Possession #129 - Dish Cleaning Stuff

OK...so I apologize for a bit of a gap here the last few days but I plead Vacation Bible School during which my camera burned white hot from over use. And now as I return to my stuff, I bring you something so mundane as the dish scrubbers by the sink (a toothbrush for cleaning the garlic press and one scrubber for everything else). Doesn't it seem, though, that these mundane objects often receive more care in their choosing because of how useful they're required to be. I once spent a week (and two failed attempts) to replace a broken kitchen scrubber. The dish sponges we use are the same brand we've been using for 25 years because their usefulness is something we don't dare lose. We may like how the dining table looks and the color of the bedroom wall, but what really counts is if the garage door opener works and the garbage can sticker is up to date. It is the mundane and I-assume-they-will-work things that make or break a day.

Here's to hoping that today your dishwasher runs without running all over the floor and that your shoelace ties without breaking.

Possession #128 - Bike

It seems as if I buy a new bike about once every 15 years which doesn't seem too bad for a form of exercise that I've always found fun and relaxing. It's probably a key to an exercise routine that it be something that brings some kind of joy, otherwise it becomes a drudgery and the justifying digressions become too frequent.

I put over a thousand miles on this bike last year. I went to a recumbent because my back was bothering me and I wanted a cushier ride for my tush. For the most part it's been wonderful. I like biking because, like jogging, it allows you to see the world at a slower pace...but not quite as slow as my turtle's jogging pace. Even on the hottest days, the bikes relative speed allows for a cooling breeze. Of course, too much breeze is sometimes an issue, but not if you avoid making speed goals for yourself.

Possession #127 - Washer and Dryer

Historians tell us that laundry was the household chore that nineteenth century housewives detested most. One woman of the time once described doing laundry as, "the Herculean task which women all dread." The task involved soaking the clothing in tubs of warm water overnight. Then, the next morning, scrubbing the laundry on a rough washboard and rubbing it with soap made from lye, which severely irritated the skin. Next, the laundry was put in big vats of boiling water and stirred with a long pole to prevent the clothes from developing yellow spots. Then the clothes were lifted out of the vats with a washstick, rinsed twice, once in plain water and once with bluing, then wrung out and hung out to dry. At this point, clothes would be pressed with heavy flatirons and collars would be stiffened with starch. Perhaps this is why men insisted on such strict gender roles. Who wouldn't comb the scriptures for some text to keep one's self from laundry responsibilities?

Which puts our relatively new front-loading washer and dryer in some sort of perspective I suppose. The only part of the task which I refuse to ever take part in is sorting the white load which takes some sort of extra sensory perception in order to discern whose underclothes are whose. As for ironing...that's a job in which everyone is strictly on their own on an as-needed basis. Thank you, modern technology.

Possession #126 - Fish Tank

One year in college, my roommate and I had fish. One was named "lucky" and the other "unlucky." I'll let you guess which one died first. When I got married, I thought it would be a great idea to have fish. There are many good reasons for having pet fish: 1)You don't have to take them for walks. 2)They don't eat much. 3)They're supposed to provide a calming atmosphere. Little did I know that keeping a fish tank clean is almost as bad as keeping track of cat hair and dog slobber. And I wasn't aware of the fact that cats eat fish. And the calming effect of fish only works in proportion to the amount of slime on the walls of the tank.

We tried fish a couple times in our tank and had them for a good while but finally switched to easier pets like dogs, cats and kids. Still...pets teach good lessons: 1)All living things are messy and don't always do what you want them to do. 2)Life is ultimately uncontrollable. 3)I had a third thing in mind but then my dog barked at the door and I lost my train of thought.

Possession #125 - Magic Tricks

Continuing on my way through my magic stuff, here's a smattering of tricks that I have stored away in the basement. Pictured, you see some classic effects (the linking rings and the cups and balls, a rising jumbo card trick). Also, you see a rather unique trick that I purchased in London when I was there with my parents and visited a rather famous magic shop (Ken Brooke's).

My father was a magician before me and I inherited a box full of tricks from him. Over the years I added, modified and created a few things of my own to the collection. Hundreds of birthday parties later, I had a pretty polished routine. 4-5 year olds were my favorite because at that age they easily fill with wonder and don't yet feel the need to be unimpressed with life. The only problem with younger folk is that they believe in all things magical and so don't act surprised when a magician does something magical. They're much more impressed when a toy duck squirts in my face or a metal ring gets stuck in my shoe laces.

I've linked to another magic youtube video. This one is of Barry and Stuart who do a very unique act.

Possession #124 - Red Bunny Box

As long as I'm on the topic of magic, here's my favorite trick...the Red Bunny Box. I customized the trick from a cheap cardboard box that I bought. It was my "go to" trick for kids. It had all the elements of greatness - kids catching the magician goofing up, rabbits, a little magic and audience participation.

So, this also gives me an excuse to foist upon you another youtube video of a magic act. This one was on an old Penn and Teller show in which magicians would try to fool them. The act is amazing and creative and fun...a triple threat. You gotta see it!

Possession #123 - Magic Table

This is my collapsible magic table from my "Grebnellow the Magician" days. It served me well through hundreds of 4 and 5 year old birthday parties, bar mitzvahs, and summer block parties. It's light weight and fairly sturdy having never needed reconstructive surgery except for the time I tried to incorporate a skateboard into my act and ended up tumbling into the street and slightly injuring my table and...ego.

Here are my three rules of a successful performance: 1)Always leave the audience wishing you'd stay longer rather than hoping you hadn't gone on so long. 2)Always squirt the audience with water at some point in the performance. 3)I used to have a third thing, but now I forget it. Oh wait a minute...this act that you don't want to miss, reminds me that entertainment and fun is usually more important than fooling everyone. You gotta see it!

Possession #122 - Basketball Hoop

Isn't there a law somewhere that a home with children must contain a basketball hoop in the driveway. Well, I thought so anyway...so we have one. Basketball represents the one team sport I played in school...one year - Walsh Jr. High - B Team. I was horrible. The A team from that particular class went on, in High School to go to the state tournament, so I suppose I felt related to athletic greatness... but my own skills have always been experienced vicariously rather than directly. It wouldn't be too unfair to blame my body which even in High School was trying to figure out what to do with all of its rapid growth. My coordination and strength probably peaked later than was useful for school sports. Nonetheless, the ol' driveway hoop did provide hours of recreation and exercise not only for me but for our kids and anyone filming for America's Funniest Home Videos.

Possession #121 - Rakes

Spring cleaning is in full force as I'm raking the junk I swept under the hedges last fall. Rakes are a wonderful thing. They are like these big fingers that grab everything in their path. When I was a kid we had to rake pine needles which pose the opposite problem to finding a needle in a haystack. At least mulching mowers make it possible these days to leave much of the stuff in the yard that I used to have to rake up and haul to the dump. You see in the picture, our secret to happy family. Four people - Four rakes!

Possession #120 - Special Dinner Prayer Plate

When our kids were young we instituted "special Dinner Night" every Sunday night. It was our attempt at a Sabbath observation. We would eat at the dining room table instead of the kitchen. We would light candles, sing a song, and we would act out a Bible story usually using a combination of cardboard structures and pipe cleaner people. Although we've always had meal time prayers we wanted a special one for special dinner night, so we picked the one that was on this plate of ours. To this day it is our Sunday night prayer.

Possession #119 - Shop Vac

We have a wide array of cleaning equipment in our house. A rug vacuum, brooms, mops, swiffers, sponges, cleansers, brushes and the ol' shop vac. This dinosaur has been with me through most of my married life. It's now relegated to garage duty, but it still does its job.

The Bible says that us people were created from dirt. So, I wonder sometimes why we spend so much time trying to get rid of the stuff. Are we ashamed of who we are? Isn't some amount of dirt good for us? Aren't we, after all, going to be going back into the dirt sometime...ashes to ashes and all that. The root of the word "humility" also comes from the word for dirt - "Humis." Perhaps dirt keeps us humble and humility is always one of those tough things to maintain. For now, though, I'll keep my shop vac.