Vampires live in my Home

I am not talking of the blood-sucking monstrous vampires or human living vampires that exhibit vampiric characteristics or the need, compulsion, or involuntary tendency to “feed” upon some substance or some kind of energy produced by other living things, primarily other people. I’m talking about one facet of vampires which is the repulsion to strong light. On the first morning in our new home, L came running to my room complaining that her room was too bright. I went to her room and noted a stream of sunlight on her writing table. What a bright and sunny day, just perfect mood to start the day.

But noo…L wanted to sleep in.

“Vampire?” (knowing L’s fascination for vampires during her teen years)

“No, I just hate the light. I want to sleep in.” L groaned.

“That’s not too bad. The sunlight is not hitting your bed” I teased. On the floor , our two cats squirmed for a spot under the dark corners of L’s bed. For about a week, I heard the same complaint all day long. M could not stand the afternoon sun hitting on her bedroom. She had massive migraines during the first week.

It got me thinking that so our old home seemed encased in a tomb. . The design of our old home is narrow where certain parts of the rooms barely received the sunlight. The walls that partitioned sections of the home prevented the flow of sunlight. I noticed I always turned on the fluorescent lights in the family den and the dining room. The only room that received sunlight was the living room during the mornings and the kitchen in the late afternoons. The rest of the rooms screamed of darkness and gloom. Is it one reason I felt so despondent in that house? With blinds to shield any meager source of sunlight, their rooms were a virtual nightscape. It’s no wonder that L oversleeps and wakes up at 1:00 PM when she has no school. One time, I even slept in L’s room and woke up at 10:00 AM to my utter disbelief.

I love the light. Maybe my vision is a bit impaired which makes me yearn for better lighting system. Our new home is situated in a corner lot with ample and huge windows which means more sunlight streaming in all directions.

I love it.

The chorus of the family members “WE NEED CURTAINS NOW”

I delayed the purchase of the curtains because it is just super pricey. Before we even moved in, I commissioned two curtain designers (the korean owned Ben’s Home Curtains and Ra-Fe) to hand me their quotations. Knowing it might be expensive, I divided the curtain project into two phases. The first set of curtains should cover L and M’s room, the living room and dining room for a total of 7 windows. M’s windows needed Roman shades as her room faces the scorching afternoon sun. The next batch would be my room, the landing and Luijoe’s room for a total of 5 windows.

The quote for Phase 1 was mind-boggling. It was like buying a piece of furniture , even more expensive than our sectional sofa.

1. Ben’s Curtains – 75,000.00
2. Ra-Fe- 78,000.00

I could have just chosen the more affordable blinds over full drapery and Roman shades but the kids wanted something pretty for their rooms. After much haggling and begging, I chose Ra-Fe in the end. Why?

1. Ra-Fe offered better quality.
2. Their Roman shades came with the Roman mechanism not just manual mechanism.
3. Negotiating with the owner is a more pleasant experience than with sales staff who stick with the “quote”.

Perhaps in another week or so, my “vampires” will be appeased in their slumber.