Pack Rat
I've had a lot of time around the house since I lost my job. Plenty of time to really take a good look at things. And I've come to a realization,,other than being a slob, I'm a pack rat. It started coming to me as I was trying to find something in my Fibber McGee closet. I was looking for a pan to bake a chicken in. Found two pans, one a roaster. But in that closet was so much more. Let's see,,a food processor that I realized was too big for my single chopping,,two nut crackers, both that were state of the art in their time,,,a cookie jar my mom made,,two or three cans of red spray paint to be used to paint the shed door,,various sized plastic containers to take food in for potluck dinners,,an iron I never use,,,a box full of glass dishes I used when I first went out on my own,,two boxes of home repair stuff from door sealers, wire,,,electric wire connectors,,,nails,,a feather duster,,,caulking gun with old caulk,,,a plastic container of kitchen utensils,,and a bunch of electrical extension cords, ranging from a spool for outdoors and various lengths for indoors. I was amazed at the number of cords. Guess when I needed one, what I had was either too short or too long. All my closets show signs of a pack rat. One has 3 or 4 blankets of different types, including an electric one,,,a dog cushion Foxy won't get one,,,3 large soup pots,,,a 20 cup coffee maker,,a 4 cup cup percolator,,,a blender,,an electric mixer,,a 1950s port-a-potty,,a comforter and pillows Vickie gave me that I'll never use,,and a Christmas ceramic snow village I made years ago that I can't put up because there's not enough space in the house. My clothes closet has 2 different types of luggage. A barrel in the old computer room holds 2 or 3 telephones with extra cords,,a power drill and electric screwdriver. My dresser is no better. More junk than clothes,,,2 buttoneers, a harmonica I never learned to play,,a slide whistle for hockey games, along with 3 sizes of air horns, several decks of nudie playing cards(my mom would buy them on her trips if she couldn't think of a souvenir,,,very distracting playing solitaire) a rubber snake and mouse(never know when they'll come in handy),,various facial horns for Halloween to bring out the devil in me,,,,various size batteries,,,games,,,hobby tools,,,and a hockey towel. But being a pack rat did come in handy the other week. My cpap machine went out and I can't afford a new one. But, back in the clothes closet, was my old one I never threw away. It works! And I use it now. Maybe being a pack rat isn't so bad. I'll never to worry about extension cords. Don't even want to think about the shed outside!
Replies
Hmmmm, do i sniff a garage sale on the breeze? I had a garage sale when i sold my house in another province and didn\'t want to lug that \"stuff\" that i hadn\'t used in over 2 years across the country to put with my other \"treasures\" in this house. When all was said and done.... over $300 worth of stuff and that was selling it at major discount prices. What i didn\'t sell, we packed up and took to the salavation army and gave to them. Maybe while you\'re at home you can start getting things cleaned up and ready in a corner for a yard sale. Things i learned... always make sure the items are clean and appealing to a potential buyer, and always price fair, but cheap and leave lots of room for bargaining. Let people know that you\'re open to offers, because they like to feel like they\'re walking away with a GREAT DEAL! Perhaps you can get together with some of your neighbors and you could have a multi family sale... bring out even more potential customers. Just an idea to put a little money in your pocket and a more organized house. As always, lots of hugs and kisses, my friend. Deb :o)
LOL..funny you wrote this because yesterday I was talking about all this stuff I have in my cupboards,closets,drawers,shelves,and basement that I have kept over the years \"just in case\", but just sits there year after year collecting dust.I was saying I need a big truck to come and I could just toss everything in that I haven\'t used in the last 6 months because that is what I saw on tv once..throw anything you haven\'t used in the last 6 months away..chances are..it will never be used.I thought to myself how good it would feel to have so much cleared out room to then be able to refill with things(lol).I could go to flea markets and get what I wanted etc.,that would be fun.But then the person I said this to said well bag it all up..I\'ll take it and put anything good in the local thrift shop and throw the rest in a dumpster.
My mind raced excitedly at first..\"HERE\'S MY CHANCE!! \"My next thought was as I went through in my mind, where to begin,was: \"But what if I throw things away and one day wish I had it, geesh I have some good stuff, nothing wrong with it all,I should throw this away,that away,but,but,but...\"
needless to say though asked repeatedly, why aren\'t you bagging things up?Where you gonna start?Are you gonna bag things?...I sat there..nothing was bagged. I said\"ya but..well I\'m not really in the mood today, maybe another time..um...well...what if I need the stuff sometime?\"
ahaha!!
I know what you mean, I am a fellow pack rat I guess ! And once again you must have read my mind when you wrote this..because once again we were thinking the same thing probably at the same time.OH BROTHER!! We\'re hopeless !! ahaha!!