By Leslie Lindsay

We needed to upgrade our guest room for awhile now.  You see, we’ve had this old bed in it since we got married–about 9 years already–and while it has served its purpose, it was just…well, too small.  You see, the bed frame was an old antique that my husband’s grandfather used (perhaps even made) when he was a younger man.  Grandpa passed away in the early 1990’s.  The mattress, of course has been replaced since grandpa’s time, but it was always a full-sized mattres.  Much too small for two individuals, who often occupy that bed when they visit– this generation’s grandparents.

And so, the mattress was given away and the old antique bed frame sat on the curb for awhile.  (I was just sure someone would snatch it up and repurpose it–you know, go for that shabby chic thing and pass off as a wall hanging or something).  But, no luck.  Today, we stuck garbage stickers to it and waited for the garbage truck to come haul it away.

Of course, the release of one bed can only mean one thing:  time to go shopping!  Waltzing into the mattress store this past weekend, I explained that I needed a new mattress (well, what else would I be purchasing at a mattress store??!) and that it was intended for a guest room (read: I don’t want to spend an arm and a leg).  I was promptly asked to lie down on the “introductory” $299 model.  Ugh!  Awful.  We ended up going for a mid-grade mattress and box springs which were delivered free the very next day.

When I mentioned that the replacement bed was “just a full [mattress],” the salesman mentioned that queen beds haven’t really been around for that long; not as long as we’d like to believe, anyway.  Full mattresses–or “doubles” were actually intended for sleeping two.  A twin, ironically was only intended to sleep one–which it does, most of the time.  (I wonder if they were once referred to as “singles?”)  I don’t know…so thought I’d do a little research.   Here’s what I found:

• The Bed in history, from ancient Egyptions to modern times:  http://www.bettersleep.org/mattressology/bed_in_history.asp
• The difference between full vs. queen sized beds, facts and figures: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Full_Bed_vs_Queen_Bed
• Famous beds through history: http://www.open.edu/openlearn/history-the-arts/history/heritage/famous-beds-queen-victoria

And that’s what’s in my bed brain today, Thursday March 15th 2012.