Pages

Monday, December 26, 2011

Monday Musings.

Happy Boxing Day!  When I first heard of this day, I thought it was a day where all the British servant class would get the Peers in a ring and give them what-for.  Serving class revenge!  I was rather disappointed to find that it had more to do with giving the servants the day off, since they had to work on the holiday.  I like my idea better.

Boxes.  I've moved around quite a bit in my life.  I think, at one point, my mother said that she had to start a new address book just for me, as she already had sixteen different addresses under my name.  I mostly moved myself - being the starving artist that I was for several years, I didn't have a lot of possessions.  Everything was boxed up in boxes gleaned from the back of stores and groceries.  I would pack things willy-nilly and label boxes in a cryptic way:  "Stuff - Old LR".  I inevitably lost a box during transition.  I came to think of it as one does about socks in the laundry - a veritable Box Black Hole.  When I moved to the Netherlands, one of my boxes never made it back into the shipping crate at Customs.  Unfortunately, it contained all my dinner-sized plates.  The first Dutch word I learned was inappropriate for family viewing.

When I was a kid, I had a cigar box in which I kept all my "important" stuff.  There were rocks, little Robin's eggs, some sea glass, a snake skin.  I was constantly spotting something amazing and pocketing it until I could safely stash it in my box.  Which was then hidden through an elaborate series of coverings, veilings, and subterfuge.  Heaven forbid someone would find my treasure!  I still pick up odds and ends.  Sort of like a magpie - shiny objects are always catching my eye. 

One of my (countless) New Year's Resolutions is to sort through some of these boxes that have been toted around from pillar to post.  They are still unpacked and still unused.  So, I am assuming, they are unneeded.  I have found that the best motivation for giving all these "collections" the heave-ho is imagining the conversation that will take place between my unfortunate family members burdened with the task of cleaning out my house after I'm gone. 

"Um, didn't we just open a box of string bits and hour ago?"
"I'm afraid to open this box - YOU open it."
"Did you realize she had a 'problem'?"

Pardon me while I pull out my sorting bins (thank you Sylvie) and toss some flotsam!

15 comments:

Sue said...

I love when people collect interesting "bits"....it shows their interests. Put the stuff out on display and enjoy it.....but yea, get rid of the string-LOL!

Hope you have a great New Year!

Erin said...

Oh my, you and Sue are up early LOL! My kids already have boxes like this, I'll be straightening their room and I find the strangest things!!!

Susan said...

Sue - Another early bird! It's frightening to put all the stuff in one place and face it!

Erin - You're up rather early yourself, Miss. I bet the boys have 'interesting' collections.

Sylvia said...

Have you gotten out your copy of the Karen Kingston "Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui"? This is guaranteed to spurt you on!

Mama Pea said...

Ha-ha-ha! "Did you realize she had a 'problem?'" Yes, yes, I can just hear someone saying that about me. Although I'm not a "saver" of boxes of things, I have certain pieces of written notes/letters (it's how I clear my head) that really, really, REALLY should be burned before someone has to sort through them and wonder about my mental health.

Candy C. said...

Wait, I'm not the only with with boxes that have been stashed and unopened for YEARS?!? I should probably get on the bandwagon and toss some of it. :(

Tombstone Livestock said...

Guilty here too .............

And then I put things away and they go into that Black Hole. Put a Christmas garland away about 8 or 9 years ago and haven't found it yet. It was one with lights on it and I put it away with the ornaments still on it. One of these days I will find it.

Michelle said...

I have flotsam but here's why I stopped heave-ho-ing. Years ago my DH and I were moving around some of those long-unopened boxes and I found my old blankie and my favorite stuffed toy from my childhood. My DH pointed out that I hadn't seen them for all these years so how important could they be. I FELT a lot of pressure (not sure if it was actually from DH) so I put them on the discard pile. Do you know what? My heart is STILL very sore over throwing away that old skinny stuffed cat, and I don't want to do that to myself again!!!

hoosier girl said...

Have you been in my basement??? Flotsam is such a neat word that I haven't heard in years. I'm gonna add it to my everyday vocabulary!

Michelle said...

Being military we moved almost every three years. I have a whole garage full of boxes of things we have collected from around the worlds. I can't tell you whats in them. I haven't opened them in years. And I do mean years!

Susan said...

Sylvia - As soon as I can clean up the office, I will be able to find it!~

Mama Pea - Even though I know I won't care at that point, it still makes me nervous.

Candy - I'm trying to think of it as another Christmas - will I find treats or coal in the boxes?

TL - You know you'll find it as soon as you don't need it.

Michelle - I had the same thing happen with my raggedy stuffed zebra. I regret it to this day.

HG - Boy, if I had a basement I would REALLY be in trouble!

Michelle - How can you stand the suspense!? I am going to tackle a box a week until they're all done. Or, so I hope.

tom | tall clover farm said...

I've tried to enlist my friends to help me get organized this year, the take-no-prisoner task masters that I know will whip me into shape. So far no takers, who knew I was such a challenge. Happy New Year! Tom

Susan said...

Tom - I should just package Sylvia and send her out there. But I won't, because she's MY take-no-prisoner task master (with incredible style, by the way). Could it be that picture of your kitchen-cum-Ungerness? A very Happy New Year to you and your adorable bullies, too!

Ngo Family Farm said...

I did the same as you when I was a girl! I even kept shiny little candy wrappers :) Now, I'm a "tosser" of things, though. I just feel more at peace when there's less stuff around weighing me down. My husband is the total opposite, though, so to each his own!

When I've had trouble getting rid of something sentimental that i know in my heart needs to go, I take a picture of it first, and this seems to work for me. No regrets yet that I can think of.

Ngo Family Farm said...

P.S. my mom tends to collect lots of things that she eventually wants to get rid of, but then she can't bring herself to do it. So, she gives these things to me and I donate them for her :D

-Jaime