It was a hot July day in Tucson. Dad had just passed away and I was down helping Mom. I didn't know what I'd be helping her with, but I knew just being there would be help enough.
We had finished dinner. A HUGE rib eye steak, baked potato and a salad (she made the meal in Dad's memory), when Mom hopped up from her chair and started frantically walking around the house. She was opening drawers, cabinets and moving things on shelves. I could not figure out what she was doing. She was clearly looking for something, and she was focused in finding it.
A good 15 minutes goes buy and she comes back into the living room. She plops down on the sofa by me and dumps a box full of something onto the coffee table.
"Look at this! Just look at this," she said.
I looked down and there was AT LEAST 30 nail clippers in all shapes and sizes.
I, of course, was very confused. When I looked back up at Mom to ask why, and what, and why again, I saw tears in her eyes. Then she said, "You dad could never find his nail clippers. He always bought another pair when he was out. He had them everywhere. Everywhere." I still wasn't sure where she was going with this, then we proceeded to talk all night about how if Dad could have one thing, why not have 10 of them. It was a joke in our family with Dad that when he'd go to the store to buy something on sale, he'd be so many of whatever it was. He'd say it was on sale so stock up.
Fast forward 4 years I'm dazed and stunned cleaning out Mom's house. She died of a stroke and I flew to Tucson the month after to clean out her house.
I wasn't really paying attention to what I was doing. I was sorta floating through the house moving things to and from, but not really doing anything. I was still a bit in shock that Mom was gone. I was sitting at her desk and noticed a drawer that had a couple of scissors in it. I jumped up and started rushing through the house picking up scissors EVERYWHERE. I brought them all into the kitchen and dumped them on the table. There were 24 pair of scissors! Who needs that many scissors?
The family there helping me thought I was losing it, but I started laughing. I laughed and laughed and laughed. I told them the story of Mom after dad died, and here I was after mom died doing the same thing, but with scissors!
Ironically enough, she also had about 20 nail clippers too. They may have been dad's for all I know.
For me? What do I have a ridiculous amount of? Pens. I'm a pen whore. I have at least 25 here by my sofa. I have at least 50 upstairs in the scrapbook room. I have a dozen in my office. I have 5-10 in my night stand. I have 4 in my purse. I tell you, they are everywhere in this house.
What about you?
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