jousting sticks!

Times like this, it's a good thing I live on base. That means there's a cubic metre limit to how much I can own whilst still being able to make a path to my bed and desk, as well as open the doors to my wardrobe. There's also a limit to how much wall space I can take up with furniture shoved against the sides of my room, considering one length has my desk and wardrobe, the other side has a fixed wall heater, and the other two walls have a window, above-bed light, and a full length mirror.

I've just discovered the holy grail of intranets. It's the public For Sale folder for the base. Where every man and his dog can buy and sell from people they may or may not know and trust - other RAAFies and APS, or whoever else is cleared enough to access the Defence Restricted Network. With the amount of people posting, deploying, buying, renting, upgrading, etc. there seems to be no end to the amount of stuff people are trying to get rid of. Oh yeah, that's the other thing... the classic sign that you've got too much disposable income is when you've suddenly changed your circumstances and it's time to liquidate your newfound assets at a crazy price.

So what am I currently interested in on RAAFbay? A Bontempi organ.


I haven't played in years, unless you count a rather drunken dabble in the back of Madame Brussels last year or maybe the year before... I don't even know if I have room on any of my walls for an organ! But this guy's moving house, and I'm kind of doing him a favour, and I get to have a musical instrument in my life again (they're like pets and plants really, I miss them until I realise that they require more effort than I think). Oh, and I can finally annoy my noisy neighbours with MY bad taste! Everybody wins.

I think Project Pimp My Room is going to be improved dramatically by the joys of hand-me-downs that have been subsidised by other people's impulse purchases and throwaway wages! I'm sure the For Sale section will also help once I make it off base, what with the rent ads, furniture, whitegoods and even vehicles I've seen so far. It's like an incredibly parochial Trading Post, but for once, I'm automatically part of the exclusive shopper list.