I don’t usually write about the stuff I buy.
Most of my blog posts are about music, politics, books, philosophy, anime, science, or whatever happens to be on my mind that day. That’s generally what people expect when they visit my blog. Every now and then I’ll write something personal, but I rarely sit down and talk about something as simple as a lightbulb.
But honestly?
Fuck it.
It’s my blog.
If I feel like talking about a lightbulb today, then that’s exactly what I’m going to do.
Recently I ordered a color-changing LED lightbulb from Amazon for the lamp in my room. It isn’t some expensive smart home setup or anything extravagant. It’s just a bulb that lets me change the color whenever I want. Blues, reds, greens, purples, warm white, cool white—you get the idea.
And I absolutely love it.
It sounds like such a tiny thing to get excited about, but it’s one of those purchases that somehow changes the atmosphere of a room far more than you’d expect.
I’ve found myself sitting in my room at night with the lights dimmed, changing the colors depending on my mood. Sometimes I’ll put it on a deep blue while listening to Blue October. Other nights I’ll switch it to purple while writing. Sometimes I’ll make it green just because it reminds me of forests or fantasy worlds. Sometimes I’ll use red if I’m watching a horror movie or playing a darker video game.
It’s silly.
It’s simple.
But it’s fun.
And maybe that’s enough.
One thing I’ve realized over the past several years is that I’ve slowly been transforming my room into something that actually feels like me.
When I was younger, my room was…well…just a room.
There wasn’t much personality in it.
It had furniture.
It had a bed.
It had a desk.
That was about it.
Now, when I walk inside, it actually feels like stepping into my own little world.
I’ve been decorating it piece by piece over the years.
Not all at once.
Not by spending thousands of dollars.
Just little additions whenever I found something I liked.
I have posters hanging on my walls and on my bedroom door.
Those posters remind me of different interests and different periods of my life. Every time I look at them, they tell a little story about something that mattered to me.
Then there’s one of my favorite decorations.
A One Piece Straw Hat.
Not just any straw hat.
Luffy’s straw hat.
Hanging up on my wall.
As someone who’s been following One Piece for years, that hat isn’t just another decoration. It’s symbolic.
Adventure.
Freedom.
Friendship.
Dreams.
Never giving up.
Those are themes that One Piece has always represented for me.
Seeing that straw hat hanging there makes me smile.
It reminds me of one of my favorite fictional worlds ever created.
Then there’s my Funko Pop collection.
I know Funko Pops can be divisive.
Some people love them.
Some people think they’re overrated.
Some people think they’re just plastic toys collecting dust.
That’s perfectly fine.
For me, though, each one reminds me of a character I enjoyed.
Every figure represents a movie, a TV show, an anime, a video game, or some other story that left an impression on me.
They’re little reminders of fictional worlds that brought me happiness.
I also have a stuffed plush collection.
I know some people think stuffed animals are just for kids.
I completely disagree.
Comfort doesn’t have an age limit.
Neither does nostalgia.
Sometimes something soft sitting on a shelf simply makes a room feel warmer.
More welcoming.
Less sterile.
There’s nothing wrong with that.
Then there are my books.
Books everywhere.
I’ve always loved books.
Whether they’re novels, nonfiction, philosophy, science, psychology, history, or fantasy, I enjoy surrounding myself with them.
Some people decorate with expensive sculptures.
I decorate with shelves full of stories.
Even better, now some of those books are my own.
That still feels strange to say.
Seeing copies of my own published books sitting alongside books written by authors I’ve admired throughout my life is honestly surreal.
It’s a reminder that dreams sometimes become reality if you keep working at them.
Next to those books are comics.
Then manga.
Again, every single volume represents another story.
Another world.
Another adventure.
I’ve always believed stories matter.
Whether they’re told through novels, comic books, manga panels, television, animation, movies, or video games, stories shape how we think.
They teach empathy.
They inspire imagination.
They make us laugh.
Sometimes they make us cry.
Sometimes they stay with us for years.
Then there’s my CD collection.
Yes.
CDs.
In 2026.
I know streaming exists.
I use streaming.
But there’s something satisfying about owning physical albums.
Holding them.
Looking through the artwork.
Reading the lyrics.
Seeing the booklet the artists designed.
It’s an experience.
Music feels more tangible that way.
Every CD represents a memory.
An artist.
A soundtrack to different chapters of my life.
Blue October.
Story of the Year.
Seether.
Starset.
Keane.
Filter.
Eminem.
And plenty of others.
Music has always been one of the biggest parts of who I am.
Having those albums displayed isn’t just decoration.
It’s part of my identity.
The same goes for my video game collection.
Every game reminds me of a different period in my life.
Some remind me of childhood.
Some remind me of high school.
Some remind me of college.
Some remind me of difficult times when escaping into another world for a few hours helped me recharge mentally.
Video games are often dismissed as simple entertainment.
But I think they’re one of the greatest storytelling mediums we’ve ever created.
They combine art.
Music.
Writing.
Programming.
Psychology.
Design.
Animation.
Voice acting.
Problem solving.
Interactivity.
They’re incredibly complex creative works.
Having those game cases on display reminds me of that.
Then there are my board games.
And my card games.
Those represent something different.
They remind me that entertainment doesn’t always require a screen.
There’s something timeless about sitting around a table with other people playing a game together.
Laughing.
Competing.
Thinking.
Making memories.
I hope someday I get to play more of them with friends.
Looking around my room now, I realize something.
None of these things by themselves are particularly extraordinary.
A poster.
A plush.
A comic.
A book.
A lamp.
A lightbulb.
A CD.
None of them are life-changing individually.
But together…
Together they create an environment.
They create a feeling.
They create a place where I actually enjoy spending time.
And I think that’s important.
Your room is where you wake up.
It’s where you go after a stressful day.
It’s where you think.
It’s where you sleep.
It’s where you create.
It’s where you recharge.
Why shouldn’t it reflect who you are?
I’ve never really understood the idea that adults shouldn’t decorate their rooms with things they enjoy.
Why?
Who made that rule?
If someone likes minimalist interior design, great.
If someone likes sports memorabilia, awesome.
If someone fills their room with plants, that’s cool too.
If someone decorates with anime, comics, books, records, plushies, action figures, or movie posters…
Why should anyone care?
Life is stressful enough already.
If looking at a shelf full of your favorite stories makes you smile every day, then I’d argue that’s a worthwhile investment.
The funny thing is that my room has evolved naturally.
There wasn’t one day where I said, “Today I’m going to redesign everything.”
It happened slowly.
One poster.
A few books.
Another shelf.
A plush.
A Funko Pop.
A comic.
Another manga volume.
A CD.
A new lamp.
Now a colorful lightbulb.
Little by little.
Year after year.
I think that’s how most meaningful spaces are created.
Not through one massive shopping spree.
But through gradual accumulation.
Each item has a story.
Where I bought it.
Why I bought it.
When I bought it.
What it reminds me of.
That’s what gives a room personality.
I also think our surroundings affect our creativity far more than we realize.
As someone who writes books, blogs, newsletters, podcast scripts, and countless other things, I’m in my room a lot.
This is where ideas happen.
This is where chapters get written.
This is where blog posts come together.
This is where podcast episodes are planned.
Having an environment that inspires creativity actually matters.
Sometimes simply changing the lighting changes my mood enough to get unstuck creatively.
That new lightbulb has already done that a few times.
It’s funny.
People often think inspiration has to come from huge life-changing moments.
Sometimes inspiration comes from a purple lamp in the corner of your room.
Sometimes it comes from staring at a bookshelf.
Sometimes it comes from glancing over at Luffy’s straw hat hanging on the wall and remembering one of your favorite anime scenes.
Creativity feeds off atmosphere.
Another thing I’ve started appreciating more as I’ve gotten older is collecting intentionally instead of obsessively.
There was a point where collecting could easily become about having more.
More figures.
More games.
More books.
More everything.
Now I don’t really care about having the biggest collection.
I care about having a collection that actually means something to me.
I’d rather own fifty things I genuinely love than five hundred things I barely remember buying.
Every item should earn its place.
That’s become my philosophy.
It’s less about quantity.
It’s more about meaning.
There’s also something comforting about physical media and physical collections in an increasingly digital world.
Streaming services remove movies.
Games disappear from online stores.
Songs get pulled.
Digital storefronts shut down.
Accounts disappear.
Companies change.
But the books sitting on my shelf?
They’re still there.
The CDs?
Still there.
The comics?
Still there.
The manga?
Still there.
There’s something reassuring about that permanence.
Maybe that’s another reason I enjoy collecting physical things.
They’re real.
They’re tangible.
They exist regardless of whether some server somewhere stays online.
As I look around my room today, I realize it tells my story better than I probably could.
Someone could walk in and immediately know some things about me.
They’d know I love books.
They’d know I love music.
They’d know I enjoy anime.
They’d know I enjoy comics.
They’d know I play games.
They’d know I collect things that make me happy.
They’d probably figure out pretty quickly that I’m a huge nerd.
And honestly?
I’m perfectly okay with that.
Being passionate about things isn’t something I’m embarrassed by anymore.
If anything, I think it’s one of the best parts of being human.
We all have things that excite us.
Things that inspire us.
Things that remind us of happier moments.
Whether that’s sports, music, painting, cooking, travel, collecting records, building model trains, gardening, photography, or decorating your room with anime memorabilia, those passions add color to life.
Literally, in my case.
Because now I have a lightbulb that can make my room glow every color imaginable.
It might seem like such a small purchase.
It probably is.
But sometimes it’s the small purchases that end up bringing the biggest smiles.
Maybe that’s what this post is really about.
Not a lightbulb.
Not posters.
Not collections.
Not decorations.
It’s about creating a space that feels like home.
A space where you can relax.
Think.
Dream.
Create.
Laugh.
Cry.
Write.
Listen to music.
Read.
Play games.
Or simply sit quietly while your room glows blue or purple after a long day.
I think everyone deserves a space like that, whatever it looks like for them.
It doesn’t have to be expensive.
It doesn’t have to impress anyone else.
It just has to make you happy.
Because at the end of the day, you’re the one living there.
You’re the one waking up there every morning.
You’re the one spending countless hours surrounded by those walls.
So fill those walls with memories.
Fill those shelves with stories.
Fill your room with pieces of yourself.
And if that includes something as simple as a color-changing lightbulb that makes your room feel just a little more magical every night, then I’d say that’s money well spent.
Sometimes happiness really does come from the little things.
