Now we need some tiny people to walk around in there

I've been working on our new apartment. Working on a teeny scale diagram of it, actually, that my rather OCD husband created. I cut out little shapes corresponding to all our furniture. We're now working to fit everything into a space a little less than half our current size. It's sort of fun and sort of frustrating.

But moving always means new decor, which is probably partly why we're hooked on it (this will be move #9 in 10 years). We love selling off everything then using whatever we make to buy new stuff (or usually, gently used but new to us). In this spirit, and because it was miserably hot, last weekend we headed to Ikea. It was an amusing scene that greeted us there.

It was 112 outside, I believe, in beautiful downtown Burbank. Stands to reason that many people would have the same idea as us - head to the nearest, biggest air-conditioned space. But I've never seen anything like this.

Every one of the little displays of room setups was full of people. People who basically seemed to have moved in for the duration of the heat wave (or heat storm, as one LA weatherman put it). They were sleeping on the couches and playing games at the tables. They'd brought books and children did homework. One couple had even managed to snag a display with a working television and were cuddled up watching a poor signal of some game or another.

It was an absolute riot. This is the desperation of a town mostly without a/c, used to 72 degrees pretty much year round.

So hell, if you can't beat 'em...

It's finally cooled off, so we've come home again. And the in-laws are off, so I finally have my house to myself. It's going to be kind of a guilty pleasure to tell people our place is just too small for guests. I don't think we'll even be able to extend our couch bed.

Well, I should go back to my tiny diagram. I need J's help, though. He's much better than me at these things. Oh! I think he's going out there. Gotta run.