Stuff

We have spent the last few weeks getting rid of stuff. We have collected an amazing amount of stuff over the years and it is time for most of it to go.

I began in my closet. When you can't possibly squeeze one more piece of clothing into the closet it is time for something to go. That part was pretty easy. Anything I no longer wear or never really much liked got cleaned out. Clothes were either given away or thrown away.

Next I began cleaning out cupboards and closets full of old toys, crafts, and art supplies. I threw away 14 jars of dried out Play Doh, a big box of broken crayons, dozens of games and puzzles, and broken toys my now grown grandchildren played with when they were little. It was hard to get rid of some these things. They triggered many sweet memories. I kept the memories, but threw away the battered toys. One closet shelf held 43 vases. They all came filled with beautiful flowers, but 43 vases really are more than I need. My husband boxed them up and took them to the local florist who was delighted to take them. The florist even gave him a big bouquet of flowers to bring home and put in one of the six vases I kept.

Inspired by all my cleaning, my husband decided it was time to clean out the attic. That has been a very interesting bit of cleaning. We have lived in this house almost 50 years. The attic held remnants from all those years. Mixed in with the old college books were letters we had written to one another before we were married. In one of them I told of my great excitement after an interview for my first job as a registered nurse. I had been offered $395 a month! I didn't know what we would do with all that money. There were parts of science fairs and school projects going back to my husband's high school days. There was a lot of old camping equipment. We used to love to camp, but now we find hotels are far more comfortable. So much stuff!

It feels good to clean out the dusty left-overs and make way for whatever the the future may bring.

Politics

My politics lean to the left. I donate money to and vote for Democrats. I listen to my friends and family who have another view of politics, but I just can't agree with their conclusions. I find it interesting that people who share the same faith and values, who love one another and love this country of ours disagree so strongly about politics. I wish we could remove the angry accusations and name calling and realize that we all are all patriotic people who love this country. Is it possible to disagree respectfully?

Power, Power, Wonder Working Power

Here is a picture of my new favorite person. After Hurricane Irene blew through leaving us without power for five days, this lineman from Kentucky was a very welcome sight. Thank you, Mr Lineman, for returning to us the wonder working power of electricity.

I think the one thing I missed most was light. We are both night owls, rarely going to bed until well past midnight. We played Scrabble by lamp light and were forced into some long, interesting conversations. Without light we were in bed by ten every night.

My all electric kitchen did not work. On night number one we enjoyed dinner and visiting with our daughter and grandchildren. On the third night we emptied our defrosted freezer and cooked all our meat on our other daughter's grill. We enjoyed quite a feast together that night. There are some very nice restaurants in our town that all had power. We enjoyed dining in several of them. My morning coffee is a necessary ingredient in life, so we got to go to my favorite coffee and bagel store every morning.

During the day we worked in the yard, read, and went to visit our daughter who is doing daycare for 3 month old twins. There is always a baby to rock at her house. One day we played tourist and went into DC and visited the Newseum. It is filled with thought-provoking exhibits. This broadcast tower from atop the World Trade Center in the 9/11 Exhibit was part of a very poignant display.


On day four of no power I cleaned out the refrigerator. Fortunately I was planning on loosing power so I did not have a lot of food in it. My refrigerator has not been this clean since the day we bought it. I took this picture right after the power was turned back on.


Our power was finally turned on just before dark yesterday. Today I am very thankful for all the wonders of electricity. The lights are on. My washer and dryer are running. Music is playing. My refrigerator is once again full of food. I was able to enjoy my morning coffee at home. The computer works. The TV works and we were able to watch our Redskins win a game last night.

Life is good. Life is better with electricity.