Surprise Inside!
Tchotchkes and Other Random, Forgotten Stuff
I have been especially busy since my last post with teaching, writing, getting outside for long walks on the days when spring-like weather shows up, and preparing for a trip. Well, actually, I started writing this post, then I took the trip, and now I am home again, recharged and ready to finally finish this entry! Here goes…
Those of us of a certain age will remember how cereal boxes used to have a “surprise inside.” Who ever thought to mix a plastic toy in with food? Weird, right? But it worked, as a couple generations of children ripped into those boxes to beat a sibling to the prize inside.
Before my vacation, I felt a desperate urge to purge myself of something–anything–to keep this Letting Go/Holding On project moving forward. I decided to go on my own hunt for the "surprise inside."
I descended to my former husband‘s basement and grabbed a few boxes that, judging from their labels, would not signify huge emotional work. I ended up surprised and delighted at some of the contents.
I unpacked a bunch of photos on foam core that were generously made by my late brother-in-law Ed Berger, who was a professional photographer, jazz writer, archivist, and record producer, just for starters. The posters, generally about 15” x 22”, depict people from my hometown, whom we featured in a book called Legendary Locals of Pottstown (Arcadia 2013.)
We had a book launch and spoke at the Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area, and then I displayed the posters around my first classroom at The Hill School in Pottstown, where I had recently begun to teach English.
While some of the people featured in the photos have since passed away or no longer run a business or organization in Pottstown, many of the folks are still there. Or if they have retired, I remain friends with them on social media.
I am looking forward to tracking down these folks or their family members and asking if they would like an enlarged photo of themselves or their loved one as they appeared in the book. It seems like a fitting way to let go of these.
Speaking of the Hill School, another fun find was my Hello Kitty backpack and lunch bag. I thought it would be funny on my “first day of school” as a full-time teacher in 2013 to take a picture outside the Hill School gate with a new backpack and lunch bag. Hello, Kitty was a fun choice! I don’t think I can find that photo, but here are the artifacts.
I also re-discovered a slew of tchotchkes. According to Merriam Webster, “tchotchke” comes from Yiddish and means “trinket” or “bauble.” I think of it as an ancient word, but apparently it was first used only in 1971!
As I unwrapped little thing after little thing, I came upon two crystal paperweights given to me long ago. I don’t remember by whom. I had used these when I had more desk space, something that is at a premium in my current very small office.
I had never really paid attention to who had made them, but when I looked more closely, I saw that the crystal star was made by Rosenthal and the crystal gift box was from Tiffany! Both are considered “vintage” now with asking prices, combined, might net me some cash in the low triple digits. I will look into selling these.
Other random stuff included a ceramic dish in the shape of a flower (maybe?) that I painted at a pottery place back in 2006; I adorned it with punctuation marks and used it for many years to hold paper clips and other odds and ends. Another random thing was a large maraca. Then there was a whiteboard from my basketball coaching days. I assembled this stuff on top of a blue plastic bin in front of my house, and by the time I remembered to take a photo of it an hour later, all the stuff had vanished for the win!
This round of opening boxes, and then poking around in a closet upstairs, also revealed some baseball gloves that I am going to keep, and a couple of good quality sleeping bags that were rarely used. I was going to be looking for a new sleeping bag for a camping adventure this summer, and was delighted to find these other two options, saving me some money. Overall, this round of sorting has the potential to be the most lucrative and cost-saving yet!
