Shoes

This blog post inspired by the shoe decluttering blog post of my friend Pol...

As I embark on my quest towards an emptier basement--- flying in the face of my SIMULTANEOUS quest to collect junk to sell for fund-raising-- I find myself with NINE bags of stuff to leave the house sitting in the basement. Stuff I can't flea-market or Craigslist. Stuff I can't possibly justify keeping. That's a lot of bags lined up in the basement waiting for the next CDA neighbourhood pickup--probably not until September. And I'll probably be filling more...

This afternoon I'm down to eight bags, having dropped a large load of shoes off at the thrift store. Out it's going, bag by bag, this holiday week *she vows to herself*

Sometimes I'm tempted to put aside shoes for a clothes trade, but this particular Pile O' Shoes only merited one pair for possible Future-Use-By-Friends.

Like I said, this post was inspired by my friend who likewise posted pictures of her shoe collection online. "Wow", I thought to myself, "My friend sure does like shoes!" But apparently, um, I have a similar problem. Nothing like a picture or two to illustrate.

The Before picture shows all twenty-eight pairs of shoes I found in various places around the house. (Not even counting my snow boots.)

How is it possible that I have collected so many? Friends will attest I don't enjoy shopping for shoes, can't wear heels without hobbling myself, and will wear a pair of favourites until the sole is separating from the uppers--HAD to leave my old hiking shoes in Kathmandu for just that reason. It's a bit of a shocker for me that I am nevertheless, after reviewing all evidence, a horrible hoarder of shoes. Sigh.

But...after this month's shoe purge I am relieved to say I am now ELEVEN pairs lighter than before! Although I am for some reason STILL holding onto the pink Italian strappy shoes I wore painfully to the Crazy Ladies Tea Party--oh, the memories!

Jeff pulled all his shoes out too and similarly junked out. Total number of pairs: eleven (two not pictured as they were later discovered hiding in trepidation).

Blackberries

I have ten days of holiday stretching ahead of me...my treat to myself is my birthday week off work.

Well, one treat anyway. I'm planning on having a good week.

To start with, I got off work early and wandered down the lane to the blackberry patch and picked a little pail of sun-ripened yumminess.

The bushes are laden with green and red berries--the potential for a blackberry-filled freezer bounty is enormous this year. All the recent hot weather has made the bushes amazingly productive.

Wild strawberries are good, fresh raspberries are a favourite, but nothing is more tasty to me than a perfect blackberry.