And today, I cleaned up the garage

When we moved into this house about a year and a half ago, I quickly unpacked and organized the house.  (If you saw my 10-year old’s room, you would never believe that sentence, but it’s true.  Even her room was organized and tidy.)

But I neglected the garage because it’s the garage.  I kind of arranged the boxes in a sort of order so I could find Christmas decorations and sand pails and I randomly put items on some shelves that some men from the church installed on one wall.  I thought that later I’d sort and arrange and maybe even alphabetize things.  You just never know.

However, as is wont to happen, the bottom layer of semi-unpacked stuff formed a solid crust and then the fluffy flakes of new snowflakes fell, covering the icy layer and then we had an avalanche.  In other words, the suitcases we’ve packed and unpacked were deposited rather haphazardly out there.  Then we added a Costco pack of a dozen rolls of paper towels and a bunch of packages of napkins and some inexplicably intact cardboard boxes, plus cans and bottles that need to be returned for their five cent deposit . . . and so on and so forth.

It was a mess. Someone gave us  table which ended up out there . . . a loveseat broke . . . the down comforter sat in a bunch on the suitcases . . . all this stuff just sat there, waiting.  Lurking.

I took some time off from work today and spent three rather dusty hours breaking down cardboard boxes, peeking into storage tubs, piling things into boxes to give away, moving things around, and wondering if the weird folding bike made in Austria that the former homeowners left is worth any money.  My feet did not appreciate the cement floor at all.  Neither did my back.

The worst part is that I’m not done.  I have four shelving units (I bought from the next-door neighbor) and I shoved things onto those shelves, thinking that later I’ll organize better.  Later needs to be sooner rather than later, though.  Otherwise, another layer will land on what’s still out there and no one wants that.

And, no, I haven’t bought a single Christmas gift yet.

Time to begin panicking.