My old apartment had bare walls until about a month before I moved out.

I’ve decided I can’t let the same fate befall my current apartment. I’m determined to hang photographs, posters, knick-knacks, or whatever on my walls at least two months before I move again. Hopefully this time I won’t be moving so soon, but hey, I never know where or when the winds of change will blow me.

This week I’ve been selecting, printing, and framing photographs from my collection. (If I call it a “collection,” it sounds more impressive than an “album.”) I’ve chosen quite a few pictures of my girlfriend, of course, since I think she’s beautiful and certainly worthy of framing in a gallery, let alone my apartment.

I’ve also dug up some old photographs that I’ve taken over the years, mostly black and white, that seem artsy and therefore would look good on my walls.

Of course, I had to buy some frames for all the pictures I’m framing. I actually had quite a few unused frames already since I had planned to hang pictures in the old apartment until I moved. So I only needed a dozen or so new frames.

I went to Aaron Brothers, since they’re a frame store and they’re right down the street from me. Unfortunately, someone in the photography industry decided that eight by ten inches should be the standard, but of course most of my photos were originally four by six inches and therefore enlarge naturally to eight by twelve inches. So I had to leave Aaron Brothers and go to Ikea. Since Ikea is European, their frames come in less standard American sizes. I found some excellent eight by twelve inch frames there (remember, Ikea doesn’t just sell furniture, they sell home furnishings) for extremely low prices. I love Ikea.

So now I’ve got a whole bunch of photos framed and ready to hang, and I’ve made many pencil marks on the walls where they’ll go, but now I have to wait until an opportune time to hammer nails into the walls. I always have the desire to decorate my walls late at night, when I can’t in good conscience pound on my walls with a hammer. After all, if I’m planning to stay at this residence longer than two more months, I should really not make enemies of my neighbors.

I’ll just have to push the nails in with my fingers instead.