Tag Archives: Julie Seedorf

Do You Have A Junk Drawer or Two?

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jiunkEvery household has a junk drawer — don’t they? My house holds furniture that has many drawers. I would have to say that most of those drawers probably hold a little junk. My husband would say they hold a lot of junk.

Because I had to conveniently rearrange some of my furniture this week I decided perhaps I could do without a small stand by my bed that is comprised of three drawers. I converted part of an old vanity to a nightstand, but it wasn’t quite what I wanted in my bedroom/office.

I have a hodgepodge of furniture moved from other houses, inherited from family and kept by me during remodeling because it was too good to throw away. The bedside table is in the last category.

I took out the first drawer and began muddling through all the tiny pieces of this n’ that residing in the drawer. I had my “to keep” pile, my “to toss” pile and my “giveaway” pile. In the keep pile were items I didn’t know I had, and of course, they were valuable, and I certainly would use them now that I found them.

The toss pile remained empty as I sorted items, deciding that some items were too good to throw and someone could use them. They landed in the giveaway pile.

Did I need all the different types of glue that were in one drawer? You never know when you need super glue or just sticky-it-up-for-a-little-while glue. Did I need my old glasses from eighth grade? I didn’t know I still had them, but I now like the frames. Perhaps I should keep them and take them along when I get new glasses so I can match frames — they are back in style.

I finally found the snowman hanger I had been looking for at Christmas. I should put it with the Christmas decorations. How many nightlights do I need? The grandkids don’t need them anymore.

I would toss something in the giveaway pile only to pick it back up. Those pieces seemed to stick to my fingers and I didn’t even need all the glue that had been in the bottom drawer for the items to stick. I had sticky fingers caused by a sticky mind. Memories stuck in my mind kept items stuck to my fingers.

Finally I picked everything up and neatly organized it back in the drawers, put the old vanity-nightstand back in my bedroom/office and decorated it with a green piece of cloth that gave my room a more finished look. I could not part with any of it.

I have more junk drawers I must tackle, but if it is like the nightstand drawers, I won’t get rid of anything. I have too much sentimentality in me along with the you-might-need-that-someday emotion.

On another note — I did tackle all the old cleaning supplies under my basement steps. The plan was to take them to the recycling and waste day. I thought most of the cans were empty and old and out dated. What I found was they were full and in date, and because we didn’t take the time to look for them, we bought more. We probably won’t need cleaning supplies for years. The key is to organize them and put them in a place where we know where they are.

I live a scatterbrained life. I toss things in drawers instead of having a place for everything and putting everything in its place. I waste time looking for things I can’t find but know I have. I always vow to do better, but I get busy and stressed and because I multi-task, I toss things where it is convenient. It drives my other half crazy, but he does the same thing on a smaller scale in that what he tosses isn’t needed for another year or so.

Will I ever change? I don’t know. I want to, but to accomplish that I have to be able to let go of the junk in the drawer. It is hard work. Not only physical but at times emotional.

It is the same with the junk in our lives that isn’t material junk. How often do we hold on to hurts, anger, resentment, sadness and hatred that get in the way of living our lives, and affect the quality of our life and our relationships? We think we let go and then we pull it back to save it for another day.

Will the tug of war ever end? Only we can decide.

Junk is the ideal product — the ultimate merchandise. No sales talk necessary. The client will crawl through a sewer and beg to buy. — William S. Burroughs

 

Granny’s (Hermiony Vidalia Criony Fiddlestadt) How-To Books

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Granny_BA Note From Granny (Hermiony Vidalia Criony Fiddlestadt): I thought I needed to write a how-to book about something. I read and buy how-to books. How-to books seem to be the ones on the best seller list and the writers seem to be making mega millions and then I realized—I already wrote a how-to book. How to Hook A Crook, How To Skewer A Scoundrel and How to Snow A Sneak. My next how-to book will be out soon and I will teach you How To Fork A Fugitive. If you would like to learn how to do all of these things, here is the instruction how –to find them. Click on the link, quick as a wink, before you can blink, Granny’s how-to will bring you to the brink. Granny’s How-To-Books

 

The Good Old Days? Are They Gone?

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lemonadeI can’t believe I am still here after growing up in the ’50s and ’60s. I can’t believe my children made it through their childhood.

After all, we had lemonade stands, drank from neighborhood lemonade stands, had many meals at church and community potlucks, ate pie from church pie stands at celebrations, stayed out after dark, were left home alone starting at age 10 or 12, played with tin toys, didn’t have car seats or seat belts and I probably could name many more things we did that you can’t do today without getting in trouble. Although, if we did get in trouble the people who saw our actions probably called our parents, and that was more trouble than a policeman being called.

The news the past few weeks has baffled me. First was the lemonade stand in a large city. The kids had to shut down their neighborhood lemonade stand because they didn’t have a permit. The permit cost $150. Really — a kid’s lemonade stand needs a permit like that? I don’t believe my community got on the bandwagon for lemonade stand permits. At least, I hope not.

Then there was the case of the family building a new house and camping out in tents on their land for the summer, who had their kids taken away from them because they did not have running water or bathrooms or electricity. I visited my grandmother when I was small and they didn’t have running water or bathrooms or electricity. I guess they were neglecting me too. They seemed to survive pretty good and so did I, I learned about Outhouses. There are camping grounds that don’t have water or electricity. What about those families who vacation at a campground for a couple of weeks? Are they neglecting their kids?

What about the 11-year-old whose parents also got in trouble because they weren’t home when their son came home?  The son, locked  out of the house for 90 minutes,  decided to wait for his parents and shoot a few hoops in the backyard. The authorities said he was without emergency services, food and water because of being  out of the house. Really?

In the back ages, my growing time, kids were babysitting at the age of 11, and it wasn’t unusual for kids to stay home by themselves. Other parents have left their kids to play alone at the park, and that apparently isn’t done now either.

My church used to have a pie stand at our local community celebration. Ladies from the church baked pies and everyone devoured them. The pies are now prepared in a commercially licensed kitchen or made by a commercial company.  Many communities and churches have also stopped potlucks because of regulations.

My granddaughter, living in a larger city, wanted to have a lemonade and cupcake stand this summer. They too ran up against permit fees.

Homeowners back in the old ages didn’t have to check to see if what they planted or built on their lawns met code or was up to HOA standards. Next-door neighbors talked to each other, and most of the time it was live or let live.

Every day I read of something that boggles my mind.  Today it was the patio of a restaurant in a nearby community, closed down for a time, because it didn’t have enough live plants. The business broke the rules of the city. Of course we want a safe world, but are we carrying things a little too far?

I am  thankful I grew up in the ’50s and ’60s when summer months meant lemonade stands and long bike rides, playing kick the can after dark, and camping out in the yard where we could meander to others yards to meet with those friends that were camping out too.

I am thankful for all the potlucks and good food I was able to eat at community and church dinners and picnics in the park.

I am thankful for the freedom to stay at home by myself in my younger years. I am thankful  I could explore barns and feed the chickens on our place that was on the edge of town. The place is still there but no one would be allowed to raise chickens, let alone have a pony in the barns that close to town.

I am thankful  the church doors were open day and night allowing us to visit when needing comfort. I am thankful for school doors always being open during the day and the fact we didn’t have to fear violence in school.

I am thankful we could write our own plays and talent shows and perform in garages and charge admission and serve cupcakes.

I am thankful I was a child of the ’50s and the ’60s when life was less restricted and we could experience life with less restrictions, life our children and grandchildren will never know today. Life wasn’t always easy but it was simpler. Yes, the good old days — when kids would be kids, parents could parent and city governments weren’t worried about regulating lemonade stands