Anywhere I Am Free

The coziest spaces I've ever been in are always places where I personally feel the most freedom, or they are places that are getaways (even brief ones) from the increasingly harsh reality we all live in. That being said, I have a lot of places I consider to be quite comfortable spaces--these include my current bedroom living situation (I still live with my folks currently, though I have plans to eventually get moved out hopefully within the year), to friends' and family I visit, to the living space I dream about and eventually plan to have, to the dreams I dream at night, and finally to the books I read and video games I play. Each and every one of these types of spaces I consider comfortable and cozy for their own reasons.

1. My Bedroom

This has been one of my more tangible cozy spaces ever since I was a child, having first moved to Columbia, MO with my folks back in September of 2000. Here, I have much of my own worldly possessions including my bed, desk, clothes, art supplies, computer gear, books, etc. It is a small space (12ft x 12ft), but with a lovely arch window, and a lovely lilac bush that blooms in the spring.

I consider my bedroom to be a cozy space for its quaint charms, and the fact that once I close my door, I am free (to a degree) to be and do as I please. I work from home as a customer service representative for my 9-5 job, and otherwise work on a myriad of art and writing projects. This is also a space where I research into what's going on in the world, read a lot of books, and do a lot of thinking about what problems are yet to be resolved personally and professionally, as well as how to solve them.

The only reason in which I don't consider it to be a fully comfortable space is because of the nagging pressure of needing to move out. While my folks are willing to let me stay here and do work around the house, I am pushing 30 years old and need a space of my own. To be able to meet this goal, I must always be at work toward it, even if it takes a long time to get there. Of course, as with anyone else in a similar situation, I have a lot of bills of my own that are being taken care of to the best of my ability at this time.

Even though it is under my parents' roof, as an adult, it is still my little space. I do pay rent each month on it to secure it for the time being until I can have a place of my own, which will happen in due time. Only time will tell when that particular goal is met, but for now I am grateful to at least still have this space to call somewhat my own.

2. Friends and Family's Houses

When I visit someone like a friend or a family member, I consider it to be like that of a vacation or a quick getaway for a time, however brief. Usually, there's work involved of some kind there as well, but because there's a chance to otherwise get out of dodge and stay connected to others, I consider it to be a cozy situation. I have a friend of mine who is like family who recently moved to a new space, and is always wanting me to come over and help lift on furniture, move things around, and in short be an extra set of much-needed hands for fixing or hanging things up around the space. With that sort of thing, I'm always willing to help.

It's not all work when I'm there, though--often, we discuss things going on in the world, watch movies, play video games, maybe even do a little shopping around for things depending on what it is.

Granted, when I do go and visit friends and family, precautions are always in place to protect not just from COVID-19, but all other viruses as well, and there's usually a maximum of three people (myself included) at a time.

3. My Ideal Space

As for the space that is yet to be my own, I intend it to become my personal sanctuary. Depending upon the design of the floor plan as well as whether or not it is a small apartment within a complex, a moderate townhome or condo, or a single family home for rent, I will decorate the space as I desire.

I will include all my books, for I am seeking to grow a massive library, not just for myself, but for future generations. I will have a lot of plants and comfortable furniture, a coffee maker and tea kettle, and if allowed I will paint the walls whatever color palette I choose (I like a dark floral theme, myself). My current bedroom furnishings and art studio will come with me to my new place, and life will be for the most part peaceful.

The overall point of this space I hope to have is peace. It will be clean and organized, the grocery bill and utilities minimal, and the vibe perfectly suited for all the work I do from home now. It is meant as a place of deep thought and study, as well as a place of fun and rest. I often dream big about such a space no matter what the actual physical size of it is going to be, only because I have no idea what the future holds. But I do hope to make it happen one day.

4. The dreams I dream at night.

It may be a strange thing to consider nighttime dreams to be a cozy little space, but the fact remains that every time I have deep and colorful and detailed dreams, I feel like I've entered a whole different world. One that feels like an alternate reality in another part of the universe. I find such dreams to be more interesting than movies I've seen or video games I've played, or even books I've read.

In many ways, this renders the dreams to be like that of nightly vacations that allow me to travel to realms otherwise impossible. Way back in high school for an AP Psychology class, we had a project where we had the option of keeping a dream journal for about a month vs. another project (I forget what the other project even was), and I found the dream journal to be the most interesting, seeing as how I still remember dreams from before I entered middle school as though I'd just dreamed them last night. This is also true for more recent dreams that were strange and wonderful.

One dream I recall from a few months ago involved me rescuing a bunch of cats while I saw a giant black metal cube enter our atmosphere. It was enveloped in fire upon entry, and exited in fire just as quickly as it entered. However, I had to rescue all of these cats because otherwise a flood was going to get them. It was needless to say intense, but as strange as it sounds, even with dreams like that, I still find them to be quite the escape from reality.

There were other dreams as well that involved me playing a large scale live action Pokemon game (as though I were in the early Gameboy Color and Gameboy Advance games), capturing Pokemon, battling trainers, and the whole nine yards, all in a warehouse setting within a shiny city.

I've had dreams repeat themselves from different angles as well, like multiple takes in a movie or an editing lab. I could go on and on about all the different dreams I remember, but that would require me to write a rather large book.

Of all the places intangible that feel like cozy places to call home, the dream world would have to be at the top, mainly because every dream I've dreamed at night makes me feel as though I've traveled this world and this universe, and seen and learned a lot of things in life. In a lot of cases, they even feel familiar...

One thing is for certain--just as with the hope of having a place of my own one day, or going to see friends and family, or just being in my room, the dream world is where I feel the most free out of all of them. Because I feel the most free there, it is also there I feel the most comfortable.