Stuff

The past four months have really given me a new perspective on my possessions. When we moved across the country, the only "stuff" that we took with us was what we could pack, really shove, in our minivan. This amounted to about 6 tubs of clothes, two tubs of toys and books, a tub of toiletries, a tub of camping equipment (which Noah insisted that we needed and I insisted that we didn't need), and our computers. I packed for our sabbatical (I'm now calling it "our" sabbatical) as if I was packing for an extended week at the beach. We only brought our clothes, a few toys for the kids, and the novel that we've had for the past 6 years that we've never gotten around to reading, but hope to; in this case the "novel" is our camping equipment. We've never actually used the camping equipment in the past 6 years, but Noah keeps hoping.

I'm now beginning to forget what all our "stuff" is at our home in Baltimore. I remember thinking repeatedly in Baltimore that we have way too much stuff, yet when it comes time get rid of stuff via a yard sale or trip to the community dumpster, I have a very difficult time parting with my stuff. Why am I so attached my stuff, even though I don't want to be? I know that part of the reason is that there's always a chance that I may need or use the stuff. For example, my hot rollers -  I only use them once every 4 or 5 years, but I'm so glad that I have them when I do use them. Similarly, I am not willing to get rid of my shiatsu massager. I haven't used it 5 years, but I like knowing that it is there and I could use it if I need to. But is that really a good enough reason to keep so much stuff? Probably not, which is why I have some sort of weird, emotional attachment to my stuff. On the other hand, it's often a mental burden having so much stuff.

After being separated from all of my "stuff" for the past four months, there are only a few things that I really miss: my sewing machine, a handful of kitchen gadgets, and my herb garden. That said, I could probably live my life quite happily without everything else.

I have a co-worker back in Baltimore that lost everything in hurricane Katrina. She told me that she has a very different relationship with her possessions now, and essentially she no longer carries any emotional attachment to physical possessions. I alway thought that would be a liberating feeling, and in some ways this experience has liberated me from my possessions as well.

Culinary quest for the day: Noah made a duck for dinner, which he purchased at the farmers market on Sunday. It was quite good, but a little overdone. Our oven here in Seattle runs at least 50 degrees hotter than what we set it at. Anyway, for being Noah's first duck, he did a fine job. There's nothing like crispy duck skin.