Culling the collection

11/30/09 Three die cast Star Wars vehicles (Snowspeeder, Y-Wing, Twin-Pod Cloud Car), sold on eBay for $20.75

Today marks the last day of Downsizing Month Four. And, I think it's appropriate that I completed the first third of the challenge by parting with yet another set of Star Wars toys. This lot of cool die cast ships was mailed off to Michigan, where I'm sure their artistry shall be appreciated.

The idea for the Downsizing Challenge grew partially from a longstanding discussion -- yes, I chose that word carefully -- about my world renowned Star Wars collection. Joanna had long suggested that I could part with all these pounds of plastic from my childhood, and even my parents announced this summer that it was time to clean the stuff out of their attic.

I recognized that it would take something drastic (such as a daily deadline to get rid of something) to motivate me to cull the collection. While the vast majority of toys remained safely packed away, I have managed to get rid of more than I might have thought possible just four months ago.

I glanced back over the downsizing annals this evening and did a bit of counting. It turns out that seventeen of my downsizing days have involved old Star Wars items. Even more impressive, the total number of Star Wars things I've parted with is forty-one. Wow, that's pretty good.

And, geek that I am, I am proud to also add that I have taken immense joy from pulling each of these gems out and playing with them one last time before sending them off to other galaxies, far, far away.

1,000 pounds of downsizing

11/29/09 Sixty-three paver blocks, sold on craigslist for $30

Surprise! It turns out that the cute flower garden built against the foundation of our home was not there to beautify our abode and brighten the front yard. It was there to conceal the fact that the only thing keeping water from flooding into our guest room was a thin sheet of plastic and a piece of plywood.

The water did eventually come in, of course.

It ruined the guest room carpeting about a year after my Dad casually said, "You know, that flower garden probably shouldn't be up against the foundation like that. I'd take it down and see what's going on there."

As usual, I probably should have listened to him sooner.

Fortunately, this repair job coincides with a MUCH LARGER project we've had in mind since the day we moved in. Beginning this week, a construction crew will arrive to not only fix the above-mentioned gaping hole, but to completely rebuild our front porch and entryway. In addition to giving us a screened-in porch and a level, rebuild patio entrance, it will also prevent our entire roof from caving in this winter. So that's a plus.

The trouble-causing garden was of simple construction: five tiers of castle-style paver blocks stacked in a semi-circle against my house. Those paver blocks are now on their way to Turner, ME, where a friendly guy named Paul will use them to build a retaining wall.

Ah, it's good to hear they are finally going to used for good, rather than evil.

On the fence

11/28/09 Thirteen 4'x4's, sold on craigslist for $20

One of the best things we've done to improve our home is to replace the fence around our pool, which we did two years ago. As we must for any big job, we called my parents into service. They came over and helped us dig the new post holes and erect the new fence. Free labor is the best kind.

The old fence, rotten as it was, required several trips to the dump. However, I saved the fence posts, which were still perfectly good lumber. I stacked them carefully beneath our deck, under the cover of an old tarp left over from our old temporary garage.

I used a few of them, most notably to build a clothesline.

I am loath to give up usable lumber, but it was taking up valuable storage space, and it had "downsize" written all over it.

Today I sold the remaining posts to a personable guy named Greg. He planned, appropriately enough, to use them to build a fence for his dogs. One fence to another, separated by a few years.

It's interesting. That old fence was in such decrepit condition, we couldn't replace it fast enough. And now, parts of it shall create a new fence, perfectly functional and thoroughly economical.

Just as I want to think of myself.

From a different angle

11/27/09 Barrel planter & four pieces of stovepipe, given away on craigslist

A guy named Richard came by this morning to pick up several things I offered for free on craigslist.com. He took four pieces of stovepipe that were in our basement when we moved in. I'll appreciate not tripping over them anymore. I didn't talk to him about what he plans for them, but I assume -- perhaps foolishly -- that it will be something involving a stove.

The other thing he took was an old barrel planter. It was also here when we arrived. I had moved it a few times and had used over the last several years to grow a white pine seedling into a three-foot tree by our front door. Joanna even put red bows on it last Christmas, giving our entrance a very festive look.

Since we're having our entire entry way and front porch rebuilt (gulp!), I needed to move the planter and tree. I transplanted the tree into our yard, discovering in the process that its taproot had gone right through the now-rotten bottom of the planter and down into the ground. It was a chore.

This left me with an old, bottomless planter. I figured it'd roll it elsewhere in the yard and plant some other tree in it, but Joanna gave me a bit of a sideways look when I suggested that plan. And so, onto craigslist it went.

I assumed whoever took it would use it as a planter. Logical enough, right? But Richard had other ideas. He recently planted a lilac bush and needed something to cover it for the winter, to protect it from snow and freezing rain. He figured the planter, flipped upside down and given a new bottom (now, top), would do the trick.

Brilliant!

I love it when people look at something from a different angle and find a new use for it. That's the heart of innovation, and we're all capable of doing it. We just need to open our eyes and our mind, taping into the synergistic coupling of intelligence and creativity.

Thankful

11/26/09 (Small) bottle of wine, consumed

The hardest part of leaving The Big Apple back in 2003 was moving away from great friends. Jason, Jenny, Marc, and Gianna were not only an important part of my life, they were a constant presence in it.

Jason, Marc, and I had our (supposed to be) weekly Boy's Night Out. (During one of which we saw Natalie Portman in the lobby of the movie theater -- Whoo-hoo!) We shared countless dinners, game-nights, and Central Park strolls. Gianna even survived a flaming sambuca incident that the NYPD may still be investigating.

Five months after moving up to Maine, we invited the four of them up to celebrate New Year's Eve in our new home. I wish we could have had them up every year since, but distance is a great logistical roadblock.

When Jason and Jenny arrived, they brought with them a small bottle of apple wine from a winery they had visited in Upstate New York. It was a summer desert wine, so we didn't drink it during their winter visit. We placed it on our dining room bookcase and thought of them each time we looked at it.

For the next seven years. It even still had a fabric bow attached to the neck.

I opened it yesterday and had a glass with dinner. Hey, I figured nothing's better with chili in November than summer apple wine. Today, Joanna prepared the most fabulous Thanksgiving dinner and I polished off the wine with my turkey and stuffing. Don't worry, like I said, the bottle was small.

We love Thanksgiving because it reminds us of how much we have to be grateful for. As I sipped that wine I was reminded of how lucky I am to have amazing, lifelong friends. We live too far away from each other and don't see each other often enough, but our friendship hasn't dimmed in the least.

I know they are always there for me when I need support, reassurance, help, or advice. Actually, right now what I need is another bottle of wine.

You listening, guys?

Coffee break

11/25/09 Two coffee mugs, given away

I completed the Parent/Teacher Organization gift basket trifecta today, donating two mugs to the Maine Basket, to be raffled off in support of the school. Because of my earlier donations to the Family Night Basket and the Outdoor Activity Basket, I can now rest easy at night knowing I've done all I can for the PTO. Whew.

By the way, I'm learning that coffee mugs are the bane of downsizing. We have, as Fletch would say (check out the moment at 2:18 -- it's the best), a tremendous buildup of coffee mugs. We have so many that they occupy parts of three shelves in our cupboards. Unloading the dishwasher is like a ceramic version of reverse Jenga. Not to be crude, but it's a flagon nightmare!

And yet, every one of them has a story, many involving special places we've visited. Every one seems special. We can't just cast them aside like Starbucks to-go cups.

As it is, I couldn't bear to part with our full set of four holiday mugs, since they were a meaningful gift. However, I figured we could deal with the psychic shock of reducing our collection by two, so I took half of the set to school.

How I'm going to part with any of the remaining mugs is beyond me.

Go fly a kite

11/24/09 Two kites, given away

Each morning, on the playground, a kindergarten boy comes up to me and asks, "Can you take your thumb off? Please float! Will you get a quarter out of my ear?"

I'm not just a recess teacher, I'm the research teacher who does magic. To the delight of easy-to-fool five-year-olds everywhere I can do this and this and I'm working on this. It's just one of the many joys of teaching that has nothing to do with teaching.

I'm also a world class swing-pusher, able to get thirty kids chanting "We love to write!" within twenty seconds, and could go professional as a kick-ball pitcher.

A few years ago, my Aunt Karen gave Joanna and me two kites for Easter. Believe it or not, we don't spend a lot of time kite-flying, so I took them to school. I didn't have lunchtime recess duty last year, but I kept an eye out for good kite-flying days. I managed to get out there a few times and launch the kites, which is no easy feat on our school playground. However, trust me when I tell you that the reaction of elementary school kids when a kite takes off is well worth the wait. For a few minutes, I was the Pied Piper of Norway, Maine.

Today, I added those gently-used kites to the Outdoor Activity Basket that our Parent/Teacher Organization is raffling off. I'm sure whoever wins them shall fly them gloriously.

Now, I need to figure out how to shake up recess tomorrow...