• a zylophone and its striker. this brings up precious memories, but the thing itself is not important.
• a bag of plastic knives. where are the forks?
• a stack of plastic cups. no keggers here.

• a mug. beloved, and one of a pair. seems cruel to separate them, but then there is the chip.
• several batteries. apparently they lose their juice simply sitting on a shelf. slackers.

• a plastic checkbook cover. does anyone use these anymore?
• a plastic knife. that used to be attached to a plastic knife and plastic fork.
• a plastic cup. long unused.
• a plastic ruler. ditto.
• a giant plastic bag. a curse on plastic!

• a grater with a handle. less handy than anticipated.
• a glass lid. i almost remember what this used to cover.
• a plastic lid. i remember the bowl it once covered, but not its fate.
• a truly terrible strainer. life will be more beautiful without this in it.
• a truly terrible plastic cup. life will be more elegant without this in it.

• two vent elbows. just the kind of thing you might find a use for two weeks after throwing it away. or not.
• a mug. just a hairline crack, but we know where this is leading.
• a pair of gardening gloves. too small, very stiff. they might encourage you to rethink weeding altogether.
• the lid to a candle. i don't get it either.

• three aluminum cups. for gina.
• one small piece of art. no place for it.
• a sheet of address labels. there will always be too many.
• seven single socks. i feel sure the pairs will suddenly appear.

• one hinge. what good is one hinge?
• one bar of hotel soap. only save the ones that smell good.
• one tiny plastic fork. from a fabulous kid's picnic set, long gone.
• one travel mug. i drink coffee at home.
• eight champagne corks and two not-cork corks. none are suitable for cork board building.

• a tube of sunscreen. way past it's usefulness date.
• one more green plastic cup.
• another lovely picture by a child. awkward shape to store.
• a tube of some sort of cosmetic. unloved
• another pair of socks. much loved, but with holes.

• five plastic cups. death to plastic cups!
• a dress-up dress. sorry, amy - already spoken for.
• neon pink platform shoes. for oscar.
• a poster. trashed.

• a plastic syringe. we prefer salami as a medication delivery device.
• a thin black webbing strap. hmmm.
• a small heart ornament. for a tree? a present?
• a necklace. i will never wear it.
• an ipod charging cord. we must have at least four.
• four plastic cups. inadvertently stolen from the bowling alley. oops.