Time to move or embrace Boxing Day

“That's all you need in life, a little place for your stuff. That's all your house is- a place to keep your stuff. If you didn't have so much stuff, you wouldn't need a house. You could just walk around all the time. A house is just a pile of stuff with a cover on it. ... That's what your house is, a place to keep your stuff while you go out and get ... more stuff!”

— George Carlin

I hate it when people are right. I especially hate it when people are right from the grave.

Last week, while enjoying a brief Thanksgiving meal with coworkers, we said the things we were thankful for. I said I was most thankful that I could tell people there wasn’t anything I really needed for Christmas this year. I have all the stuff I need.

I’ve been in the same place for years. It suits me. The neighbors are OK, the landlord helps when things break, and I have peace and quiet when I need it.

But yet, the Carlin monologue continues. “Sometimes you gotta move, gotta get a bigger house. Why? No room for your stuff anymore.” That’s become true with me, as well. I got a new bed and dresser a few weeks ago. It helped because my sock and underwear drawer were overstuffed in my previous dresser, and now that’s not a concern anymore. I even have drawers I don’t know what to do with yet.

But one stuff solution creates another stuff problem. What about my wall stuff? The bed goes higher than my old one, and the dresser has this big mirror. That means less wall space.

I’ve tried to stave off the problem for years. I stopped buying movie posters, and I moved some of the framed photos to the office.

The furniture puts me in a pickle. I either have to:

• Get rid of some of my old posters. The negative is one less conversation piece. A neighbor’s friend was visiting once, and couldn’t help but mention he’d never seen anybody who owned THAT movie poster before. I like having that individuality.

• Get a bigger place. Negatives: It costs a lot more, and I just become more involved in the Carlin monologue. The worst thing about going down a rabbit hole is knowing you’re going down a rabbit hole.

I think I need to start elevating Boxing Day. In most countries, it’s mainly what we call the “after Christmas” sale, but I like the element of the holiday that says to get the stuff you don’t need and put it in a box to donate for the less fortunate.

A friend who grew up in New Zealand said it was a major thing there, with families involved, and she never understood why Americans couldn’t embrace it.

My box is getting prepared. So far, the box only includes the wall mirror my new dresser replaced. By Dec. 26, hopefully it’s full and it’s not the only box.

Anybody looking for a movie poster or two?

Kevin Wilson is managing editor of The Eastern New Mexico News. Contact him at: [email protected]