Thursday, December 11, 2008

Don Your Pith Helmet

And so, once again, we rejoin the Bag Lady in her quest for the perfect......

What the heck? Who was that? The Bag Lady isn't on a quest for the perfect anything!

She spent the day yesterday doing mundane household chores and sewing. 11:00 pm last night found her staggering off to bed, satisfied that she had tamed the back porch closet back into submission. Her back porch closet is a hell-hole of the most fearsome kind. The kind where everything just keeps getting piled on top of what was already there, so that cleaning it is rather like an archeological expedition....

"Hmmm, haven't seen this coat since 1998... had totally forgotten about it!"

And

"THAT'S where I put the electric organ!!"

It seriously was a stroll down memory lane. That closet contains an amazing array of items, including (but not limited to) the aforementioned electric organ (which is there because middle "C" no longer works, and the Bag Lady can't find anyone who will fix it, but she can't bear to part with it), a fancy clock (that also needs repair work), left-over tiles from the shower-stall, old records that belonged to her parents (and the record player to play them), vintage clothing that belonged to her mother, large table umbrellas, an old sewing machine, a box of nails, old coats, and a variety of medicines for cattle. Oh, and we can't forget the dust and cobwebs, and a few spider carcasses (and one live one that scared the crap out of the Bag Lady!)

With almost Herculean effort, the Bag Lady managed to get everything back into it, minus the dust, cobwebs and spiders. Tonight she plans on tackling steam-cleaning her carpets. Or not. She has to go back to town today for another physio appt., so she'll have to see how she feels when she gets home again. It just might be a night of lolling around in front of the television.

Have a good weekend!

24 comments:

Unknown said...

Hmm, not having a working middle C COULD cause a couple problems... :)

We've still got a ton of stuff in the storage unit since moving from house to condo a couple years ago- except now that I've moved out my parents don't want my stuff cluttering up their storage space, so they keep taking random things out (walking sticks from the Jura district?) and giving them to me. It's fun to find old things again though!

I love records. Picture of the fancy clock?

Crabby McSlacker said...

As someone also not on the quest for a "perfect" anything, it sure sounds like a heroic effort on the back porch closet. I would have taken a brief swipe at the nearest cobweb and backed slowly away, only to shut the door and probably never return. Congrats on a job well done!

Leah J. Utas said...

Discovery is the best part of cleaning. The sense of accomplishment is good, too, but finding stuff? That's fun.

the Bag Lady said...

Sagan - it actually can be pretty funny to not have middle C....

I'll try to remember to take a picture of the clock.

Crabby - I've been doing that backing away thing for too long now - had to force myself to at least make the attempt to clean it! :)

dfLeah - oh yes - I had forgotten what all I had in that closet! It was kinda fun.

Geosomin said...

"THAT'S where I put the electric organ!!"

You made me spit out my tea...:)

Isn't it amazing what you find when you tidy up the uncharted regions of the house? I found a full bear costume in the basement-score! :)

Hope the physio goes OK...take it easy and don't go too hard OK?

Oh, if do you want some bath salts, email me your address, and I'll send you some in a lovely high class ziplog bag...you can put them in whatever fancy jar you like :).
(vanilla or eucalyptus mint?)

Ann (bunnygirl) said...

Finding those old clothes and records sounds like a blast! I love it when I run across old stuff I'd forgotten I had, but the really good stuff from prior generations is truly special.

Whenever we're under threat of a hurricane, my aunts' hand-made 1950s party dresses go into mega-big ziplocks. You just can't replace stuff like that!

the Bag Lady said...

Geo - you made my day - I'm so glad I made you spit tea! :)

Oooh, eucalyptus mint? Sounds fabulous!!!

BG - I had to resist the urge to pull the record-player out and plug it in and listen to some of those old recordings! I never would have finished cleaning that closet!

There are two dreses in there that my aunt Doris sent to my mom back in the 1950's/early '60's - don't want to lose those!

Reb said...

Just think of the fun you'll have when you clean out the two sheds you have! ;)

Good job Sis...want to come do my storage?

the Bag Lady said...

Gee, Reb - wanna come steam-clean my carpets and clean the rest of my house? Inch for inch, I'd trade any day! :) (Especially as I know you are a far better organizer than I am, and you aren't nearly as much of a packrat!!)

Melissa said...

You cleaned your junk? You're a better man than I am, Bag Lady! When I use the term "clean" in reference to a closet, I usually mean "decimate the contents of." And "kind of clean."

I'll bet that was an aerobic workout.

the Bag Lady said...

Melissa - call me crazy.....it simply had to be done. The whole porch was starting to resemble a toxic waste dumping ground....

new*me said...

I love those strolls down memory lane. I love to spend an evening with a pile of old photos, kleenex and my memories ;)

Anonymous said...

All I did today was take a cleaning quiz (come visit my blog for the link and my results). Oh, yeah, and I had my b**bies squished, too, for the sake of medical protocol. Sadly, I now need to truly CLEAN... vacuuming the upstairs doesn't count for much. I've got clutter to clear away! (Can I borrow your closet? haha)

Terrie Farley Moran said...

WILL YOU PLEASE TAKE IT EASY!!!!!

Okay I'm done yelling now. Er, and when you complete your physio would you mind working on my walk-in closet?

Terrie

the Bag Lady said...

Annette - I think we all do that once in awhile, don't we? It's good for the soul.

kcinnova - sure you can borrow my closet, as long as what you want to store there is smaller than a pocketbook....:)

dfTerrie - okay, okay! The therapist today told me she doesn't even want me doing yoga yet....~~sigh~~
And sure I'll come to New York to clean out your closet, as long as you promise to take me out on the town, too!! :)

Terrie Farley Moran said...

df Bag lady,

You got it: Times Square including dinner at Foleys, Bronx Zoo, Queens County Farm Museum, Statue of Liberty including dirty water franks in Battery Park and drinks in Fraunces Tavern. After that we can improvise.

Terrie

Hilary said...

You're a dynamo.. no wonder you need physio!

Anonymous said...

late on this one due to the sick Torado.
Ive heard about this 'cleaning' of which you write---but I havent tried it yet.

I shall google it.

the Bag Lady said...

Hilary - needed to recharge my batteries last night, though, so didn't get the carpets done. There's always tonight!

Miz - I had to google it, and discovered it's something most people do on a regular basis. Sounds like too much work to me!

Dawn said...

Kind of fun going through old closets. But then if you take to much time looking old treasures over, you run out of time and have to cram it all back in. Until next time!

Loved the photo of the calves tucking in to the hay a few posts lower. Could that be why you need physio? Mmmm?

Anonymous said...

checking in on you and yer core.

you ok? living not blogging? :)

just being sure....

Unknown said...

I hear its your birthday! Happy Birthday:)

Anonymous said...

Wow, it sounds like you've been busy!

the Bag Lady said...

Dawn - you might be right..... nah, can't be that!

Miz - yup - living the high life around here.... hehehehehe

Sagan - thanks! Too busy to celebrate....

Tricia - and I'm still busy. Tis the season.