When was your first time?

Dining Area Green #2
Originally uploaded by Black Glenn.

It is a big day this Friday. I am currently sitting on the floor of my new room in my new apartment. I am sharing it with three other people. I decided that it is time to move from the rush and buzz of the Chinatown to the calm and hip-and-coming De Baarsjes.

Big thing is not really the moving. It's not I would not have done that before. But today was the first time in my life that I actually picked up a brush and painted my walls (no, the ones in the picture are not mine). So I went to the paint store, gathered courage for 15 minutes to talk to the woman, had my colour twisted in the cool machine, walked out with brushes and things, bought ladders and somehow managed to get to the apartment in the end with all this. On the way I had the classic male thing: when you get lost, whatever you do, do not ask someone. Well, that meant that I walked a kilometre extra. Yes, with the ladders.

I have never been very good with practicalities. My brother's amazement was quite something when I yesterday revealed my "home improvement" plans. "Well, that sounds really weird. You repairing things."

So you can understand that I was ready to give up with all this shit when the ladder was not high enough for me to reach the ceiling. A bit like in the picture. Only with my new flatmate's persuasion and problem-solving skills I realised that I can put the ladder on a table and then it is all OK.

Two walls done and I feel like I would have spent the last week at the gym. But it looks nice and the major thing is that I did it myself.

Funny in a way that just two weeks ago I was speaking in a higher education event about the necessity to bridge the gap between thinkers and doers. I called it artificial then. As if.