If I had a nickel for every time I manifested a desk…

I would have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s cool that it happened twice.

I’ve been looking for a desk. Not just any desk, but a small, basic desk or table that I can use for painting, separate from my computer desk. I like designated spaces. Bonus points for a desk with an attached lamp, and cute little wire drawers I can fill up with art supplies.

The desk search has been uneventful so far. I didn’t want to buy new, because the thrill of the thrift runs deep in my veins and I knew I would find the perfect desk at the right time, for some ridiculously hell yes amount of money. I’ve been checking out Goodwill every few weeks, to no avail. And I’m going on a real vacation this week, so the desk was NOT on my mind.

But sometimes the universe just has to poke you a little bit.

Last night, I dreamt that I had a small apartment on top of a store or in some kind of business building. My mom was visiting me and we were walking all over town. These details are not true to life at all. I don’t talk to my mom and I live in a house. But the dream scene was set and I was trying to decorate my working space (a small “office” in a hallway or closet, tucked away in a really inconvenient space).

In the dream, I found a French provincial vanity small enough to fit my teeny space. It matched the style of my childhood dresser and hutch, and I’ll always have a soft spot for that set.

It looked something like this:

When I woke up, I grabbed my phone and went to Facebook Marketplace. I set my location radius, selected the local pickup option, and searched “desk.”

My dream desk was not in the results.

“Table.”

Nada.

I decided to be specific and look for “Art table.” The universe loves specificity, with enough wiggle room to do its thing.

And there it was.

Listed as “Drafting art table” for just $25, it was perfect.

Eight hours later, after a short drive and asking my housemate to join me for safety and heavy lifting reasons, it was in my car. The woman selling it told me that it was her daughter’s school desk during COVID distance learning and she covered it with contact paper to liven it up.

It has marble contact paper. Same as my desk, so I know it comes from a kindred aesthetic spirit.

Now it’s living its best new life as my art table.

On the drive home, my housemate told me that I was much more willing to buy stuff from internet strangers than he was. I told him the bargain hunting was in my blood and I liked the challenge of finding the exact right thing.

This actually happened before, when I manifested a purple desk in 2015.

I had a big mental road block to getting down to business in my new freelance career and I put my finger on it. There was no space for me to work in the house. I was working on my couch, usually with the tv on in the background. I couldn’t focus. I needed a desk. I knew I could find an awesome desk for under fifty bucks on Craigslist, so I just scrolled the postings each day and kept an eye out. Suddenly I saw it. A beautiful hand-painted PURPLE desk. PURPLE!!! It was perfect for me. It was listed at $40 but they came down to $30 to get it out of their apartment before they moved. It’s all set up in our home office now and I have been putting crazy time into the business since then, waking up early to work and also working after dinner instead of watching tv all night.

“Today Is Day One” – written in April 2015 (cw: diet culture, being on my Dave Ramsey bullshit)

That perfect purple desk is teal now (with marble contact paper, of course).

But I have a very excellent track record with manifesting desks.