbara and I would arrive at 5:30 or 6 for the opening pianist, order one drink and get a good spot. Then, we would stay for the headliner at 8. I never knew how lucky I was, listening to Dave and all the great songs that he played. It was so much fun to guess. "No, it's 'I Can't Get Started' or 'My Ship' or 'What Am I Here For?'! I can certainly recommend many of his albums, including one special one with vocalist Teddi King called "This is New" with accompaniment by Dave. It's all Ira Gershwin songs and they are lovely, including some piano solos by Dave. I urge you to listen to them. He was a very special musician and there won't be another like him, ever. Rest in peace, Dave. Your music has provided a lot of joy to people.

So, that's why my back hurts! (partly)

I've been noticing when I climb into bed at night to read (at an absurdly early time), things seem more sunken. We have a very old platform bed that I bought in Central Square (Cambridge) years ago in my twenties. It's the same bed we're using now. It's your typical cheap wood-and-fiberboard bed platform that screws together in the middle and you can get drawers that roll under the bed.

On top of the platform rests our foam mattress -- an embarrassingly aged piece of foam if there ever was one. DH has had that since well before I met him (that's 20+ years). We're not big shoppers and tend to live with what we have.

So, this morning after I got out of bed and saw the crater where my body was, I thought something is up. I lifted up the foam mattress and noticed that the fiberboard is tearing and the bed pieces are separating where they are screwed together! Oh my gosh. While I don't think the bed collapsing explains all of my back problems (soreness, sciatica), I would say that this has a lot to do with it.

I told DH it's time for a new, grownup bed. He agreed. But now, I don't know which way to turn. Aside from sleeping at friends' houses or in a bed shop, how does one evaluate mattresses? Should we get a traditional mattress and boxspring? Do we go for one of those memory-foam things that cost a mint? I think I'm actually ready to move on form foam, to be honest. Any advice from readers? And what about a bed frame? Do y'all have a headboard? Has it improved your life tremendously? I keep thinking a headboard would be real nice for reading.

Pics to follow of collapsing bed!