{"id":3554042,"date":"2024-01-05T08:39:43","date_gmt":"2024-01-05T16:39:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mynorthwest.com\/?p=3554042"},"modified":"2024-01-05T09:15:16","modified_gmt":"2024-01-05T17:15:16","slug":"ross-can-you-downsize-standing-next-to-shelves-full-of-memories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mynorthwest.com\/3554042\/ross-can-you-downsize-standing-next-to-shelves-full-of-memories\/","title":{"rendered":"Ross: Can you downsize standing next to shelves full of memories?"},"content":{"rendered":"

I saw an article headlined \u201cHow To Persuade Your Parents To Downsize (It Can Be Done!)<\/a>\u201d and it struck a nerve because I remember when my parents were facing that, and now I\u2019m beginning to hear my own kids say things like “why are you keeping this,” and “why can\u2019t you get rid of that?”<\/p>\n

So, rather than getting all philosophic about it, I\u2019ll give you a little tour of my home office to explain why nothing can be thrown out.<\/p>\n

More from Dave Ross: Tech literate voters are needed to save ferry reservations<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

How can I give away my 1984 Encyclopedia Britannica? Suppose the grandchildren need it. What if the Internet goes dark one day? And what about the little clock in a polished wooden case that KIRO gave me for my 25th work anniversary 20 years ago? The battery is dead, but it\u2019s inscribed, and it\u2019s pretty. I\u2019m keeping it.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a brass gong I bought during a KIRO trip to China in 1984. It makes a cool sound. And hanging from the same bracket are all my old press credentials, including the first Obama credential ever printed. That\u2019s a historic artifact. Feliks Banel<\/a> would instantly subpoena me if I threw that out.<\/p>\n

Here in the corner — these are the portraits of a much younger me that used to hang in the old KIRO building. They\u2019re life-size, and I know they have to go, but who could I trust to give them a good home?<\/p>\n

And then there\u2019s the awards shelf. All very impressive, but they all have my name on them \u2013 who wants a bunch of awards with somebody else\u2019s name?<\/p>\n

Finally, the stuffed animal shelf — it\u2019s a small collection, but it includes this little fuzzy blue duck rattle. This is what was called a \u201cfocus\u201d — I held this up for my wife to focus on in the delivery room while she was giving birth. Apparently, that helps a woman get through the pain, along with chewing the ice.<\/p>\n

And in this file cabinet are mementos of our children going back to their first whooping cough shot and the first things they ever wrote, with many pictures of them from when they were cute.<\/p>\n

We can stop the tour there. I think you see the problem. These are memories! A lot of them are of our children. You\u2019re to blame for this. We\u2019re forever trying to re-live the good times we had with you!<\/p>\n

(Plus, there are the instruction manuals for all the major appliances we\u2019ve ever owned and the actual ball I used for my historic first pitch at a sparsely-attended Mariners game in 2018.)<\/p>\n

The bottom line — as much as we might want to plan ahead to downsize, you kids are probably going to get the house as-is.<\/p>\n

Listen to Seattle\u2019s Morning News with Dave Ross and Colleen O\u2019Brien weekday mornings from 5 \u2013 9 a.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the\u00a0<\/em>podcast here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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