You see here only two of my slide-rules. I had three, but I needed none. I’ve forgotten how to use them.
When I opened a drawer, I noticed that the three were tucked away there and I asked myself what would my heirs do with them? The top slide-rule, from Post, was one that I got when I was taking science and/or math in high school. It has sentimental value, so I’ll keep it. I don’t know where the other two came from. Perhaps I inherited a slid-rule from my father. But the third?
So, I resolved to give two away. I already gave away one to Goodwill before I took a picture of it. Now that I’ve taken a picture of the lower one in the picture, I plan to give it to Goodwill also.
Goodwill has a store and donation center about a mile away from where I live. It’s near a Safeway grocery store, so there’s no hardship in dropping anything off.
I did a lot of downsizing of big things in Kansas City before moving to Phoenix. Some furniture I sent to my sister in Atlanta. I took one large item to Phoenix for my other sister. I donated small things to Catholic Charities. I also threw some things away that I should have also given to Catholic Charities. Among them was a vintage 1950’s Electrolux canister vacuum cleaner in working condition. Unlike today’s vacuums, it had a cloth bag to collect the dirt. In other words, it never required a trip to a store to find a replacement. It was a bit of a messy arrangement to empty it, but the cloth bag feature endeared itself to me.
The other thing that I discarded was a set of four wooden folding chairs that were early acquisitions by my parents. I took them from Chicago to Kansas City, thinking that I might need extra chairs. Really, I already was taking four metal folding chairs that go with a bridge table. I also took those chairs from Chicago to Kansas City and then to Phoenix.
Eight chairs were more than enough. But why did I throw away the vintage chairs? I didn’t actually put them in a dumpster. I left them out in the off chance that some Latinos (or anybody else) would take them. I had noticed some Latinos cruise the neighborhood for such finds. I had seen what looked like families drive around the parking lot in the complex where I lived in Kansas City.
As much as I downsized in Kansas City, my sister and I found some more items, mostly small. For the most part, she offered to take them to Goodwill with some things that she had collected. Since then, I make my own donations.
I now have only four extra chairs instead of eight. I’m actually sitting on one now as I write this post. My computer desk is still occupied by my old Windows 7 desktop computer, and I left the office chair by the desk. In early December, I got a new Windows 11 which I set up temporarily on a patio table that I brought in from outside. I left the office chair by the old computer while I was copying data to port over to the new computer.
I’m now confident that I copied all my data from the old computer to the new one, so it’s time to recycle my old computer and move the new one to the computer desk. In fact, I haven’t even powered up the old computer in a week.
The Windows 7 computer has no sentimental value for me. No need to take a picture of it or of its monitor.
I’m also ready to recycle my Windows 7 laptop. With a smart phone on hand, I don’t need a portable computer to receive or send email or to surf the net. A laptop, though, comes in handy to store and create data. So far, I visited my son in Florida and used the old technology of pen and paper to collect my thoughts and other data.
If someone wants my old PC or laptop, they can come and take them off my hands. Keep in mind, though, that I live in Phoenix, Arizona …
Hot Tea with Sugar 