Sunday, January 29, 2012

Still In the Hole

There's something to be said (mostly unprintable) for keeping every little thing that comes one's way.  I'm still wading through stuff in the Black Hole.  This isn't a job to rush or take lightly.  There are decisions to be made.  Another big box of loose papers surfaced and had to be sorted:  some things to be filed (I do have a filing cabinet somewhere and I'll get around to that one of these days); some things to be kept for sentimental reasons in, yes, another box; and a lot to be pitched and burned.  It's kind of fun to wander down a paper trail, picking up memories like daisies along the way. 

Bits and bobs of other things keep popping up as I work my way across this Everest.  Lengths of pretty ribbon that came with lovely gifts.  I'm known for giving presents in brown paper grocery bags, as should be expected from a woman whose idea of fashion is wearing bibbies.  I could change my ways and reuse these ribbons someday, so I roll them up carefully and put them on a shelf.  I've started making stacks:  sewing materials in one pile, yarns and crochet and embroidery thread in another, the big box of polymer clay and paraphernalia over there, bouquets of silk flowers where they won't get squished, art supplies, and beads, beads, beads.

My problem has always been that I can't go into any project in a small way.  If I find a new medium in which to work, polymer clay for instance, I want every color there is.  I want all the instruction books and tools.  Soap making:  there are molds and pots and essential oils.  For a time, I made my own paper, including pressed flowers from the garden, and there are the forms for that.  I got interested in bobbin lace, and Deb contributed to my downfall there by giving me a complete kit with a dozen or more bobbins.  Painting:  I could outfit an artist's studio with paint, paper, brushes.  Unfortunately, before I've used up everything I've acquired for one craft, by the time I've mastered it, I've moved on to something else.  I do return on occasion so I cannot dispose of a thing; I might need it again.  I think the best I can hope for in this venture is to condense, repack, and find another room.

3 comments:

Kathryn said...

That climb up Everest sounds like a mighty exciting journey, and I'd love to learn each and every one of those crafts! I can see it now - Bo's craft room with library shelving. "Hmmm, let me see - in which stack did I put THOSE craft supplies?" What a fun store in which to shop!

Linda Cox said...

I heard about this guy in your neck of the woods who had 3 propane refrigerators' for sale once ....

Bo said...

OMG, Linda...LOL!!