But do you have one of these?

 

So, I’m doing the dishes the other night, and I pick up a meat tenderizer.

And it hits me as a bit strange. I mean, come on, a meat tenderizer. Who would buy one of these things for their kitchen? It’s a hammer. (Well, a hammer on one side, and a spiked weapon on the other. Speaking of which, side note, have any of you ever used the spikey side? Neither have I. Anyway…)

It gets me wondering. Wondering about the things we have in our house.

Want kitchen thoughts? Do you have a mandoline? How about a salad spinner? A potato ricer?

We’ve got all of them around here. Although, right now, I know exactly where the meat tenderizer is. And that’s the only one I know with confidence. The mandoline, spinner and ricer I could probably find if you gave me a few minutes to look around. I would not find each of them in the first cabinet I checked.

All of them seemed like something we needed though. I remember when we bought them, and I can still recall believing we would be using each of them all the time. (Yeah. Not so much.)

Terry and I have bought two deck boxes in our time together. I hated both of them. I strongly opposed buying both of them. I said we’d never use them and they would be a waste of money. Terry really wanted them and said they’d solve a few storage problems. So… we compromised… bought them and never used them.

I’m not saying that to pick on Terry. Really. Trust me, the list of stupid suggestions I’ve made over the years is far longer (and much dumber) than hers. She wins most arguments because she’s right. Simple as that. But, if you went into our back yard right now, you’d find a deck box out there. It’s been there for two summers. Grass that had been there is gone underneath it. It’s completely empty.

A couple of years ago, Terry decided she was going to reorganize our living room. She came across a recliner, figured I’d like it, and surprised me with it. I like it. Comfortable. Nice. I use it all the time. When it arrived, she was showing me all of the hidden compartments and such, which mainly centered on armrests that could be lifted to reveal cup holders and a bit of storage. To this day, and I sit in that chair just about every day, I have never lifted either armrest and placed a beverage in the cup holder. I have never stored anything in there.

How often do you turn on the lamps on your nightstand? Do you? I used to all the time. Loved reading before falling asleep. To be honest, right now I couldn’t tell you if the lamp on my nightstand is plugged in. It’s even possible that years ago Terry could have stolen the light in it to replace one that burned out, meant to get another one for it, hasn’t, and there it sits without a bulb. I mean that. Bulb gone for years and I haven’t noticed.

I think the common element in all of it though is good intentions. They truly were all bought with the best of intentions. They were all approached with a simple thought: “Oh yeah, that’s going to be great. I could use that.” And then, I don’t. (At least not nearly as often as I expected.)

My garage right now is filled with cardboard boxes.

Well, that’s an exaggeration. It’s not filled with them. But I’d wager there are at least a dozen, and probably closer to two or more dozen, empty cardboard boxes out there. I’m not using them. Chances are good I won’t use most of them. But for each one, when I emptied the contents that had been brought home or delivered or whatever, I made a mental note that it sure seemed like a good box. Felt sturdy. Quality. Undamaged. And there sure seemed a good chance I was going to need just that box at some point in the future. So, I saved it… and them… all of them… in the garage.

Now I need to clean the garage, and probably in stages to be able to get all the cardboard into the weekly recycling pickups.

Here’s the kicker though. And it’s probably something you know all too well in your own experiences. If I ever dared to break down a cardboard box, perhaps even toss it in with the recycling and get rid of it… yeah, because of course… then I’d need it. We keep them, buy them and store them not because we use them, but because we fear what would happen if we ever did need them and didn’t have them.

I have to admit, the mandoline and the ricer are amazing when I do remember them and use them. Love them. Glad I have them. (I’m still not sold on the deck box. But before she asks me to clean the garage, I need to pick my battles.)