Clean sweep

Today I went to empty the trash into the big bin and saw Samuel's preschool yearbook there. I wouldn't be surprised if my neighbors across the street get a kick of how many times they see me lean over the big black can to pull something out. Today's fishing expedition reminded me of this blog post from last September that I never published -- probably in a fit of compassion, or to avoid slander, not sure which.

Anyway, here goes ...




No one put in a plastic bag last time to line the kitchen garbage can. Good thing, perhaps, because as I emptied the can into a bag today before taking it outside to the bin I uncovered one, two, three brand new toy cars Samuel received for his birthday last week. Still working, still SO CLEARLY NOT GARBAGE. He was sad this morning when he couldn't find them.

They say one man's trash is another man's treasure. In this house, you better put your treasure away, because someone else thinks it's trash!

The likely culprit (who shall remain unnamed) has a long history of throwing away items of import. Just for fun, can you determine the one item from this list I have not rescued a time or two? Doesn't mean it's never been thrown away, just that I didn't find it in time!

coins
cash
birthday money checks
bills
homework (someone else's)
wooden puzzle pieces (rendering the puzzle useless)
new shoes
game cards
vehicle registration
library books
socks (instead of putting them in the hamper)
hair accessories
jewelry
invitations
visual aids for Primary
silverware
keys
family photographs
DVD/VHS cases (to movies we still own)
cookie cutters
Legos (OK, underfoot at midnight I admit these can more closely be classified as rooftacks)


You know what's crazy? Looking at this list a year later, I don't remember my answer! I don't know which item I made up to fool you. If I can't remember what wasn't thrown away I shouldn't fret over what was, right? So, I'm going to give someone a clean slate to his clean sweep. 

P.S. I'm thinking "jewelry" might have been the miscue, but losing my wedding ring in our kitchen remodel kind of sealed the deal on that one. Boo hoo. (The ring would get caught on things and sometimes slip off, so when involved in a dirty, grimy task in the kitchen I would take it off for safety, always putting it in the same secure spot in one cabinet by the sink. We had systematically been demolishing our kitchen: Every day I would pack up the contents of a few more cabinets before demo of that section in the evening. That particular cabinet got unpacked, removed and taken to the dump ahead of schedule one day when I wasn't home.) Still sad about it.

P.P.S. (or is it P.S.S.?) I ran this post by someone first who didn't object to my posting it. But I better hurry off the computer because I hear the broom!