In the hunt for things to do during this plague, people have come up with some creative ideas, including game nights, crafts, dance, vacation board (cut out articles and photos to make a collage of your dream vacation, and even a squirrel restaurant. That last one is where you make a little dining area with furniture for your yard squirrels. I’m just going to say it, that sounds squirrely but is probably fun.
Here is a great resource of ideas on USA Today for other ideas:
If you are brave enough, you can take on all the stuff you’ve accumulated over the years and toss or give it away.
If you have lived as long as I have, there is a tendency to collect things over the years. I was at a meeting in a circle during polyester days. I looked down and saw a bunch of stuff stuck to my pants via static electricity. I announced to the group, “If you have lost anything, come see me, it’s probably stuck to my pants!”
With time on our hands, this might be the opportunity to clear out that accumulated stuff and pass it along to our favorite charity. There is a potential problem if you are married. We find it easier to toss out things that belong to the other person. My friend, Donna, is a widow. One day she was cleaning out a room and came across a stack of papers clipped together. The note said, “This is stuff Donna threw out.” It was a note from her late husband.
Some of the things we hold onto seem silly; that rock you’ve been hauling with each move that Dad once threw at a tree and broke his car window instead (admit it, that brings a smile to your face). My wife has many units of those little plastic parts trays full of color swaths she used to help customers find the clothes that best enhanced their eye colors. She then made a color pallet of swathes for each client. The last time she used them was, oh, let’s see, 40 years ago! Now when someone comes into my garage and sees the number of parts drawers, they are impressed, until I show them the contents. How embarrassing.
My wife is always more than ready to toss my stuff. Of course, I can always justify all of my sacred belongings. And when that rare occasion comes that I can fix something for her because of one of those possessions, I usually say, “See, I was able to make or fix this because of that thing you wanted me to throw away.” It doesn’t bring a smile to her face so I shouldn’t suggest it, but I just have to. I think we are going to need a mediator to come in and start tossing things for us. That sounds too painful, so I guess we’ll leave all this stuff for the kids to deal with when we kick the bucket! To summarize, it’s always easier to give someone else's stuff away than your own. Remember, “You can’t take it with you.” I told that to my neighbor and he said, “Then I’m not going.” He gone now, and so should be a lot of our junk!
Let's hear from you. What are you doing to keep yourself occupied?
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