Fugly outdoors and in
This afternoon a beach urchin texted to alert us that the sidewalks were slippery, at least intermittently. Freeze and thaw, freeze and thaw.
I gave her a thumbs up for the alert but I knew that although the GG was talking about a “hike” earlier, he was now engaged in a big fugly prodject (as you can see) and wouldn’t likely be going out any time soon. And he didn’t.
He pulled a whole bunch of bags and boxes out of Moooon Yoooonit and the “coat closet”. You know the one. It’s where you store all your coats and jackets, even the ones you haven’t worn in years. And usually a vacuum cleaner or five, although this one doesn’t have any vacs. They are scattered around the Landfill. What it DOES have are TOOLS. Of every description. Multiples of most. Except chisels. There are multiple chisels but he couldn’t find any of them. Maybe they are in the Lyme Lounge? Which is in storage in the Uncly Uncle’s garage. In Gaylord. A three-four hour drive away. Oh well, he can get reunited with his chisels later.
All of this stuff was pretty disorganized. Like his dad The Gumper used to say, “I’m missing 10% of my stuff all the time. It’s just always a different 10%.”
So the GG pulled everything outta the bags and boxes, sorted it and reorganized it. This was pretty painful to watch but I think it needed to be done so I pulled out the “mantras” I use when dealing with adult children: “Go with the flow” and “stay outta the fray.”
Other than a zoom call with my only remaining MMCB this morning, it was a pretty slodgy day for me. I’ll get over it. I’ve been this way after xmas before, even during regular post-xmas periods with no “drama”. MMCB surprised me a bit (pleasantly) by asking if the GG and I would like to occasionally go out to dinner with her and her husband. She had never asked before because our other coffee buddy and her husband NEVER went out to eat. They were focused on cooking for their family and various guests. So I guess it just seemed a little awkward, which I understand. We don’t go out to eat a whole lot either and usually favor lunching but maybe this will be in my future! Maybe they’ll introduce us to Pacific Rim, which is one of their faves.
P.S. The GG says he actually uses most of these tools… I was like, if you can find them…
January 6th, 2026 at 11:46 pm
The tools look quite organized. Patt had so many multiples of tools and they were big expensive ones. I sold them all although I should have kept a few things. Like a sawsall. (if that’s the word for it) Going out to dinner occasionally sounds like fun. I like to go out, not even because of the food but because of the people watching. (and draft beer!)
January 7th, 2026 at 9:02 am
I wish I could post a picture of my sunroom right now. It’s very similar to your photo. MY spouse decided he needed a tool last night. So he went to the disorganized boxes that store many of our tools and decided to paw through them to find his tool. Did he find it? No. Did he empty out half of one box and lay each piece on the floor just like your husband? Yes. Did he get frustrated because the tool didn’t emerge after removing half of the contents? Yes. Did he wear his reading glasses while searching? Of course not. Did he give up the search? Yes. Did I find the tool later in the evening after looking for a nanosecond? Yes. Nice to have a safe place to bitch about one of the many MINOR challenges of living with the same adult for decades and decades. I love him but geez (is that how it’s spelled?).