Whatever this may end up being

I really have no idea what I am about to write. I just noticed that it has been 2 months since my last rant so I decided to change that and write this - whatever "this" may end up being.

I went back and read some of my older posts. Posts where I talked about playing poker. I laughed as I read some of my horrible bad beat stories from back then. Truth is they were probably more like bad "no folds" then they were "bad beats". Sometimes it is hard to throw hands away. But two kings have never beat 2 aces and I should know that by now. At least I have "invested" enough into the game of poker by now to know better. Throwing away things is not something I have an issue with in life. Although I will admit that I do keep some weird things for reasons unknown.

I have a beer can collection that I recently stacked in my pole barn. Thats them up above in the picture. The collection is special to me because I collected these cans when I was 8 years old and I've had them ever since. Back then there were not returnable (no deposit) cans here in Michigan so my very first can was a "Tall Boy" that someone had conveniently deposited onto the front lawn of my childhood home. All of my neighborhood friends were already collecting cans so I started with this one and from there I was hooked.

I spent a lot of time as a child at a corporate resort in Brighton, Michigan called "Burroughs Farms". No, not "Burroughs Farm" but "Burroughs Farms" with an "S". Sorry but that is a pet peeve with me. Yes I do have better things to worry about but I take issue with that whole "S" thing. Anyway, Burroughs Farms was a resort getaway for employees of Burroughs Corporation. (Burroughs later paired with Sperry to form Unysis) At Burroughs I found most of my empty beer cans for my now infamous collection. I would go to where the older kids were known to party or just walk through the woods and find their spots and also find their tossed beer cans. Gross? Yea it is now that I look back on it but it is pretty cool too and here is why. I found some areas where people used to party long ago. I found conehead cans and "no opener needed" budweiser cans. These things had sat out in these woods for years - long after the party had ended and probably long before these people who left them went on to be adults and get jobs and wives or husbands and families. Please note that I did not say "the good old days" lol.

So the can collection lived for about 31 years in the basement of my parents home. Annually I would receive the call from my Mother asking me "when I was going to take these darn cans." Too funny and it became a little joke with us. Sometimes I wish I hadn't gone and got them from her so she could still call and joke about those wonderful cans that she loved so much. Funny thing though she has never asked about the cans since I took them. I wonder why? I always thought that those cans would be worth something someday. Who else has a "Billy Beer" can that was opened from the bottom so the pull tab is still in place? Well, log onto ebay - there are a lot of them and the can is worth about a buck. Oh well.

Other strange things I have hung onto for unknown reasons: Old Computers, Old Cameras, Old Cell Phones, (I guess I can stop saying "old" in front of everything) Resumes, Printed Ads that I created for customers, bowling trophy's and awards, bowling balls, TV's, - wait a minute I just realized that I AM my Father. Ok this weekend is cleaning time. This makes everything sound like it is a mess but it really is not. My house is organized and well kept. I do need to remove a few of these things though and I will. But I still wonder why I held onto them.

I have bowling trophies from when my youth bowling team won the league in 1972. I still have high average trophies, league high game and high series trophies from that same year. I had the highest average at 95. Not bad for my first year of bowling. Last year (2008-2009) I averaged 229 for a season with 99 games.  I have showed some improvement over the years.  The sad part is that all of this "wonderful" stuff is just junk to anyone else. If I dropped off the face of the planet tonight someone would just back in a dumpster and load all of my precious junk for a quick trip to the dump. But it is special to me and that is why I keep it. Maybe we need more of that in this world?

Americans have become a throw away society where young folks go through 3-4 phones a year and it is ok. We lease cars now because heaven forbid we have a car with more than 10,000 miles on it. We are impatient while driving or on the internet because we have become accustomed to getting things right now. When I was growing up I didn't get a lot of toys or bikes or things like many of my friends got. We had money but my parents didn't believe in just giving out gifts. We got gifts at Christmas or on our Birthday and it made them more special although I didn't feel that way when I was young. My friends didn't appreciate their things like I did. Maybe that is why I take such good care of my things. If I broke a toy as a child I didn't just get another one, rather it was a lesson to be learned. So, I didn't break my toys.

I went into my local cell phone supplier to get a new phone.  The last cell phone I bought was the original "Blackjack".  When I bought it the phone was cutting edge but after several years it needed to be replaced.  When I showed the young person behind the counter my Blackjack he commented, "Wow I haven't seen one of these in years. Do you know that there have been two newer version of this phone sir?"  He also commented, as he looked at it in astonishment because it looked like it was new by saying, "Did you even use this phone?"  Now that is funny because being in sales as I am that phone was my lifeline.  It went with me everywhere.  Anyway, I bought a simple Motorola Karma phone and went on my way.  I've had the phone for a few months now and it is still in pristine condition.  oF course, now that I said that I expect to drop it on the pavement sometime today.

So there you go another moderately entertaining post from me. I guess that explains why I hang onto things like I do. But I am going to clean up a few things around here.....someday.