I’ve always wondered what it would be like to enter a house that had been frozen in time and be able to sort through all of the detritus of a former life. Well, over the weekend I had an opportunity to sort through a garage that had been buried by time – about 50 years worth.
Howard’s father finally asked for some help in cleaning out his garage/shop. Last weekend, armed with gloves and boxes, we tackled the piles. Tom, who is 92, watched from the sidelines while Howard, Alex (his niece’s son), and myself began to drag stuff out.
The dragging continued all day.
Until we finally reached the back of the shop.
We ended up with a pile of scrap metal.
After five trailer loads of stuff to the dump (and more yet to go), we loaded the trailer with all of the hazardous materials and old paint (and several jugs of unidentified liquids).
What all did we find? Well, things had been buried for 50 years, things Howard remembered from his childhood, and some things Howard didn’t remember ever seeing. It was a walk back in time.
I’ve saved the best for last. While we cleaned and sorted, I was filling boxes with things that I could use in my art and in my Curious Elements. In a box of rags, I even found an old quilt.
When I got home, I began to sort through all of the treasures. My sister asked during the process was I feeling overwhelmed or verklempt*. Verklempt, definitely verklempt. (*choked with emotion)
PS Since we were using Tom’s truck and trailer, when he needed to run an errand, he hopped in his old Model A and tootled off to the store.
Here’s the work crew: Alex, Howard, and Tom
Did I mention that Tom has a garage in North Plains where he works on his old cars? That’s next to get cleaned out.