Today's declutter was a long time coming. And of course, there's a bit of a story. At some point this summer, I cleaned out our furnace room and reorganized things, leaving a few items in the family room to decide upon later what to do with them.
Well, this month is bringing a reckoning of things like that.
Once upon a time, in a land not too far away we became fish caretakers. We have the letter to prove that we adopted five fish from a girl named Andi. Andi is the (now probably 40+ year old) daughter of one of Hub's coworkers at the time. We had a nice aquarium and I remember we really enjoyed taking care of those little fishes, though I have some faded memories of the disappointment of losing them too.
I don't remember when we became fishless, but I do know we didn't become aquarium-less until just a few years ago (like 2 or 3 at the most). I remember finally agreeing to donate it to a local thrift shop and the owners were so glad to receive it. I was a little sad to part with it because I knew we'd never invest in another aquarium so I was saying goodbye to the idea of fish pets forever.
For some reason, though, we've hung onto a bunch of fish stuff, and it had been stored in a box in the furnace room for who knows how long, and this week it has finally met its fate.
This is most of it - minus some pieces parts that were rattling around in the bottom of the box. I don't know if any of the electric pieces work, but we'll see if some friends would like them and all the food and chemicals will be disposed of. But before I do, I must count it and record it here. I'm not going to itemize this stuff, and I got lost counting it several times, but I landed on the number 17 twice, so that's what I'm declaring that I'm pitching.
Day 17: 181 things gone
The letter was in the box, too. I'm keeping it a little longer - because it's just too sweet. Hoping that Andi never comes across my blog and finds out the hard way that her beloved Finnie, Bob, Blackie and Stripes have joined the Dearly Departed.
Well, that was a sweet story! Bless you for taking care of the fish when needed. I have a soft spot in my heart for God's creatures. :)
ReplyDeleteBelieve it or not, my grands once found a stray fish! (That doesn't happen too many times along life's way.) I'll have to blog that story sometime . . .
We were happy to have the fish. It's possible Andi provided us with the aquarium, too, but neither hubs nor I can remember. I'd really like to read a post about the stray fish! I'll be watching for it! lol
DeleteCongratulations on 181!
ReplyDeleteI sorted a cabinet this morning. Your project is an inspiration.
I'm so glad others are being inspired!
DeleteWhat a great memory. Lived hearing the story. Aquariums are a huge investment and wee too, had a hard time donating ours years ago. They do require time to care for them too. Good job on another day of less.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised at how the aquarium upkeep didn't feel burdensome at the time. While we're pretty happy to be pet free, we do take good care of our little friends when we've had them. :)
DeleteI love the stories you tell with your de-cluttering. You go girl!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Sam. I'm hoping a story sprinkled in here or there makes this all more interesting. It certainly does that for me.
DeleteOur #1 grandson got an aquarium for Christmas last year and I wondered if the 'romance' would last but apparently it has. He's had several go over the 'Rainbow Fish Bridge' and coped very well. If I ever were to have pets again I think it would be fish simply because we can't have 'furry' animals with Resident Chef's allergies.
ReplyDeleteExcept for aquarium cleaning (which wasn't that bad if kept up) I found fish pets to be a reasonable amount of entertainment (or interesting) for the effort.
DeleteWe used to have fish too; can't remember how they kicked the bucket.
ReplyDelete