It's the end of summer... I have lost control of everybody. I have surrendered. So I marched on over to my storage unit to reorganize. I had to get a piece of something. Something that was quiet and didn't say mom mom mom mom mom while constantly darting around. Midget Fort Makers. Giant Mess Makers. Award winning little people that excel in destruction.
So...off I went...where I lined up all of my little soldiers row by row and stack by stack...
...and... when I couldn't quite get everything put back in and ALMOST asked the storage guy for a bigger unit... I stopped. I thought. I listened to the silence...telling me...I must have a sale...because I have a problem. I have way too much shit.
I don't think that I am a natural born hoarder. It is a learned behavior. My rationale has been that we will have a bigger house. A house with a proper master bath, a master closet, a real entry, a dining room that isn't just a hallway, a kitchen that works for a gathering of friends and not just a production zone, a family room that isn't a shoebox. You know. A house with this and that and that and this. Well, life isn't so bad. You don't get everything. My neighborhood is the best...prone to 5:00 cocktails and late night (should probably be in bed) cocktails, kids galore, doctors and lawyers aplenty (emergencies crop up constantly) and sidewalks.
So...the moral of the story is...the grass is always greener and where there is really green grass there might be a really big house filled with a LOT of really great things but at the end of the day what do they have? A neighborhood filled with cocktails and friends and kids and sun and sidewalks and tree swings...
and blackberries and socialized medicine and free legal advice...? I don't think so. I'll keep my brown grass and my cocktails and my neighbors and my blackberries...
Thank you hood. I am 100% positively going to probably maybe sell all of my pretty little things saved for a rainy day in a town where it rains 137 days/year and get back to living this life. Today. Here. In my perfectly fine but teeny bit too small house. In. My. Hood.
I feel ya sister.
ReplyDeleteFive minutes in your sista's cozy matchbox would REALLY make you see the green side of your beautiful home and yard. I paid for a yard, but they forgot to include it. All I got was three small decks. Not even any windows, just sliding glass doors. However, the amazing aroma of the Vietnamese cooking every night that wafts up from my downstairs neighbor's house is just about compensation enough for the yard I wanted. I just wish they'd invite me over for dinner. Wonder if she makes Bahn mi? I might have to bring over some cookies. . . .
ReplyDeleteI wish I had a time machine to transport me to a time where families lived with one car, shared one bath (a family of 5) one tv, just a few channels, no remote, one vacation a year (if they were lucky) and that include bringing the spinster Auntie who taught them all about Antiques and Collecting. It is not hoarding, it is collecting dear.
ReplyDeletepve
i don't know if you're gonna have a sale or not but if you are could you please tell me so i can come?
ReplyDeletedo an online sale- pinkwallpaper started one this week- i see so many things i love but i live in south carolina
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ReplyDeleteI agree with pve. It's collecting not hoarding. I too have a collecting problem. One day you will have that house and you will want that chair you sold. You may just have to hold onto it for another 10 years! Enjoy your beautiful house. There is nothing better than a great neighborhood for your kids. But more importantly cocktails and fun with your neighbors for mommy and daddy. That's what makes life fun. Not a real master bath or closet. I need to remind myself of the same thing. Loved the post.
ReplyDeleteLove the idea of an online sale. I'm eyeing the white ottoman w/the brushed gold legs. Yes, I clicked on the pic and checked it all out. Which is crazy since in attic - my husband informed just yesterday - is enough stuff to furnish another house!
ReplyDeleteI really, really want the bamboo chandelier and the cane back chairs next to the chandelier. Please let us know when the sale is. It would definitely be worth the drive from Nor Cal.
ReplyDeleteSo happy to have found your blog. Every post is inspiring.
Thanks,
Katie
Katie@bradcook.net