Garage of Shame (or, How I Spent My Birthday)

Today is my 39th birthday, and how did I spend it? Cleaning out the Garage of Shame.


Don't get me wrong. I chose to do this. I've been meaning to clean this thing out for five years, and I finally had the chance. It turned out to be a strangely appropriate way to spend the day. As I sifted through the many boxes stacked along the back wall, it was like going through layers of my life.

I found my diary from sixth grade. My old basketball photos and trophies. Photographs of my high school friends, then college. Sketches from my college art classes, which are surprisingly good. (I started out with a minor in art before deciding it was too impractical. So now I write for a living.)

The photos slowed me down, and there was no way I could throw a single one away. Photos of spring break ski trips. Jerod's trip to Amsterdam. Our New Hampshire years and all the backpacking.

Here are a couple of my favorites. This was so typical of our weekends in New Hampshire. Jerod and I just took off into the mountains and camped. That was about 10 years ago, I think - we were probably 27 or 28 years old. Here he is staring into the fire...

And here are our friends Jason and Trish, somewhere on top of a mountain in Vermont. We hung out together a lot - backpacking, hiking, going out to dinner. Trish was also one of my running buddies, although she kicked my butt every time. Those were great years. Trish and Jason are still up there, hiking and skiing and snowboarding - now with their two athletic kids.


Back in the garage, I also found a ton of my old newspaper clips, along with some thank-you notes from people I had written about. Those mementos brought back worlds of memories.

So you see, it was fitting to take a little trip back in time on this day, the beginning of the last year of my thirties. It reminded me of some important things we used to do for fun, and it led to a decision: This is the summer for camping with the boys. As crazy as that sounds, I think it is time.

Here are some other things we've been up to:


Play-Doh with the neighbors on a spring-like day



This is what my living room looks like lately.



Here's Miss Angie giving Parker a haircut. (That's me in the background with my iPhone).

A trip to the zoo yesterday...

Sawyer fed a donkey at the petting zoo...


And here's a shot from a week or so ago, before the snow melted. Our friend Mathias came to play, and Parker and Mathias practiced slaying dragons in the bushes.

P.S. I did make progress on the garage. It's now only kind of shameful. I'll post the after pics as soon as we organize a little more.

Also, Jerod came home early bearing a birthday dinner and a gift certificate for some new running shoes. Which reminds me that I'm meeting my neighbor/running buddy at 5:15 a.m., and I'm up way too late.

Thanks for reading. Good night!