Reflections

Trashing the Past

Sitting here drinking my coffee. Watching the morning news. At the same time thinking about something that has been troubling me. If you read my last post then you know I’m cleaning out my old office / new ham shack. You also read that I threw out old high school scrapbooks.

Been thinking about that this morning. Wondering why something that used to mean so much to me meant so little now. I mean it was like three books of ribbons, certificates, and newspaper clippings. Kept them for all these years for some reason. But like the trophies I threw out some time ago, they no longer had any value to me now. They meant absolutely nothing as I threw them into the trash. Didn’t even bother to open one up for one last look.

What bothers me is how little it bothers me. If that makes sense. Hell, not even sure why I hung onto them this long other than maybe to show some curious grandkid someday. But don’t know if that’s ever in the cards before I kick the bucket.

To be honest, my high school years were not the most pleasant. Hated those years. Was never more happy than when I shipped off for boot camp. Never looked back after that. Still in touch with some old classmates on Farcebook. But mostly because they reached out to me. Had no close friends during those years. Never really fit in with anyone. Maybe that’s why when it came time to trash the scrapbooks, it was so easy. I’ve dismissed that time of my life as meaningless. Not sure.

Anyway. Just one of the weird things I think about sometimes. Maybe letting go of things from a time that didn’t matter is healthy. Or maybe I’m just cold about it. Either way, the scrapbooks are in the landfill now and I don’t miss them.

Going to continue drinking my coffee. Watching the news / propaganda. Then on to cleaning the basement more. Physical therapy for my shoulder later. Oh, that’s a story for another time.

Have a good one.

Thanks for reading, Joe

_{Notes:
-All content is mine unless otherwise annotated.
-Images are my own unless otherwise noted.
-Photos edited using Linux photo editor and drawing and/or iPhone SE.
-Page Dividers from The Terminal Discord.}

Comments · 9

@haveyoumetellie(65)· 12h
You just reminded me to clear my screenshot folder, coz damn this girl loves keeping screenshots of books, flowers and more books, some have been sitting on my phone for 3 years, and I wonder why my phone always notify me about my storage.

The minimalist life is good.. carry just what we can, let go of what's no longer serving so we can make space for the new ones.. that's true both literally and figuratively. Nice reflection, Joe. Happy Weekend.
@intishar(76)· 22h
Thank you for sharing a good post with us.
@kerrislravenhill(74)· 1d
Now you got me thinking of my old high school year books. I had some friends but all in all I hated High school for it's unspoken competitiveness, social awkwardness and bullying. To top it all I was academically terrible, finishing near the bottom of my class, that made me a disappointment to my mother. and that formed the basis how I mal-related to my mother. I think I will toss them out.

Thanks for the reality update @coinjoe
@tarazkp(86)· 1d

Had no close friends during those years. Never really fit in with anyone. Maybe that’s why when it came time to trash the scrapbooks, it was so easy.

It could be that since then you have achieved so much more that have surpassed those years. You don't have to look back at the glory days of high school. like Al Bundy.
@agmoore(76)· 1d
Your blogs are so honest. It's like a reality check for the rest of us. I know I see myself in so much of what you describe.

Just came out of my bedroom closet. It's one of those closets rich woman have to hold their great wardrobe. I'm not rich. The woman who owned this house before me probably needed it. What I've done is put all those mementos and photos in my closet. Mostly my kids' stuff. A lot from my mother. A bunch from my mother-in-law. Somehow, it feels as though if I throw that stuff away, I'm erasing them. It's silly, because when I go,a lot of this stuff won't mean anything to my children, who will have to sort through it. Still, I can't throw it out.

You set a good example. I'll have to go in there tomorrow, maybe with my son, who will help me decide what is important.

Hope your shoulder gets better, a least a little bit :)
@pizzabot(60)· 1d
PIZZA!

$PIZZA slices delivered: @bulliontools_(3/20) tipped @coinjoe

_{Learn more at https://hive.pizza.}
@bulliontools(75)· 1d
I can kind of understand where you're coming from. I changed schools from junior high to sophomore year, and then moved out of state for the last two years of high school. The school I went to for the last two years was designed more like a college, so the people I did chat with was in instant messaging chat rooms rather than hanging out on campus. I kept my yearbooks for now, but when it comes time to clean things out I don't know that I'll keep them.

!BBH !PIZZA !ALIVE
@bozz(83)· 1d
My parents still have a lot of my stuff at their house. She occasionally will give some of it to me and some of it I keep, the rest I throw away. I think it would bug her more than it bugs me to know it was getting thrown away!
@new.things(77)· 1d
Farcebook Lol I recently chucked out a lot of my old school stuff too, gee it was such a long time ago. I took a few photos of things I was unsure about.