Empty Shelves

Owen and Leo and I spent yesterday afternoon sorting through 800+ cds. We filled five boxes, one for me to keep, the rest to go into storage. I must admit it was grueling. Overwhelming not just emotionally but also the sheer volume and range of it all was absolutely staggering and this was just the top half of one shelf. I already know that I need to go through the box I filled again because at first it was “Oh, well, I love Ray Price, I need to take every one of these cds, and ,”oh, Pere Ubu, I need all of these.” And Jim Lauderdale—do you have any idea how many freaking cds Jim Lauderdale has? I quickly had to become more selective. And there were tons of dupes. He loved having dupes so he could give them to friends.

Owen took several dozen I guess, a boxed set or two, and Leo took a handful. The room, and my bed where I was perched was covered in dust. Ugh.

I admit I kept one or two just because they had the little handwritten stickers that said things like, “Ernie please!!” in his handwriting. Always numerous explanation points. The boys were sort of puzzled by the notes but I explained when there were promos in the record store stash for playing and you wanted them when they cycled out, you put your name on them to claim them. And then there were the ones that other people put stickers on for him…ranging from Ernie to Ernst to Ernesto.

Now there are five big boxes of cds in front of the fireplace. The first step is to go through these in my room so I can fit my dresser in here. Otherwise I’d leave them. Also in the living room are boxes of replacement shelves to go in here which will fit with everything else. And bundles of cardboard boxes, and then there’s a dresser I want to get rid of in there too. All surrounded by an embarrassing number of walkers and mobility aids. And my dining room table is still covered with things we pulled out of the bathroom to get the washer/dryer installed. And there’s another shelf full of cds that we moved to the dining room when we had to put a bed in here.

Oh, yeah, and Leo’s car died. He’s been nursing it along as it limped toward its demise. He’s off looking at cars as we speak. Lousy time to be buying a used car. Owen and Trinity were at a celebration of life for Trinity’s uncle all day Saturday. Yet again, I feel as though I am still and life is whirling around me. The eye of the storm perhaps? That’s how it feels.

I also overslept which threw the day off too. I’m still not 100% used to setting alarms. Once you’ve had a charming human alarm for decades it’s just hard to make the switch.

Just so fucking hard.

Oh, and I broke down and bought a wheelchair. The one I have has been great but it’s just so heavy and as I put it to Owen when he protested it wasn’t that heavy, my friends are of a certain age…and there are those damn steps into the house as well. I had an unexpected check show up and it just about covered the cost of the wheelchair I’d been looking at. When you start looking at lightweight wheelchairs they get pricy fast and these are just ‘off the shelf’ wheelchairs. Geez. This one is supposed to be good for back pain and had an excellent warranty unlike some other comparable chairs. Anyway, she’s on the way. Name suggestions are welcome.

Oh, and it sounds as though Leo may have bought a car!!! 🤞

my box

Onward.

Love,
Cynthia