stuff

I've spent the past few weeks going through my stuff, deciding what to sell, what to send to folks, what to give away and what to toss.  I've been brutally unsentimental.  In the end, it's all gotta go.

These things are not just things tho...they're artifacts.  Timepieces from each phase of my life, with  attached memories, usually of some person.  Photos.  Newspaper clippings.  A perfume bottle and pair of panties.  Concert ticket stubs.  The pen-and-ink master Hot Wax Unlimited logo.  Navy discharge.  College diploma.  So much stuff.  So many memories made with so very many people.

A story of my grandmother, Miss Olga Jones, comes to mind.  After sorting through the many belongings of her late sister-in-law, she began a purge her of own "stuff," stating firmly, "I ain't leavin' all this shit for someone else to have to go through!"

Her words have stayed with me, and I'm doing my best to follow her example.  Clearing out the shop.  Closing accounts.  Getting rid of everything.

Saying goodbye.