My Dining Table

The last few years, I've slowly worked room by room to upgrade and update the furniture, as I settled into adult life, finally had the finances, and stopped any hopes of a bridal shower on the horizon. It's worked out well - I'm pleased with my bed and mattress, my desk that I'm typing at, and my comfy sofa (the last major purchase). I knew the lovely white dining table I found left in my Twinsburg condo, which fit perfectly into my Boston condo, did not have the oomph for a transatlantic move. I've never bought a dining table, so it was next on my to-buy list. 

A kind friend drove me to Ikea (where it seems all of Europe gets their furniture), and I explored several wonderful options. However, the nearest Ikea is in Belgium (although only 20 minutes away, so the closest I have ever lived to an Ikea), and they do not deliver to where I live. There are services that will buy and assemble the Ikea furniture for you, but I wasn't committed to that. I found a beautiful table on Amazon, that luckily would be and was delivered right to my door. Blessings on the DHL guy who even brought it all the way up and made sure I had the boxes in an accessible place :) The DHL delivery texts did seem very spammy to me though, especially as I had ordered from Amazon, but luckily I translated the French in time to understand that they needed me to be home to deliver. 

So, Friday morning found me with three giant boxes in my living + dining room combo. I opened the parts and dumped the myriad of nuts and bolts and brackets and Allen wrenches into my beautiful fruit bowl, an Ohio housewarming gift. I unfurled my Kobalt wrap-up toolbox and set to work. I got as far as hand screwing over 30 screws into the wooden tabletop. The table extends with two leaves and has a hidden storage for the leaves as well, all of which made this table decently complicated to build. Saturday morning found me continuing on the table, but shortly into trying to move a stubborn extending bracket, I lost the fight, and it gashed my left pointer finger. Wounded in my dominant hand and on an important finger considerably slowed my progress. Finally, I finished the extender and legs, and had to flip the table upright. I had wanted to purchase a durable table, and clearly, I had. It was so heavy, that I couldn't seem to flip it the right way, despite multiple attempts. I decided to eat some food, in the hopes that my strength would rejuvenate, and luckily after a hearty meal I was able to right the table. Next, I had to bend the little metal teeth, to clamp onto the brackets. While the directions showed a simple twisting with pliers, my pliers couldn't seem to manage to grab the teeth at all! Multiple attempts later, I gave up and took a nap. The hastening end to the day necessitated a grocery run so I would actually have food for the week, and I returned some hours later, having braved the rain and managed to carry my exhausting load back. Armed with new resolve, I finally managed to ben the metal enough to achieve the desired intent. Soldiering on, I finally managed to finish the table. 

I lay on the floor adjusting the brackets, and then remained there as I was really tired! It was a weird mixture of emotions. My throbbing finger, and aching body were exhausted. I wished for someone to help me- from turning the screwdriver with my non-dominant hand, to lifting the heavy table. But I was also proud- I managed it all on my own. 

Well, almost. A special shout-out to my virtual cheerleader, C, in France. He listened to my complaints along the way, checked-in on me, and celebrated with me once the finished product was done. 

Tomorrow is a brand-new day. First, I need to switch the orientations of the table and see what the space tells me. Then I'll have to move bookshelves and cabinets to accommodate it... but for now: I bask in my accomplishments and will retire to my welcoming bed.