Deadlines and Broomsticks

The rosebush was not found, and my landlord didn't return my call, so I guess I better get on with my life.  It's not a big deal. I just thought it would be a new little project.  That's what I get for neglecting my plants for years and now trying to be a good horticulturalist.  I'm like Tommy Lee Jones in The Missing, and the plants are my Cate Blanchetts. 

I set myself the goal of getting my rearranging of my living quarters done by bedtime this Wednesday.  I'm having some family time in a week so I want to have it out of the way.  That means:

• setting up my new bookcase in the studio, and putting my books and craft supplies in it
• moving the old bookcase downstairs 
• moving the boxes of comics into a closet in the studio
• setting up some shelves in the closet to hold the comics

I have a couple bookcases that I'm having a friend look at this week to see if she wants them, but if not I'll have to give them away.  I've also got to move my records and other art supplies from the basement, as well as some of the artwork that I want on the walls!!

I'm displeased to report that Far West Fibers has updated its policies on what they will and won't accept.  Gone are the bins for plastic film and bags.  They only accept plastic items with a recycling number on the bottom, and not all of them at that.  Also, they don't take as many old appliances as they used to.  I'm hoping that another place will start collecting the other kinds of plastic.  I'm still a fan of FWF though. 

Rites of Spring

When I said that I had cleared out the refrigerator the other day, that was true, but it wasn't the whole story.  I had removed containers of chutney, miso, kimchee, and lots of good smelly stuff that I was slowly dumping into the compost I was collecting.  I got pretty much all of it into the bin today.  The words "vomit sundae" came to mind as I was piling it into the compost-collecting bowl.  I inadvertently discovered how to make friends with the neighbor's chickens in the process.  They seemed very interested in the fact that I was holding a shiny metal bowl when I was on the patio, and they all hopped through the gap in the fence to investigate.  Instant feathered friends!  Their owner saw us, and I got a free tour of their coop/pen and four fresh eggs, all different colors! 

I got up a bit late today, because I couldn't fall asleep last night.  I managed to get a lot done in spite of that.  I went with a friend to Far West Fibers to do some intense recycling.  Sadly, they are not accepting rigid plastics right now, only the bags/film and bottles with necks.

I plan to clean out my car as soon as the weather is better, along with the planter that is right next to my front door.  It's filled with weeds and the plants that should be there are way overgrown.  It's time to also clean up the flower pots with the geraniums!  I'm looking forward to getting more plants this spring and having a garden again.

I've kept up with staying off the daytime TV but I think tonight is the first night I'll be going to bed at a reasonable time.  I just get so busy with little things close to midnight and I just want to keep going.  Not tonight, I'm just too tired.

Helpful hints from Mama Ingrid, et al

Isabella Rossellini wrote a memoir called Some of Me, in which she shared her mother's (Ingrid Bergman, that is) own methods for cleaning up after a party at the Rossellini household.  That advice was, never leave the room empty handed.  That's something I'm taking to heart these days, but I'm taking it a step further.  I never leave the house without something in my hand, or my car, that I won't be bringing back to take up space in my house again!  For example, I take stuff to Goodwill, or to Far West Fibers, which is the massive recycling center off SE Holgate in Portland.  You can take shoes, appliances, and white styrofoam there!

One of my friends told me about a cleanup he did at his own house, where he decided that nothing he didn't want was going back into his bedroom.  So now I'm looking at things more critically to determine if I really want the things I'm keeping around. 

Today I didn't do a whole lot, though I tried.  I put a few things in the car to take over to Village Merchants, one of my favorite thrift stores in town, on SE Division.  When I got there I remembered that they don't take items on Sundays.  So, those things are still in my car.

I shifted a few things around in the basement and took a few things upstairs to sort, so there is a nearly detectable improvement.  At least there are no more falling boxes.

So in the photo above, we have the same view on two different nights.  The one on the left is from tonight, so that is the "after" shot.  I'm getting somewhere but am I just putting the crap in my living space upstairs?  Am I just kidding myself?

PS: I just finished Dangerous Angels, the collected novels of the Weetzie Bat series by Francesca Lia Block.  It was so good, I had borrowed it from the library but I want to get my own copy to keep.  It's a perfect manual for finding love and beauty in a fucked up and dangerous world, and not losing hope.  It's just what I needed to read right at this time in my life.