I Can See the Desktop!

Yesterday was an utterly miserable day here in Northern Virginia - it rained all day (and it's still raining), and the temperature never made it out of the low 50's. That was bad because it kept me from raking up the 9,587 cubic yards of leaves in the yard (and knocked still more off the trees), but it was good because it kept me in the house and gave me an opportunity to tackle a task I've been putting off for a long time.

Remember the story of Hercules cleaning out the Augean Stables?

Welcome to the story of Bilbo cleaning out the Cluttered Study.

Yes, I spent the entire day imitating an archaeologist digging through a midden pit, amazed at all the things I found that I'd thought were lost forever. One example is posted on my Facebook page, and reproduced here - one of the first pictures of my first grandchild, and just about my favorite:

Yes, that's my lap that Marcy is lying on, and my thumbs she's demonstrating her grip on. Marcy will be 10 years old next year. Sigh.

I reviewed the contents of unlabeled CDs, Zip disks, and even 3.25-inch floppies. I found old recipes, long lost pictures, archives of personal letters going back many years, and all sorts of other interesting stuff.

I pulled dusty mathoms off the highest shelves of the closet, throwing out most of them.

I pulled file boxes out from under the desk, revealing many years worth of tax files, photographs, academic papers, paid bills, postcards, receipts, and everything else you can imagine.

I swept the desktop clear of piles of newspapers, old magazines, flyers, and other things that I'd been saving to use as blog fodder.

I found the pile of letters from fellow bloggers I've been saving (so far, Amanda is in the lead, with two letters, two cards, and a postcard...I'm saving them all, because once the new baby comes, I rather doubt she'll have the time to write any more...).

I filled two large trash bags with junk of all sorts. The bags are still sitting on my study floor, because I didn't feel like going out into the rain to put them in the garbage bin, but I still have a sense of accomplishment.

I can see (most of) the desktop! I actually have space to open a book, write in a full-sized notebook, and put down my coffee cup without fear that it will fall off a teetering pile of papers. I can see (most of) the floor! I can walk in a straight line from the door to my desk chair without running an obstacle course. Woo-hoo!!

There's still more to do, of course. I have a big box of papers to shred, the two bags of junk to take out, and the vacuum to run. There are also a few more boxes of things lurking under the far back corner of the desk. But it's enough for me to declare victory.

Sometimes, you just take what you can get.

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo