My office: my happy place

I feel it’s time for me to be open and honest about my health struggles. It’s not something major, but it’s majorly annoying – I suffer from migraines. I always have a headache, and my migraines come with a range of symptoms, such as nausea and sensitivity to sound and light. Sometimes, I get an aura, which is even more frustrating as it causes an iridescent and wobbly circle in my left-side vision. 

My last migraine spell lasted for two days and even though there was no aura, it was still very painful. On the worst day, I had to stay in my office with the lights off and screen brightness turned down. Thankfully, Tylenol and coffee helped me manage my symptoms.

To compensate for the lack of light provided by the overhead fluorescents, I turned on the small lights in my office. These consisted of a neon sign on the wall, a desk lamp, a Himalayan salt lamp, and a lava lamp. I acquired these little lights over the years through impulse buys at Five Below and Walmart. Beyond the little lights, my office is full of sentimental trinkets from my friends, coworkers and readers. 

On the back wall, I have created a shrine to showcase my favorite editions of the paper. I take pride in displaying my illustrations and cover designs. Among all the editions, my favorite is a drawing for the Perrynormal Festival. In this illustration, Sasquatch is being abducted by a UFO, which is piloted by none other than the Loch Ness Monster. While this is happening, a ghost and Mothman are fascinated by the tractor beam.

Important documents such as the staff directory and rack sale locations are posted on the walls, along with motivational posters and memes. One poster reads, “If you have time to lean, you have time to listen to all 44 minutes and 5 seconds of The Mollusk by Ween.” (I listened to it, but I’m not a fan. The song “Ocean Man” was good, though.) 

Another poster proudly displays Dr. Zoidberg from Futurama and says, “Need a story idea? Why not Zoidberg?” Another one reads, “God is within her. She will not fail.” My favorite poster says, “You did not wake up to be mediocre.”

On a circular bulletin board, there are numerous trinkets that I have gathered over time. These include a Perry pin for the city’s 200th anniversary, a NASA patch, a photograph of my best friends and me in Colorado, a red, white, and blue ribbon, a fortune cookie slip that advises to avoid unchallenging occupations, the moon card from the Loteria game, and a coloring page of a robin that says “thank you, hero!” that we ran a few months ago. 

There are even more trinkets scattered around my desk. These include a reversible octopus plushie that always has a happy expression, a small squishmallow of a shark, a tiny cactus, and a doily gifted to me by a reader.

On my bookshelf, I keep some essential books: the Associated Press style guide, Webster’s dictionary and thesaurus, Type Matters (which is considered the typographer’s Bible), and the actual Bible. I also have a copy of A Land So Dedicated: The History of Houston County and Pride of The Panthers, written by our columnist, Billy Powell. The shelf also contains several sketchbooks and reporters’ notebooks, varied professional art markers I never use, and a wide range of knick-knacks.

It’s borderline chaotic. “Why do I gather all this stuff?” you might ask. Well, the answer is simple. While I love attending events and meeting new people, I also have work to do in my office. And since life is too short not to have fun at work, my office is my happy place.

Whenever life gets tough and gives me headaches—in more ways than one— my office becomes my sanctuary. I wouldn’t want it any other way.