It’s true, my devoted “365 Boxes” followers: I failed to post yesterday. To be fair, I never said I would post every day — but part of the idea behind the project is that daily posting would force me to get into the garage every day to confront yet another shameful piece of the clutter. So how about if I prepare a double edition of “365 Boxes” to catch up?

Box 43: Sunday (ahem), Feb. 12, 2023

CONTENTS: What we have here are shoes, mostly running shoes that accumulate as I retire each pair around the 500-mile mark. After decades of running, I have many pairs of mostly Nike Pegasus shoes — a longtime favorite of mine for thousands and thousands of (slow) miles until you couldn’t get them anymore at my favorite local store. So now I run in a pair of New Balance shoes — or that is, I will run in my New Balance shoes after my hernia surgery. (The hernia is, as far as I know, not related to the “365 Boxes” project.) But perhaps I digress.

DISPOSITION: Five Star Shoes in Corvallis operates a program in which it recycles running shoes. (I beg you, however, not to take undue advantage of the program –a few pairs at a time, please. Also, buy something when you’re there — it’s a terrific store.) Some of you may have noticed those green Gaia Movement boxes around town, complete with signage that says you can drop off used shoes and clothing for reuse. You can make up your own mind about that, but you should know that the watchdog organization Charity Watch is not a fan of Gaia.

Box 44: Monday, Feb. 13, 2023

CONTENTS: My mother taught piano for many years, and accumulated many pieces of sheet music and books of music. When we cleaned out my parents’ house, we tossed out a lot of music that was not in the best shape — but Diane (yes, the Master Recycler) gathered up for safekeeping dozens of the pieces, including the orchestral score for “Amahl and the Night Visitors” and dozens of well-known and not-so-well-known tunes from the 1950s and earlier, including “Laura,” “Stardust,” “Begin the Beguine,” “You Make Me Feel So Young,” among others.

DISPOSITION: As I sit here, the Master Recycler is sitting directly to my right, going through the music. It is becoming increasingly clear that we’re not throwing any of this away. We’ll put this in a better box and store it in a secure place in the garage — unless you know of someone who could really use this music, along with a poster in which Uncle Sam says “I want you to practice every day.” But they’ll have to go through the Master Recycler to claim it.