leftovers cuz
Most every human has quirks, eccentricities, peculiarities and idiosyncrasies somewhere in their daily lives. Being mostly human, I also have some of these – I’ll just call mine quirks since that’s easier to spell. One biggie of mine is being almost unable to throw away any leftover lumber, plywood, trim, etc. – until it gets too small or broken to use. Some of the aforementioned pieces date from when this house was built 25 years ago.
But it doesn’t stop there; I also save leftover hardware – screws, bolts and nuts, washers, nails, brads and staples. I know that someday I will use these leftovers so they are stored away in containers in my workshop. My Dad was from the old school and saved any used (even rusty and bent) nails as well – he would go through and straighten them before use – I had the bent-nail keeping syndrome earlier in life, but finally overcame it.
An unintended collection of leftover PVC joints, splices and connections rests in a small plastic hospital tub (leftover also), these from small plumbing jobs over the years. Then there is wire I have saved – mostly electrical, left from the very useful hobby of doing my own electrical work – but then there is also any other type that I happen across. I don’t think I have any of the proverbial baling wire, but most every other kind. Maybe this is from a long career of working with wire – or maybe it’s just a quirk.
Back last winter I dug up and transplanted shoots growing from my existing blueberry bushes – leftover plants. 19 of these were planted where I dug up 5 muscadine vines – this on the bedroom end of the house. These vines were removed because I seem to have developed an allergy to the grapes thereof – makes my mouth a bit raw. There are still 7 of the vines left on the garage end of the yard. It will take a couple of years to get the blueberry bushes established and producing, but their only cost was the effort to plant them.
Speaking of blueberries, I don’t ever have any leftovers of them. They are picked and either eaten fresh or frozen and special plans are made for these. Not to say that I write on the outside of the bags (other than the date they are frozen) what that particular bag will be used for – but there is a special plan for the use of each bag – consumption!! They are eaten in conjunction with vanilla ice cream, baked into a cobbler, made into “blueberries in the snow” or just eaten in their little round icy forms, straight from the freezer. Hope they will last until this year’s crop comes in! ec
To be continued.
But it doesn’t stop there; I also save leftover hardware – screws, bolts and nuts, washers, nails, brads and staples. I know that someday I will use these leftovers so they are stored away in containers in my workshop. My Dad was from the old school and saved any used (even rusty and bent) nails as well – he would go through and straighten them before use – I had the bent-nail keeping syndrome earlier in life, but finally overcame it.
An unintended collection of leftover PVC joints, splices and connections rests in a small plastic hospital tub (leftover also), these from small plumbing jobs over the years. Then there is wire I have saved – mostly electrical, left from the very useful hobby of doing my own electrical work – but then there is also any other type that I happen across. I don’t think I have any of the proverbial baling wire, but most every other kind. Maybe this is from a long career of working with wire – or maybe it’s just a quirk.
Back last winter I dug up and transplanted shoots growing from my existing blueberry bushes – leftover plants. 19 of these were planted where I dug up 5 muscadine vines – this on the bedroom end of the house. These vines were removed because I seem to have developed an allergy to the grapes thereof – makes my mouth a bit raw. There are still 7 of the vines left on the garage end of the yard. It will take a couple of years to get the blueberry bushes established and producing, but their only cost was the effort to plant them.
Speaking of blueberries, I don’t ever have any leftovers of them. They are picked and either eaten fresh or frozen and special plans are made for these. Not to say that I write on the outside of the bags (other than the date they are frozen) what that particular bag will be used for – but there is a special plan for the use of each bag – consumption!! They are eaten in conjunction with vanilla ice cream, baked into a cobbler, made into “blueberries in the snow” or just eaten in their little round icy forms, straight from the freezer. Hope they will last until this year’s crop comes in! ec
To be continued.
posted by mreddie | 10:21 AM
10 Comments:
Did you know that bueberries grow on little plants close to the ground here? I didn't know they grew otherwise until I read Swamp's blog. She's from your general area of the world, give or take.
I wish more people had this habit of saving old nails, bolts, etc - my father did, and he always had it when he needed it. No trip to the hardware store was needed. But, he also grew up on a farm, and was quite poor. If they saw a rusty nail, it was saved.
AC - My full-grown bushes are taller than my head and very prolific - enough for me and the birds. :) They are known as rabbit-eye blueberries.
bonita - With my Dad, part of the job was locating the proper sized rusty nails from the saving place, usually some sort of bucket, and then straightening them. It seems to me that we were worse than poor, we were po. :) ec
I like blueberry muffins!!
My wife for a while save all scraps of wood. I hated it.
mmmm fresh bluberris and cream.
shelly - Those sound good to me too.
william - They are good with ice cream, in cereal and cobbler - I may have to have some before I go to bed. :) ec
Some worthwhile salvage going on there, and the blueberries sure sound good.
My favorite wife just calls it being a packrat. :) And the blueberries are very good. ec
I'm crazy about blueberry anything and they're like buying platinum here in central CA. I don't know why.
You and my husband would hit it off. He keeps everything. I went on tool drawer strike years ago. You want it, fine - you sort it.
I'm thrifty - he's something else entirely.
granny - The blueberries are a regular part of my diet and I enjoy them a lot. We have in excess of 40 bushes on my small place. My brother has over a hundred - his place is much bigger though. ec
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