Photographs and Memwrylies

I have spent the last few weeks scouring through scores of boxes stored across several bedroom closets and in our "cellar," as Dan calls it. In less than a week, he and Carlene will have a cellar of their own as the closing date on their home approaches.

My advice to them is not to keep things in boxes in their cellar. If these items are not useful enough to be unpacked and given an accessible place in your home, you don't need them! The only exception would be seasonal decor, photographs, and precious keepsakes, whatever those might be.

Mr. W and I will be assisting in their move, as will Carlene's parents. Dan is in for a surprise because I have a small pile of boxes that contain stuff that he left behind. Now that he will own a home with an ample cellar, these boxes are "on the truck" to be moved to his place. While I got rid of all of his trophies and awards (with his permission) last year, I did not send his school yearbooks to a landfill grave. Also, I saved a selection of his sports jerseys--in different sizes and from a variety of teams--that he may want to share with his offspring, if mentioning this does not jinx his chance to have offspring. Stick a needle in my eye.

Also, he has some collectible metal trucks and cars that were gifted to him that may someday be worth something. Of course, he was not allowed to play with them, so they are in perfect condition for him to show to his offspring and not allow them to play with them. Cross my heart and hope to die.

In addition to sorting through Dan's remaining stuff, I have made great strides in sorting through my stuff. Just today I took four boxes of paperback books and one box of home decor to my favorite charity thrift store. I've been averaging four to five boxes/bags of donations each week for the past month, mostly clothing and accessories. 

The most difficult category of stuff to make decisions about is photography. For example, I inherited my parents' wedding album when my mom moved into the memory care facility. A professional photographer took beautiful black and white photos of that special day and they are arranged in a large cream-colored album. It's lovely to turn the gold-cornered pages; my parents looked like movie stars from that era. I recognize the faces of my deceased grandparents and many great aunts and uncles, also those of aunts, uncles, and second cousins still alive. 

OK, so what's next for this history book? My brothers don't want it or it would not have been placed in my pile to take away from our mom's move. Dan won't want it. I have no doubt that he will similarly not want the expensive gold-cornered album from Mr. W and my wedding. In addition to that, the abbreviated version of our wedding is commemorated in a parents' album that naturally became my possession when my mom moved. So there is another album that Dan won't want. 

I also have photos from both sets of my grandparents' weddings, which would have occurred in the mid-1930's. The main photo of my mom's parents is 11" x 14" and it is a black and white photo to which color was added by hand. It is amazing, but what about its fate? My heart is heavy to realize that it will decay in a landfill with coffee grounds, diapers, moldy cottage cheese, and worse, sooner or later. It's just a matter of who sends it on its way.    

Perhaps I should write "in case of fire, throw in" on the covers of the albums and on the boxes that contain loose photos of days gone by. Maybe I should burn them myself, which I am considering. Seems like cremation is a more dignified option. 

From more current times, I have a collection of albums that I painstakingly put together of Dan's life from ultrasound womb photo to college graduation photo. I am likely deluding myself that his offspring will enjoy curling up with me someday and seeing the adventures of their father when he was their ages.

Stick another needle in my eye.

Groundhog Day is a Wryly Good Holiday

Happy Groundhog Day! My favorite holiday as it involves no extra work from women to celebrate it.  

There was an adorable groundhog family that lived in the side of a hill on the common ground of our subdivision during the summer. On our walks, Franker and I would frequently see the dad foraging around. Sometimes Mrs. Groundhog would appear at the entrance of the den, seemingly nudging Mr. G out, out, OUT.

I got it Mrs. G! Taking care of two babies, she didn't need the big lug underclaw as well. There were a few times that we saw all four of them enjoying a picnic on the hillside. Franker would go psycho, such was his strong instinct to chase and scatter the happy family. 

We have not seen them for quite a while because they are hibernating. They spend summer and fall stuffing themselves and napping in the sun, gaining fat to survive the cold months during which they snooze off the excess weight. Man, groundhogs are lucky!!! I can't imagine the joy of sleeping soundly through the winter months then waking up in March in shape to wear a swimsuit.

Wrytirement is going well, I think. No, I have not accomplished anything particularly impressive, but I've done some small projects here and there. Bags and boxes of unneeded stuff have been donated or disposed of; it will all add up to eventual success in the war against clutter.  

I admit that I do a lot of loafing, something for which I seem to have a knack. Not having to be on a schedule is wonderful! I do not miss the office AT ALL. My wryplacement has contacted me a couple of times with questions (for which I agreed to be accessible) and my former boss has contacted me about meeting for lunch in the future. Sure, sure, let me check my calendar....

Last week we received the news that an offer Dan and Carlene made on a house was accepted. They have been scouring the real estate listings, visiting open houses, and touring homes for sale with their agent for several months, trying to run ahead of the rising interest rates boulder. Their original target area was the zip code in which they currently live and several adjacent zip codes, a chunk of the metropolitan area that is highly desirable due to central location, a relatively urban-ish lifestyle, and historical affluence. It is crowded with original small neighborhood homes in their elder years and recent McMansions built after mercilessly tearing down elder homes. 

As they were each raised in the suburbs, the urban-ish experience has been different and attractive to our young couple. They enjoy walking to a nearby park and to restaurants and other attractions near the home they are renting. Dan somewhat snootily told Mr. W and me that they didn't want to live in a county subdivision such as the ones where they lived for their childhoods. They were seeking a location with more diversity and culture. They understood that for what they could afford, it would not be a spacious home, but that was fine because they are not into having a lot of "stuff" like we are.

The more they shopped these zip codes, the more they realized how nearly impossible it was to find a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home in decent shape, with a two-car garage (or a garage at all), priced under $400k. The asking price had to start somewhat below that amount to cast a wide net for passionate competition to incite multiple offers and push the final bid to at least $450k. 

Hey, nobody ever said a central location with diversity, culture, and limited square footage for their self-proclaimed minimalistic lifestyle was going to be reasonably priced.

Thus, they expanded their acceptable region and--you guessed it--they will be the owners of a four-bedroom, three-bathroom ranch, with a two-car garage, near the subdivision pool, in the county. Carlene was happy to learn that the pool has a swim team, as she grew up swimming on a local swim team in her parents' subdivision. Dan's first job was lifeguarding at our subdivision pool; he could walk to work. How convenient was that?

Welcome back to your childhood you two! The boring old suburbs, where the groundhog families live and multiply, will be happy to see you!