Unwanted: A Photo Study Of Stuff, With Commentary

/ Ally Bean

• OUT FOR A STROLL AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD, I saw this little chest of drawers sitting out by the curb, waiting for trash pick-up.  I immediately thought of Downton Abbey’s Mr. Carson’s observation: “If you are tired of style, you are tired of life.”

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• WALKING THROUGH OUR LITTLE DOWNTOWN, I saw this sign on the window of a dilapidated building that I hope to heaven is torn down soon.  It’s the kind of private property that appears to be one sneeze away from collapse, and as such, is dangerous to walk by.

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• ORGANIZING THE JUNK DRAWER, in search of coins, I found this long-expired casino voucher for a whopping 15¢.  Never let it be said that I am not a frugal optimist, albeit a disorganized one, who believed that she’d get back to the casino to redeem this voucher.

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• SORTING THROUGH THE BASEMENT, I found these moving boxes that I saved from our last move 17 years ago.  Interestingly enough, I have no idea where they came from.  We are not the Sparks family, but apparently years ago we got their stoneware, plus bowls and glasses.

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51 thoughts on “Unwanted: A Photo Study Of Stuff, With Commentary”

  2. I hope someone takes that little chest. I wouldn’t; I have no use for it. But since they thoughtfully taped the broken drawer pull on, it’s clear that they think someone can give it a new home.

    Probably the original owner didn’t want to bother with repairing it, repainting it, or getting Craftsy with it. I don’t blame him/her. After painting it once, I’d be done, too.

    Liked by 1 person

    • nance, I suspect that someone took the chest. Around here if you put usable items out mid-afternoon on Sunday, they *magically* disappear by nightfall. It’s always been like that since we moved here. Darnedest thing, really.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Ally, our neighborhood is filled with those curbside “free” items. So much so that I have to a) not let my husband go out alone or b) I do the driving and keep away from known whereabouts of those items. Otherwise they wind up at our house. I haven”t had to buy new furniture in years – LOL

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    • Janet, that’s funny. Clever woman, you are. 🙂 We have lots of those “free” items around here, too. It’s so much nicer to think that the stuff goes to someone who wants it rather than to the dump.

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  8. What an eclectic post, Ally Bean. If you had adopted the dresser, you could have decoupaged it with all sorts of stuff, including that mega-millions casino slip!

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    • nancy, thank you. I like eclectic. The last thing I need is any more furniture, so I wasn’t tempted to take the chest of drawers… although your decoupage idea is most unique.

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  10. Funny about your Sparks boxes. I wonder if someone is using my lost Christmas tree ornaments…
    Also, one time we moved, we lost a sauce pan, a hair brush, and a pair of loafers — and I surely did not pack those things together…
    And then there was our last move, where the movers refused to pack my bag of catnip. I don’t think they thought it was catnip. Apparently, I seem like the kind of person/mother who keeps weed in the kitchen drawers, right next to the hairball ointment, batteries, and rubber bands.

    Anyway, cheerful, interesting post, Ally 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    • joey, I guess we must have absorbed the Sparks family stuff into our life without realizing it. *oops* This last move was #7 in less than 10 years, so by that time I had no idea what we owned– or where it might be.

      The movers balked at catnip?! Don’t suppose I’m surprised. I had a group once refuse to move our garden hoses. I ended up smashing the hoses in my overloaded car trunk, praying as I drove down the highway that the latch on the trunk would hold tight. [It did.]

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  11. The moving boxes were what caught my attention too. How on earth do you end up with someone else’s boxes? … and did they end up with boxes of your’s that you’ve never missed? These questions will haunt me 😉

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  12. I still have a ladder back chair my mom rescued from the neighbor’s trash 40-45 years ago. It needs re-caning again. Not sure I’m up for that but it might be an adventure. I found boxes with other people’s names on them when I started packing up the house. They were just recycled boxes the moving company used (I think) to box up some of the folks’ stuff. It’s hard to guess if they got someone else’s things given the amount of strange stuff Dad got at auctions.

    Ah that 15¢! I just cashed an 83¢ check from Medicare that is totally going to make my budget for this month. Last month I got an 84¢ check from a credit card company I only used once. Somehow, I think the last batch of loose change I cashed in for $479 might be of more benefit to me.

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    • Zazamataz, wowsa! That’s a lot of loose change. Good for you, forget the checks. As for the boxes, they appear to have been part of our number series so I think somehow they got mixed in with our boxes, which were properly named and numbered. Funny to discover this so long after the fact. All I can say is: oh well, whatever!

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  13. I am upset, and believe it is a violation of my constitutional rights, that I am apparently not allowed to hunt, fish or trap in abandoned buildings. This should become a Major Issue this Election Cycle…

    Liked by 1 person

    • evil, you have every right to be upset about such an egregious violation of your rights! That sign, that building– I actually walk on the other side of the street when possible, just in case it decides to come down while I’m near it.

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    • Thank you, Susan. That little chest of drawers was cute as the bee’s knees, but I had no use for it. Now using it as a designated “junk drawer” would be brilliant. Perhaps someone did.

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