But the real fun is the process of putting it together, and once you do this you have to appreciate the genius of the company. The directions do not have a single word--your only guide is a series of simple pictograms. Perfectly adequate. You want to rail at them, and scream at them and say that it doesn't fit or that the holes are in the wrong place. However, after you study the directions again, it becomes painfully, embarrassingly clear that you reversed some piece or another and the error is yours. Just follow the step by step instructions. The rigid process is what we all need sometimes--no skipping steps, no extra pieces, no ambiguity, and no real decision making. You can't say, "I will skip page seven and come back to it later." And no one else can tell you to do it another better way, as there is no better way than to follow the instructions. You just can't--the path is clear to completion. If only life was always that simple, or even if was like this sometimes...
People have different views about the furniture and process. I know it is better, a lot better than the Sauder furniture made from particle board and spit. Some people find the assembly process frustrating while other find it very relaxing. One friend even eagerly volunteered to put it together, claiming it calmed him. I think I will give him a chance! A young couple I know laughed and laughed after an Ikea all nighter building their whole bedroom because at the end they had several extra pieces, though every door and drawer opened. A little mystery in their life, but no doubt something will fall off sometime because they didn't follow the process.
I don't know if I will have a house full of the stuff, but it meets some needs at this point. Including the need for just following the path.
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