To continue on...
We brought our new video camera with us to document this Herculean effort and we've been having a lot of fun with it...taping all kinds of weird gadgets and items that we find along the way. I mean- what do you DO with a bag FULL of Sweet and Lo packets? Or a big box FULL to the bursting point with...rubber gloves!? Or JAWBONES AND SKULLS of COWS...which, by the way, I thought were Extremely Cool but Brad chucked them into the dumpster! Or tins and tins and TINS ( the big kind you get filled with popcorn at Christmas) of plastic eggs- used to make Charli-doll heads...We are realizing that we have bitten off a LARGE amount and are now struggling to chew it. But it's been fun...and we've found some treasures along the way. One of my favorite things so far has been a large, colorfully illustrated certificate presented to Grandpa Pass when he was in the Navy in WWII upon the occasion of crossing the Equator. Apparently, when you cross the equator for the first time in the Navy, it's a big deal...I'll have to post a picture. Also- Grandpa had all these rocks that he had broken open to reveal FOSSILS inside! I don't know why I get SO EXCITED when I see fossils...it's just thrilling to me. I chose a couple to keep...and so if you meet me at the airport and help me with my luggage and ask, " What are you carrying in this? Rocks?" I'll have to say, " Yep!"
It's really interesting going through a lifetime of accumulated possessions. If nothing else, it gives you an idea of what a person is like...For instance- if I had never met Grandpa, I think I would have gotten somewhat aquainted by doing this whole clean-out thing. For instance: I can tell that he was a gardener on a big scale, he was in the Navy, he was an engineer, an architect, an organist, an accordion player, devoted to church and family, maker of dolls, hospitable, a movie enthusiast, a collector, a photographer...and a SAVER OF MANY LETTERS. Wow. Let me tell you about the Christmas cards from WAY BACK WHEN...On second thoughts, Nah.
Well, the big yardsale went off pretty well but we still have a lot of stuff left over. Having no time to put an ad in the paper, we were reduced to trusting in signs ( and God!) to guide the bargain hunters to our driveway...Pen and I drove around last night and this morning putting signs and balloons up...and I guess it worked b/c we had a fair amount of people drop by - mostly in the morning. Holding a yardsale is a lot of work- but also a lot of fun. We had some friends drop by- Rick and Jenny May Matthews, the Rickerds...Poor Nate twisted his ankle helping load the couch onto a truck...and it's swelling up. He's putting ice on it as I write. And the decades of accumulated dust seems to have gotten to Brad. He suddenly developed a horrid case of allergies and is pretty miserable...either that or a bad cold descended like Sennacherib on the something or other. Yes- you can tell, I'm pretty tired. Pen's not feeling so hot either. It's a good thing we all love each other and get along so well...It's kind of fun being exhausted together. Penny and I laugh hysterically about NOTHING. But what's new?
So you can pray for us...We're feeling our limitations.
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Monday, September 05, 2005
Labor Day- emphasis on LABOR
Well, it's Labor Day...and boy have we labored.
We arrived here - in California- around midnight Sat. night/Sun. morning. But to our Eastern Standard Time bodies, it felt like 3:00 a.m. But what was the first thing we did? Did we go straight to bed like normal people? No. We went up to the attic and started assessing the situation, as it were. Ah, yes. And then we ate frozen pizzas. By the time we went to bed, it was around 4:00 a.m. EST.
We hit the ground running Sunday morning. We had our our own little Communion service and it was one of the nicest times I've ever had eating the Lords' Supper...and probably the only time I'll ever partake of it wearing grubby clothes. It made me realize how Jesus isn't the kind of God who sits around in church all week in dressed up clothes. He is accessible. He is involved in the nitty gritty activities...like cleaning out a house with 50 years worth of belongings.
We decided to have a Labor Day yard sale and so most of yesterday was devoted to sorting things out between piles of "Keep" "Throw Away" and " Yardsale." There is a tired old dumpster out in the front - twenty square yards- and we began filling it up pretty fast. One of the first things Pen and I did was start on the kitchen cupboards. WOW. Spices from 1973! Tupperware from the 80's! A veritable time capsule...Further bulletins as events warrant, but we are about to go partake of a much deserved dinner out on the town...See ya LATER!
We arrived here - in California- around midnight Sat. night/Sun. morning. But to our Eastern Standard Time bodies, it felt like 3:00 a.m. But what was the first thing we did? Did we go straight to bed like normal people? No. We went up to the attic and started assessing the situation, as it were. Ah, yes. And then we ate frozen pizzas. By the time we went to bed, it was around 4:00 a.m. EST.
We hit the ground running Sunday morning. We had our our own little Communion service and it was one of the nicest times I've ever had eating the Lords' Supper...and probably the only time I'll ever partake of it wearing grubby clothes. It made me realize how Jesus isn't the kind of God who sits around in church all week in dressed up clothes. He is accessible. He is involved in the nitty gritty activities...like cleaning out a house with 50 years worth of belongings.
We decided to have a Labor Day yard sale and so most of yesterday was devoted to sorting things out between piles of "Keep" "Throw Away" and " Yardsale." There is a tired old dumpster out in the front - twenty square yards- and we began filling it up pretty fast. One of the first things Pen and I did was start on the kitchen cupboards. WOW. Spices from 1973! Tupperware from the 80's! A veritable time capsule...Further bulletins as events warrant, but we are about to go partake of a much deserved dinner out on the town...See ya LATER!
Friday, September 02, 2005
What NEXT?
Well, my dears, the countdown has begun. I have two weeks left of work. ( Plus, next week is vacation- so three calendar weeks until I quit...) ANYway...the following serves to underscore how MUCH I will miss working there.
You remember Marci, right? ( HOW could you forget? Other than Brad and me, she is like The Star of this Blog!) Well, the other day she proceeded to tell me yet another true to life tale of Marci in the wilds of New Hampshire. I listened with incredulous ears...
Apparently, she was driving home from second shift at about midnight, when out of the dark night sky swooped...an OWL...which SLAMMED into her windshield. !!!! And bounced off. !!! Well! So what does she do? Keep in mind that this is the same woman who adopted a wandering fawn. Why, of course, she stops, gets out, wraps the bird in a towel, and puts it in the back seat. Naturally. Well, she's driving along at about 50 mph and suddenly the bird revives. I don't know what the towel situation is at this point...whether it's still swathed in the towel or what...but it did what owls do: it perched. However, it chose a rather unusual place to perch: Marci's head. So of course, she screamed! ( At this point, I was practically screaming too- just hearing about it!) I can only imagine...A bird perched in her hair, screaming down the road at high speeds. Soon after this, she got home, opened the back door of the car, and woman and owl faced each other. Eye to unblinking eye. Marci's words to the bird were as follows: " Dude! I'm so sorry! But you hit me first!" The bird looked back at her and tipped his head to one side- just like he understood. Her imitation of his head tilting back and forth, side to side was just...what else...a HOOT! Well, he was reluctant to fly away...but Marci was not about to be stuck with another refugee animal again. No WAY was she going to call the Fish and Game villains. Thankfully, the owl caught on and made a graceful exit. PHEW! UNNNN-BELIEEEEVABLE!
I was seized with inspiration this morning, found a copy of "The Owl and the Pussycat", tweaked it a bit, and came up with a New and Improved! version entitled, " The Owl and Marcia."
You remember Marci, right? ( HOW could you forget? Other than Brad and me, she is like The Star of this Blog!) Well, the other day she proceeded to tell me yet another true to life tale of Marci in the wilds of New Hampshire. I listened with incredulous ears...
Apparently, she was driving home from second shift at about midnight, when out of the dark night sky swooped...an OWL...which SLAMMED into her windshield. !!!! And bounced off. !!! Well! So what does she do? Keep in mind that this is the same woman who adopted a wandering fawn. Why, of course, she stops, gets out, wraps the bird in a towel, and puts it in the back seat. Naturally. Well, she's driving along at about 50 mph and suddenly the bird revives. I don't know what the towel situation is at this point...whether it's still swathed in the towel or what...but it did what owls do: it perched. However, it chose a rather unusual place to perch: Marci's head. So of course, she screamed! ( At this point, I was practically screaming too- just hearing about it!) I can only imagine...A bird perched in her hair, screaming down the road at high speeds. Soon after this, she got home, opened the back door of the car, and woman and owl faced each other. Eye to unblinking eye. Marci's words to the bird were as follows: " Dude! I'm so sorry! But you hit me first!" The bird looked back at her and tipped his head to one side- just like he understood. Her imitation of his head tilting back and forth, side to side was just...what else...a HOOT! Well, he was reluctant to fly away...but Marci was not about to be stuck with another refugee animal again. No WAY was she going to call the Fish and Game villains. Thankfully, the owl caught on and made a graceful exit. PHEW! UNNNN-BELIEEEEVABLE!
I was seized with inspiration this morning, found a copy of "The Owl and the Pussycat", tweaked it a bit, and came up with a New and Improved! version entitled, " The Owl and Marcia."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
