What every woman needs!
My life, dear readers, has been a bit frenzied since the first of the year. Husband Ridge is without a gallbladder since January, a second operation for a stent in the bile duct in May, and a new spine (yep, rod and screws–three incisions in June) and no driving until September.
OH, ME!! My choices, I figured, are martyrdom or a bit of selfishness. Most days, I have chosen the later.
Friend and head archivist at our regional library said, “You need a ‘she shed'!”
Huh? Where have I been? After she explained the concept and some ideas, I was sold! Smart woman, that Becky! She has taught me so much about organization and presentation. I thought I was Type A, but she makes it look easy with her gentle demeanor. Thank you, Becky, for bringing me into the archive fold.
As usual, as soon as I got home from the archives [where I am lucky enough to be employed a few hours a week; I moved up from volunteer--yes, I am bragging!], I hit Google. My pal Google found some 2 million hits for “she sheds.” She sheds can be simple or complex. One does not really have to follow suggested blueprint instructions or purchase advertised items for a hideaway.
You need not build an addition or a small shed to have the female equivalent--and might I add--the luxury of a man cave. The female version of the man cave is what SHE WANTS IN HER OWN SHE SHED. That is all that it is about!
Just as men say that they need their caves to de-stress, we women need our sheds for the same reason men need their caves: to unwind, to think without interruption, to read, to putter, to do and to be--alone!
I have always known I needed someplace where I could zone out--not answer the phone or emails or worry about grocery lists or errands. Just for an hour or two a day. Often, it was just surfing on the computer. One friend said her shed is her bathtub. No, thanks, I would look like an oversized prune or have dropped a library book in the water. Another has her own home office. Yet another, a sewing room (oh, my – that would stress me out – she who was asked to drop home economics in the 8th grade.)
Suddenly, eureka moment! I have a she shed and didn’t realize it. Working three or four hours several times a week in the archives in the basement of our beautiful beaux arts library is my shed. I work in the archives back room, surrounded by files, boxes, photos, and drawers of maps and oversized documents. With ever-changing technology, my computer and I are updating, accessioning, transcribing old manuscripts, and whatever other tasks might be needed. (Yes, I can read this now.)
The temperature is perfect – mid-60s, low 50s humidity. My kind of weather. The room is QUIET!!
As usual, as soon as I got home from the archives [where I am lucky enough to be employed a few hours a week; I moved up from volunteer--yes, I am bragging!], I hit Google. My pal Google found some 2 million hits for “she sheds.” She sheds can be simple or complex. One does not really have to follow suggested blueprint instructions or purchase advertised items for a hideaway.
Just as men say that they need their caves to de-stress, we women need our sheds for the same reason men need their caves: to unwind, to think without interruption, to read, to putter, to do and to be--alone!
I have always known I needed someplace where I could zone out--not answer the phone or emails or worry about grocery lists or errands. Just for an hour or two a day. Often, it was just surfing on the computer. One friend said her shed is her bathtub. No, thanks, I would look like an oversized prune or have dropped a library book in the water. Another has her own home office. Yet another, a sewing room (oh, my – that would stress me out – she who was asked to drop home economics in the 8th grade.)
Sometimes I am alone in an area among all these rare and fragile histories and manuscripts. Sometimes there are several of us, but each at our own tasks with our own little bit of space and with minimal talk. I love it.
My latest task--and fascinating it was--got completed it this week. Goal: update and check the records of the 69 family Bible records held in the archives. Here are Bibles from the 1700s to modern day and many years in between. Sometimes there are beautifully colored original pages, sometimes photocopies. Mostly, the surnames are ones many of us here in the area know or have a recall of seeing that name before. Here are the lists of marriages, births, and deaths.
The handwriting may be beautiful manuscript or poorly spelled pencil notes. It’s all important.
I wonder about those wives who had 13 children in 20 years and then the second wife who had another set. You can see the poor baby listed who died after just a few days and the giving of that same name to a subsequent child. There are ephemera from different periods--notes from soldiers, photographs, and random objects like a pair of old glasses or a lock of hair from a deceased loved one.
Thanks to our archivist, a very learned and gracious lady, I have gleaned so much more local history as well. Some of the genealogy of James Wood (Glen Burnie Estate) family, Belle Grove farm receipts, and photos of past Apple Blossom Festivals are highlights with which I have been trusted.
I wonder about those wives who had 13 children in 20 years and then the second wife who had another set. You can see the poor baby listed who died after just a few days and the giving of that same name to a subsequent child. There are ephemera from different periods--notes from soldiers, photographs, and random objects like a pair of old glasses or a lock of hair from a deceased loved one.
Thanks to our archivist, a very learned and gracious lady, I have gleaned so much more local history as well. Some of the genealogy of James Wood (Glen Burnie Estate) family, Belle Grove farm receipts, and photos of past Apple Blossom Festivals are highlights with which I have been trusted.
My final thought for the week is: Visit your archives; research your family history. Who knows what treasures and what stories you may find! And you can stay cool, too.
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