Today’s box is not actually a box: It’s one of several animal carriers that we have in the garage so that our cats can travel in comfort to and from the veterinarians’ office. (We also use a small animal carrier for birds that bonk into a window and need time to recuperate; roughly half of them actually do recuperate. One actually got out of the carrier and flew throughout the house, which caused consternation among the cats. But I digress.)
Box 33: Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023
CONTENTS: Today’s, um, box includes empty photo albums, a teddy bear wrapped in plastic like the body of Laura Palmer in “Twin Peaks,” a selection of dried rose pedals that still emit a pleasant aroma, three craft books offering tips and starter supplies for learning calligraphy and making glitter cards and friendship bracelets, a baking pan for making doughnuts, and the box that at one time contained the five CDs in an outstanding Ray Charles set (it’s so complete it includes an ad for Olympia beer, which perhaps is the only track in the set in which Ray does not sound completely sincere).
DISPOSITION: We’ll donate much of this, including the photo albums, the doughnut pan and the craft books. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the rose pedals show up in some kind of potpourri, but I won’t ask questions. The Master Recycler tells me she’ll hang onto the box because it will be good for gift-giving. All I can say about that is the person who receives that gift box likely will be disappointed that it doesn’t actually contain Ray Charles CDs. The animal carrier will return to the garage, because you never know when a bird will bonk.
Once you have emptied it, you could keep all your rejection letters from your submissions? Sorry, it’s not big enough for mine.