Tag: requiem

The black blob to the left of the pants is Antares, who did not wish to be photographed for this picture, but also did not wish to move.

I can recall a time in early college, when I realized I had owned a skirt for five whole years! That was the beginning of the realization that clothing could last a very long time and these pants here are an example. I’ve had them for nearly ten. I can remember when I bought them, as they were on sale at Meier and Frank (now officially Macy’s) and were such a good deal I bought two pair. I was very excited and they went with me on many walks, jogs, bike rides and through a lot of work around the house. They were made from some sort of “wears like iron” polyester blend that just kept going and going. And going. In fact, for the last two years, I’ve hated these workout pants and wished I had others. This hatred was not enough for me to find new workout pants as the intersection of “in the mood to shop” “pants that fit” and price I feel is appropriate” (sixty dollars? For workout pants? You have to be kidding!) is an intersection I don’t happen across overly often.

However, a Goodwill trip recently was fruitful and I am now the owner of two new pairs of workout pants (that cost $12.00 combined) and so I bid these pants a farewell (not, alas, fond as I let them overstay their welcome) thank them, and wish them a good journey.

Very early in the morning I head a crash from the kitchen. In my half-awake state, I thought “I’m not going to investigate that right now because it will probably just make me mad.”

This turned out to be one of the smartest half-awake thoughts I’ve had as what was smashed into pieces too many to repair was my popcorn bowl.

My Great-Aunt Bea (known as Auntie Bea) was very crafty and one Christmas our family received a set of hand painted personalized popcorn bowls. Mine was a cheery yellow, and proudly stated that this was Patty’s Popcorn Bowl. This was back when I was still called Patty.

There were even cute happy popcorns painted around the bowl. I’ve used the popcorn bowl a lot in the last few years, as it is the perfect size for a salad for dinner. Now, thanks to the cats the popcorn bowl has been swept off into the trash can. Auntie Bea died shortly after I moved to Portland, so there will be no replacement.

I bought this green bag back in 1997 with part of my college graduation money. I wanted to buy a leather satchel, but did not have quite enough to fund that purchase. So I settled for this L.L. Bean bag which I carried to my very first full-time job: receptionist at the Somerville office of Motion Industries.

I pressed it back into service this year when my new bag (which I knew I shouldn’t have bought) broke rather quickly, cheap thing.

Though the bag is still good, it is very, very heavy, even without anything in it. There is a metal bar across the top layer that must weigh five pounds. And that is before I pack it with my lunch and newspaper and other accouterments. I’ve just found a new one and I am letting this one go. Farewell, faithful servant.

I bought this tape player at BEST–a store that seems not to exist anymore–right before I left for college. I was excited at the duo tape and the high speed dubbing. Many, many mix tapes were made on this player. Over the years the radio has started to fade out and I rarely listen to my tapes, so it was time for this to go to the great electronics recycler in the sky.

It was April, 2001. I began my stint as a summer park ranger on the Boston Harbor Islands and realized I was completely without a backpack to carry five days worth of clothes, books and food to the island. Roommate Felicia took me to Target where I bought this guy for something like $35.00. It was worth every penny. This backpack was much like Mary Poppins’ carpetbag in that I could keep putting things into it even though it seemed full. After my short career as a park ranger ended, this backpack went to Hungary and Romania twice and was fabulous for my walks to the grocery store. The checkers were sometimes amazed I didn’t need additional bags. When Matt took over the grocery shopping, he used it too.
In the end, two things landed this in the donation pile. The strap, which I bought black duct tape specifically to repair, sometimes made me feel like a scroungy person. Also, lifestyle changes (I ride my bike to the store now, and the bike setup means I don’t need a huge backpack and Matt is getting a car) mean that its large size works against it. I’ve acquired another backpack (from Matt? Aunt Carol? I’m not sure) which is of normal size and it gets used more often than this one. It absolutely killed me to donate this, but I can’t hold onto every unused thing I’m attached to, or this house will fill up with detritus. So I bid it a very sad farewell.

I was in Portland for Christmas in 1997 and I convinced my mother that I needed reusable shopping bags beause the plastic bags from ‘Friendly” Findleys in South Boston were piling up in my apartment. We were at Kienow’s and she bought me four of their shopping bags.* The one pictured is my second-to-last, I have one lone survivor. We shall see how long the handles hold out on that one. And yes, I could fix that handle on this one, but I’m winnowing my bag collection.

During my three days of librarian school in Boston, I was waiting in line and carrying one of these bags and the woman behind me recognized the Kienow’s name asked if I was from Portland. It turned out she went to Gresham High School and we had a lovely chat. Today, that same Kienow’s location is a New Seasons, but I will always remember running over there to pick up some milk for my grandmother. I sometimes wonder where that Gresham High School turned Librarian is today.

*side note: I remember these bags costing something like $4.95 apiece. That seems crazy now that you can buy Fred Meyer reusable bags for $0.89. Of course, I think the canvas shopping bags are much nicer, but still. Demand in action! Economics, baby!

For years–and we’re talking 5+ here–I’ve been using these red stretchy gloves when I ride my bike. They are the kind that you can buy at Fred Meyer for $1.00 at Christmas and they are synthetic and most likely made in China, etc. But this pair had lost their stretchy characteristic, which made them very handy for biking, as I usually am pulling my gloves off and on while the wheels are going round and round. It involves steering with one hand and teeth to get them on and off, and the lack of stretch was perfect.

Their lack of stretch was one of the signs of their age. They also had holes all over them. I had to make sure to put the right one on the right hand, or the holes would let in the cold air. Today, when performing the steering with one hand teeth grabbing maneuver, one of the gloves dropped to the ground. I gave a movie worthy cry of anguish, but didn’t stop the bike and backtrack to rescue the glove. I just let it go. It was time to move on to another pair of gloves.

I’ve had this colander since college and it has served me well. I like its large sized holes, good for draining, and its color that isn’t really purple and isn’t really blue. Alas, its bottom is falling out and we are losing food. So off it goes, to that great kitchen in the sky.

Update: this colander has gained a second life as a produce harvester.

O! Dollar Store Spatula! How perfect you were! This was a replacement spatula for a similar one I picked up in college, lo those many years ago. That one met a similar fate, and I loudly mourned its passing. This one showed up in my Christmas stocking a few weeks later, my mother having heard a lot of the trials of spatula-less life. Which are many. Trying to flip fried eggs, spatula-less? Very difficult.

I was amazed that the new one was exactly like the one that came before it. “Where ever did you manage to find it?” I asked, temporarily forgetting the standardized modern manufacturing and distribution process.

“I got it at the dollar store.” my mother replied, shaking me back into the present. Of course there is more than one basic plastic spatula.

This one met its end when I was banging it against the sink trying to remove collard greens. It just split in two. Adieu, good friend and trusty helper.

January of 2004 brought us a “weather event” that closed schools for four days. I was student teaching at the time, and so I had ample time at home. I put all my CDs on my computer and then, having nothing much more to do in my tiny studio apartment, I began to obsess that I “needed” a laptop. I made the mistake of asking Matt if he thought I should get one–he was trapped at his house, too, playing video games until his eyes turned red–and he thought I should. In retrospect, I knew I was asking the person who would tell me to go ahead and buy. Matt agrees with a good argument and doesn’t really weight the financial factor, which was significant, in my case. At that point, I was pretty poor due to a SNAFU with financial aid.

So the laptop was bought, used for five months and it did come in handy while student teaching. Then, as I grew increasingly worried about it getting stolen and also the fact I shouldn’t have bought it in the first place, I sold it at a loss on eBay. The result was that I essentially paid a little over $100.00 per month to use a laptop. Not the best deal, but not horrible, either.

I tell you all this, because at the same time I bought this jump drive. (Flash drive, thumb drive, cigar, it needs a standardized name.) 128 MB of storage and it cost $49.95. This was totally worth it, because I have used it for four years. Though now you can get multiple gigabytes of memory for less than the price I paid, this little guy was state of the art at the time and it worked for me.

Now, however, he is broken and I must bid him goodbye.