Goodbye Garb and Magnificent Memories

I recently lost a few pounds. It was about time. As with all weight loss, both the skin and the clothes got loose. Ok...so both got loose and wrinkly. I've retired some pairs of pants after friends said I looked as though I had droopy drawers...not a good look on a senior. People might get the wrong impression. We elders have enough embarrassing issues.

I don't think I'm a very vain person. I also don't think that I'm terribly materialistic, but then everything's relative isn't it?

When it comes to clothing, I have a decent wardrobe. I like clothes. There was a time I barely had two outfits to wear to work (insert tiny violin playing here). There was also a time when I wore clothes out. That is now beyond the realm of my comprehension, but then, vinyl, barkcloth, terylene, crimplene were all the rage. Who ever thought those were a good idea and did they actually wear out or just disappear as some fads and fabrics should?

Now, rather than wear clothes out,  I eventually get tired of seeing the same outfits. It's like looking in the mirror every day and seeing the same old thing, but at least with clothing, we have a choice. We can get rid of the 80% we don't wear and the 20% we wear far too often. (a statistic I recently heard)

So it has been necessary to downsize my clothing along with my girth. I spent a few days test driving a lot of pieces to see what fit, what was still borderline, and what was unacceptable. I found a lot to give away. I also found some items that still work plus a few from a previous diet, an earlier size, and so on. Then there were a few....just a few that I know are too large, but went back into my dresser drawer. It made no sense, but there they are.

I think that most people who hoard "stuff" which they consider treasures do so because of the memories they stir up. The clothes that went back into my drawer had memories, fond memories. As I put each thing back, I had flashbacks of friends I was with, events I celebrated, and trips I went on while wearing the piece. I was not yet ready to say goodbye to everything.

There's a quote by Rachael Taylor that goes like this. "For me, clothing is nothing without the story behind it. Everything I own evokes some kind of memory."

Whereas Petticoat Lane and Diabetes Society have been the beneficiaries of much, my dresser drawer still contains a few....a few good memories of times gone by.

Let There Be Blogs

I know, I know. There's been a blog drought yet again. On the other hand, those who know me well, also know why. For the past six months, I have been working on a few major projects. By major, I mean so large that no one human being my age should be attempting this. In fact, no human being half my age should attempt same.

People have said things like "I don't know how you do it all."

Ok, maybe I've just heard me saying that very loudly to myself. Although in fairness, people used to say that to me when I was younger and accomplished three times my current range of activities while working and raising a family.

Anyhow, for someone who was going to retire, read, write, paint, and travel...well. There's been evidence of a few of those activities but not to the extent that I had once imagined. Sometimes, in life we take detours. We make choices. Sometimes, we garden when we don't enjoy gardening. We cook when we thought we'd given it up. We do housework when we have no further need to waste our remaining time on earth on such trivial activities. We plan parties and celebrations when we need to honour one of the important people in our lives, despite our age and energy level.

On May 22, 2011, the occasion of hubby's 75th birthday, I wrote about "Papa's Progressive Parties".
http://rockinrobinsramblings.blogspot.ca/2011/05/papas-progressive-parties.html
He likes parties. He likes celebrations. He likes receiving attention. He likes cake. He likes presents. He admits it and does not pretend otherwise or try to demonstrate false modesty. I admire that.

Everyone knows that when one turns 80, it's even more special. What a milestone! And...if one turns 80 and around the same time celebrates the 50th anniversary of a very special career choice, well, there's a bit of wifely pressure to perform a few miracles of her own.

Before Christmas, the planning, organizing, and scheming began. What would be the best weekend to combine two celebrations, for maximum impact and attendance? Mother's Day, the date closest to his birthday would not be a good weekend choice. Victoria Day, not good either but the weekend in between seemed ideal. May 14/15, 2016 it would be.

This year in May, we marked another month of celebrations. The eventual upcoming blogs this time shall be entitled, "Adam's Awesome Adventures".