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Thursday, August 19, 2010

Organization dilemma

The night before the LOST series finale, I finally gave it and told Jason he could go get a flatscreen tv. I gave him very strict instructions to only buy a tv that would fit in our existing entertainment center. Well, he got carried away at Wal-Mart and ended up getting a tv that is about 6 inches too wide, which sent me scrambling to D.I. with crossed fingers to find something to put the new tv on.
I was pretty lucky--I found this coffee table for only $7, and with the help of some Old English, it's in pretty good shape.

I pared down our DVD collection to the things that we watch frequently (all of our Disney movies, 30 Rock, Arrested Development) and put them in baskets and storage bins. The Blu-Ray player and satellite box and Wii all fit just fine on the floor. I would love to have something with storage again someday, but for now, this works out well.

Here is the problem!!!!
Our house has weird wiring. Some rooms, you have to walk about 6 feet into the room before you come to a lightswitch. Some rooms have tons of electrical outlets--some have very few. The very small hall bath has 2 light fixtures controlled by 2 different lightswitches.
There is only one logical place to put a tv in our house (due to mirror walls, walls of windows, windowseats, and fireplaces) and that logical wall has two electrical outlets--one on each end of the wall. Not in the middle, where you put a tv. See the dilemma?
So we have this giant tangle of cords next to our tv stand and an extension cord/powerstrip stretched across the floor to reach the outlet. I am at a complete and utter loss as to what to do with this stuff. Any ideas?

8 comments:

Candice said...

Is there absolutely no way to have it mounted above the fireplace?

Ohhhhhh those cords! Ack!

Kate said...

We really don't want it mounted above the fireplace. I think it would break my heart to ruin the gorgeous exposed brick wall with mounting gear :( Plus, it would really throw off the whole flow of the room, because we would have to move our couch to face that wall. So no, that's not really an option... the tv really just has to stay where it is.

Arlene said...

Our rental home is the same way so I have a basket that the router and other various large amounts of cords and such sit in and the plan is to put some fake greenery on top to make it look like a plant. I just haven't been able to find anything I like just yet. Good Luck!

Laura said...

First off, this has nothing to do with your post on organization. I just have a question for you since you too are a SAHM and I follow your blog faithfully :)
My question is posted at http://blissedoutbaby.blogspot.com/ (Titled-"He Said, She Said")
and concerns SAHM's and the help they receive, or don't receive from thieir husbands. Please give me your input as I am curious to know where your family stands on the issue :) Thanks so much!

Jen said...

oh man, you should see where our plug is in our basement...it's on the other side of our bar. So, we have a super long extension cord that runs the length of our family room. We just hide all of our cables behind the TV. Can you do that? Otherwise, maybe get a cute basket or something and throw all the cords in there.

The Hiller Family said...

Arrange to have Josh's grandpa, and electrician to come and rewire and put outlets where you want them and so on. It really isn't all that hard of work to do. Even putting the phone plug somewhere else is easy to do --- I watched an old landlord do it when I was single and I think I could even to that one!!! It would be an investmest toward home improvement!! Good luck!

They also have the spiral plastic things that wrap around cords to have them all be bundled into one "wire". This will at least keep them together and untangled! You'll need to come up with something soon... your bun in the oven will be crawling before you konw it!!

The Hiller Family said...

I noticed two people suggested putting them in baskets and maybe covering them... I see that has a fire hazard! Just be careful!!

Unknown said...

Hi, I just found your blog from Organizing Your Way and just love it.

One option regarding your cord problem, my friend hides her cords in a small wooden "box" that she pounded together and painted to blend in. The back of the box is open so you have access to it all. She then has a plant sitting on top of it. Really it looks just like a plant stand. Good luck.