I have been doing a lot of thinking about “stuff” lately. My two bedroom house has too much stuff. I have boxes and boxes of books and belongings from my last house. I have been thinking about moving to a bigger place. I have been thinking about getting rid of stuff aggressively.

Last week, my house was burglarized and I lost some big ticket items: most notably my TV, computer, and some jewelry. As I have been weighing the loss, I have decided it was the digital pictures on the computer that I will miss the most. The unexpected event of being robbed combined with reading about the 100 Thing Challenge has me realizing that a LOT of my stuff would not be missed if I no longer had it. Could I whittle things down enough such that the five living creatures in my home could fit more easily? What would it be like to live lighter on this earth?

I have always appreciated her honesty and her opinions on many topics.  She speaks with a real practical wisdom based the lessons she has learned in her long life. She has told me many times that she doesn’t consider past times to be “the good old days”.  They weren’t always very good according to her.   

As she has gotten older, I have enjoyed seeing her “retire” from various activities.  She no longer travels more that two hours by car.  She no longer cooks.  She no longer bakes.  And she even has a house keeper. Her mainstays now are crocheting baby blankets (over 200 per year), watching sports, and reading. 

There has been a series of jokes in the family about what to get Grandma, the lady who has everything.  She once threatened to remove from her will anyone who dared get her a pet.

Given her reduction in activities, it seems that a lot of technology based gift ideas are considered on a regular basis.  This is where it gets complicated: she is hard to predict as far as tech gadgets go. She loves her cordless phone, but hates her answering machine.  She loves her cable but has no desire for a DVR.  

She staunchly refused to allow her kids to buy her a new refrigerator, dishwasher and stove.  She finally relented to a serious overhaul and repair of each.  Surprisingly, she allowed a microwave onto the property at the request of her frequent family visitors.  It started in the garage and finally was moved to the kitchen.  She herself has never used it.  Never will. 

My latest jokes with her are about the Internet.  I ask her if she got my email or if she had seen the latest products on amazon.com.  She gives me a good smiling “oh, David”.  

I think we should get her a new TV for her birthday.  Like a 46-inch LCD.  And I think we shouldn’t even ask her.  Hopefully she won’t disown me for instigating.   

Somehow the 9-volt battery and the mesh configuration produce an amazing zap when any flying bug comes in contact.  Especially meaty flies are left sizzling and glowing after direct contact–I kid you not.  On a summer night, it works well on the porch to get rid of small bugs near the light fixture.  A gentle move of the arm produces dozens of pops.  The most interesting thing is that flies don’t seem as afraid of the electric fly swatter as they do the traditional analog one.  They should be!