You can't keep everything

I always knew that you can't hold on to everything in life, but that didn't mean I didn't try to do just that! I mean, is it really better to just think that "everybody leaves, if they get the chance" (Radiohead)? Okay, so talking about things doesn't compare to talking about people.

I'm finally ready to let these stuffed turtles go, and wanted to give them a goodbye post...

Stamped Turtle

I love turtle-themed things. I love the multivalent symbolism of turtles: slow but steady/reliable like in the story of the tortoise and the hair; a hard outer shell, but soft inside; self-containment; etc.

Over the years I've accumalated LOTS of turtles--some I've chosen for myself, others given to me by friends, and ones that come to me by chance.

A baby shower invitation I recently received bears the latest turtle to come into my life. I'm pretty sure it's a stamped turtle.

Pack Rat, Hoarder, Collector

The lines between being a pack rat, hoarder, and collector can be fine ones at times (don't believe me, just look up definitions of each and see the extent to which each appears in the others' definition). What's clear, however, are the societal attitudes and judgments that accompany each of these three labels...pack rats are annoying but loveable, hoarders are psychologically ill and in need of intervention, and collectors are respectable.

This blog is dedicated to the things and stuff that have come into my life...