a bit of nonsense for Stream-of-Consciousness Saturday

This and That

My mind is full of ideas, so many things to do that I’ll never get half of them done. Go through stuff. Throw stuff away. Give Stuff to the Goodwill. Will stuff to the kids.

Never once have I ever passed on an item that I like…or want…hardly ever need. My collection includes ugly obviously handmade amateur pottery items. Why would anyone make a pottery vase shaped like a fire hydrant? And then as if the shape alone wasn’t bad enough, they painted it with tempura paint, the kind that never, ever shines…just sits there and looks, well, dull. Why does a fire hydrant have to be red? Isn’t it ok if the appliance was yellow? A vivid, canary yellow…not buttercup yellow…or yellow ochre. What the heck is “ochre” any way? Is it anthing like mauve? The word Mauve always reminds me of skinny old neighbor ladies who wear thick shoes. But once that sort-of-yellow fire hydrant vase…ok, I guess it IS more of a planter, you know, one of those things that a person puts a little offshoot of a plant into, taking a pretty looking cut of a end of a trailing plant that accidentally broke off…it has to be shoved into some kind of a Plant medium…why is it medium? Then water it for a few days, and as long as it stays looking sort of green-ish and the leaves don’t curl. Once the cutting is obviously dead, let it set for a few days then throw it out. Then there’s the problem of what to do with the fire hydrant pot with the dirt in it. Oh sure, the cat got into the plant…the cat probably killed the little sprig of a plant anyway…and it is more than likely that the cat is the one that digs dirt out of the pot and scatters it around on the floor.

Speaking of the cat. Or more accurately The Cat. Why do cats stare at you blankly as you discuss the mess on the floor, apparently staring at you as you scold the cat in what you hope is a disappointed voice, aimed at shaming the cat and appealing to its sense of regret. The Cat will gaze into your eyes for awhile, then her eyes shift ever so slightly in a sort of “glaze over” view. Then it will yawn and go somewhere to take a nap.

There are more stanzas to this post…but the appeal of throwing the planter away, or giving it to the Goodwill…who already has seven identical planters on its shelves. Or throwing it away…but then as you dig through the trash retrieving the yellowish planter when you remember that your mother-in-law had wrapped it in such nice gift wrap that time. Or give it to one of your kids…or even better, will it to them. They will be obligated to keep the thing indefinitely, shuffling it to the back of the shelf, or buried in the chest with other keepsakes…to be willed to their kid, and so on through the ages.

Don’t forget that when you do present the heirloom to the child…do it with as much fanfare as possible. You hate to get rid of…or, pass it on to the next generation…saying something like: I have always loved this fire hydrant planter…I’ve had it for years,, your grandmother inherited it from her mother, treasured and babied the thing throughout the years, finally gave it to me… and now—it’s YOURS!

17 thoughts on “a bit of nonsense for Stream-of-Consciousness Saturday”

  1. hee hee! That is funny, but truly is a problem I have, too. What to do with all my stuff. Most of it came from yard sales, so no real need to pass it on. šŸ™‚

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    1. Actually, one can also have a garage sale of their own and sell stuff at bargain prices…or pack it up and give it to the Goodwill. That could perpetuate the flow forever…

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    2. My late BFF, Dorothy, and I used to go to estate sale auctions…lordy what treasurers to be had! At the end of the sale one auctioneer just grouped all the left-overs into huge piles (sometimes barns or garages) and if the stuff still didn’t sell to a bidder he would just put the stuff up for grabs…we had flea market shops, so we hauled away whatever.

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    1. yep, it was just a stream-of-consiousness exercise…those are fun to write. I do have a collection of these garage-sale monstrosities that I can’t bear to get rid of…what works is to just wrap it up and give it to someone. LOL

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      1. lmao….my late mother had a thing for garden gnomes. We threw them ALL in the skip. Without a moment of regret or hesitation.
        I am sentimental and kept a great many of her old kitchen gadgets because she was a great cook and it feels right to continue what she began by using her tools. But the gnomes? No way in the world!!!! lol

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      2. Now you remind me of my rocker granddaughter, who when she was about four was given one of those little gnome critters with the bright color hair. She threw the figure across the room and yelled “I HATE gnomes.!” Her cousins were speechless.

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      4. Oh yes! Her music career has been stalled because of covid, but she’s back now…with a different band, but she did some single singing gigs in restaurants, etc. She played from the stage at the PorchRockr thing last weekend…we didn’t get to go because there was a family conflicting birthday bash. The PorchRockr event is put on by a neighborhood association and involves bands playing from … well, front porches … Unfortunately, I no longer drive at night, especially on the highways at high speed, the lights blind me. So have to depend on Dau1 driving…and her grandkids’ birthday party had precedence over Jeri’s show. <the party was marvelous…I always enjoy the "bar at the end of the Universe" atmosphere. Very eclectic.

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      5. I’m glad her career is getting back on track again. And I’m glad you’re being sensible about the driving. I have trouble with glare now too. I can still drive at night but it does tire me out. That’s one good thing about the pandemic – don’t have to worry about going out. šŸ˜€

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      6. Jeri loves her music and songs, although her “day job” that she is studying for is neuroscience. She had a couple years of maths previously. moving toward a career in accounting. She has always been realistic about her musical pursuits, ambitious but no stars in her eyes.

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      7. wow – neuroscience is a nice fall-back position. šŸ™‚
        I think we’re all learning that life is too short to live without passion in your life. I’m glad she’s found hers.

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