Home and office
I've moved a lot due to one of my family member's occupation as well as more recently due to my own profession. Even though at some point I will probably want to settle somewhere, physically moving to different locations has not been as difficult for me (though certainly it has been challenging psychologically at times, especially during my childhood). There is no particular place that I refer to as "home", even though wherever possible I tried to make spaces feel like home.
Apartment
This apartment is not mine. I rent it. If I could have something that is mine for the duration of my life, I would want it to look like this, though without all the furniture. It looks very similar to my favourite room of my apartment in the UK, it also has grey walls and light beige floor. None of the furniture in the apartment is mine; it came with a bed, a table and two chairs, plenty of fixed storage space which I never use, a kitchen, a washer-dryer and cleaning devices including a hoover which I never use. I don't own any conventional decorations, but I have one sentimental item, it is a reindeer antler which a friend brought to Sweden for me. It's hard to see it on the picture below, but there is also a small quartz stone decoration hanging on the antler. To make it, I simply used a stone I found on one of my walks and wrapped it in some cotton thread which came with an item of clothing. There is also a mattress which came with the apartment, and all the bedding was brought in by the housing company. I much prefer to sleep on the floor as I did in the UK. I do it here as well when someone visits me. For cleaning the surfaces I use soap water. Some say the apartment looks "empty". Perhaps to some, but to me it is full of light which I learned to appreciate especially here during the winter months.
Throw
This cotton throw I acquired here in Sweden. It's washable, and after I washed it, it became textured and looks even more beautiful now.
Seat pad
The seat pad I also bought here. At times I leave it on a chair, but mostly I use it to sit on the floor.
Office space
Previously this office at the university contained a lot of furniture. The university allowed me to remove most of it when a new standing desk was brought in. It feels odd to be in academia and have almost no physical books. Most of the books that I need I have as e-books, otherwise I use the library. The computer which is in the office I use extremely rarely. On the desk there is a mug which belongs to the department, some tea bags, a body lotion which I use for my hands, and a hand cream. There are some tissues, a usb stick, a jar of petroleum jelly that I have had for a long time, some cables, a couple of notebooks, a couple of pens, my keys. I don't have any papers because I avoid printing them. Over time I got used to reading everything on my screen. If one stands where I was standing when I took this picture, a whiteboard would be behind the person. On the whiteboard I have this poem by Li Po which I found in one of Yi-Fu Tuan's books:
"If you were to ask me why
I dwell among green mountains,
I should laugh silently.
My soul is serene. The peach blossom
follows the moving water. There is
another heaven and earth beyond
the world of men."
