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Friday Report
Well, this week we got rid of a big thing, but it did not make space in the house. We sold our 1989 Ford Aerostar van to a local auto recycler; it is still drivable, but the gas line is leaking (for the second time) and we did not want to spend cash to repair it. The recycler will probably strip it for parts - the engine block is fine; never a problem. Anyway, Thursday at 5:15pm the van was loaded on a big flatbed and driven away. It was Bill's band transport for many years so things were sad for a while.
We decided to do this on Tuesday; Wednesday is a free day for me, so we spent it clearing out the van. It had served as a storage locker for several years; driven when we needed to haul lumber or something else too big for the car. A lot of pillows and old blankets used for band equipment packing was removed and mostly junked. The console was full of old maps, coins, crushed boxes of kleenex, winter gloves, and other odds and ends, and dirt. The old bicycle pump was there, 6 plastic or rubber ponchos, 3 windshield brushes, several ice scrapers, mu old union jacket, a bag of towels stored for road needs, Bill's emergency road bag with towels, soap, toothpaste and brush, a flannel shirt, and who knows what else. Four tennis balls were in a side pocket, left from the 1990s when Bill had a lunchtime tennis game with some of my office mates. My jacket, the bike pump, 4 of the ponchos, the brushes and ice scrapers, the emergency bag, a bag of clean rags, the console, the old road atlas and a few other things either went into the car or came in the house for further inspection. The license plates went in the garage, in case we buy another vehicle while they are still good.
We park in the driveway; the garage would not hold both vehicles, or even one. So the driveway looks odd. The gravel the van parked on has a big white oval not yet covered in blown dirt. We will see how long that lasts. We did find that a mouse had at some time lived there; a nest was made in a hollow where a third seat was supposed to attach and there was a stash of seeds stored nearby. No sign of the occupant, though, so it may have been abandoned. I am sure it was a lovely house; no cats, dry, out of the wind, plenty of old pillows to chew.
Now I have to finish sorting the stuff removed. I may get all our cotton rags together and sort them for various purposes, and maybe get rid of some.
We decided to do this on Tuesday; Wednesday is a free day for me, so we spent it clearing out the van. It had served as a storage locker for several years; driven when we needed to haul lumber or something else too big for the car. A lot of pillows and old blankets used for band equipment packing was removed and mostly junked. The console was full of old maps, coins, crushed boxes of kleenex, winter gloves, and other odds and ends, and dirt. The old bicycle pump was there, 6 plastic or rubber ponchos, 3 windshield brushes, several ice scrapers, mu old union jacket, a bag of towels stored for road needs, Bill's emergency road bag with towels, soap, toothpaste and brush, a flannel shirt, and who knows what else. Four tennis balls were in a side pocket, left from the 1990s when Bill had a lunchtime tennis game with some of my office mates. My jacket, the bike pump, 4 of the ponchos, the brushes and ice scrapers, the emergency bag, a bag of clean rags, the console, the old road atlas and a few other things either went into the car or came in the house for further inspection. The license plates went in the garage, in case we buy another vehicle while they are still good.
We park in the driveway; the garage would not hold both vehicles, or even one. So the driveway looks odd. The gravel the van parked on has a big white oval not yet covered in blown dirt. We will see how long that lasts. We did find that a mouse had at some time lived there; a nest was made in a hollow where a third seat was supposed to attach and there was a stash of seeds stored nearby. No sign of the occupant, though, so it may have been abandoned. I am sure it was a lovely house; no cats, dry, out of the wind, plenty of old pillows to chew.
Now I have to finish sorting the stuff removed. I may get all our cotton rags together and sort them for various purposes, and maybe get rid of some.