A few months back when I cleaned out the contents of my mom’s car I threw everything into a bag, and postponed making the decision of what to toss and what to keep. Each item I stuffed into that bag told a story, and I knew at some point in time it was a story worth telling.
My mom’s motto which she repeated quite often, “Hope for the sun, but plan for the rain.” Prepared. Always prepared.
There is only ONE time in my life I can remember her NOT being prepared. A few years ago my mom, my daughter and I were cross country skiing up in the mountains. Coming down the hill my daughter fell and when I tried to help her up we both tumbled. One of us landed on my ski causing my binding to break. Stuck out in the middle of nowhere we weren’t sure what to do, but within a few minutes a group of skiers happened to cross our path. Luckily, one of the skiers had duct tape in her coat allowing us to tape up my binding so we could continue on our way. When we cleaned out my mom’s closets a couple months ago we found duct tape in most of her fanny packs and her ski coat pockets.
Back to the contents of my mom’s car: ordinary, impressive, hilarious, questionable. Why in the world does someone need white chalk in their car??
The chalk in combination with the two measuring tape reels and the one plastic blue glove make me wonder if she was an undercover CSI agent. Suppose she came upon a dead body and needed to survey the scene??
The disposable camera must have been necessary to document the crime scene. And if the assailant did happen to come back to the scene she could beat them off with the large wood stick she kept hidden by the driver’s side door.
I seriously doubt the blue glove and wood stick was indicative of my mom having an OJ Simpson persona, but the electrical tape and Swiss army knife make me wonder.
Perhaps the blue glove in combination with the CPR Micro Shield Rescue Breather makes more sense. Maybe she was preparing for the day she witnessed a horrible crash and needed to administer CPR and first aid without getting any blood on her one hand. She did have Band-Aids in her car, but they appeared to be from the 1970’s. Not sure they would be effective or sterile at this point in time.
You know what??? Come to think of it she said she kept the camera in her car in case she was ever in an accident and needed evidence of the accident for insurance purposes. I doubt that would ever happen though. She had three sets of eye glasses stashed in various places of her car. There’s no way she wouldn’t see an approaching vehicle. With the three pairs of eye glasses, two sets of sun glasses and the windshield defogging cloth her visibility had to be 20/20.
My mom’s motto which she repeated quite often, “Hope for the sun, but plan for the rain.” Prepared. Always prepared.
There is only ONE time in my life I can remember her NOT being prepared. A few years ago my mom, my daughter and I were cross country skiing up in the mountains. Coming down the hill my daughter fell and when I tried to help her up we both tumbled. One of us landed on my ski causing my binding to break. Stuck out in the middle of nowhere we weren’t sure what to do, but within a few minutes a group of skiers happened to cross our path. Luckily, one of the skiers had duct tape in her coat allowing us to tape up my binding so we could continue on our way. When we cleaned out my mom’s closets a couple months ago we found duct tape in most of her fanny packs and her ski coat pockets.
Back to the contents of my mom’s car: ordinary, impressive, hilarious, questionable. Why in the world does someone need white chalk in their car??
The chalk in combination with the two measuring tape reels and the one plastic blue glove make me wonder if she was an undercover CSI agent. Suppose she came upon a dead body and needed to survey the scene??
The disposable camera must have been necessary to document the crime scene. And if the assailant did happen to come back to the scene she could beat them off with the large wood stick she kept hidden by the driver’s side door.
I seriously doubt the blue glove and wood stick was indicative of my mom having an OJ Simpson persona, but the electrical tape and Swiss army knife make me wonder.
Perhaps the blue glove in combination with the CPR Micro Shield Rescue Breather makes more sense. Maybe she was preparing for the day she witnessed a horrible crash and needed to administer CPR and first aid without getting any blood on her one hand. She did have Band-Aids in her car, but they appeared to be from the 1970’s. Not sure they would be effective or sterile at this point in time.
You know what??? Come to think of it she said she kept the camera in her car in case she was ever in an accident and needed evidence of the accident for insurance purposes. I doubt that would ever happen though. She had three sets of eye glasses stashed in various places of her car. There’s no way she wouldn’t see an approaching vehicle. With the three pairs of eye glasses, two sets of sun glasses and the windshield defogging cloth her visibility had to be 20/20.
You never know though….her visibility could have been compromised if she was ever stuck in a snow storm. If she was…no worries. She had two ice scrapers, two head warmers, a set of chains and a box of kitty litter. (Kitty litter is used to throw onto the ice if your wheels spin and can’t get traction.) She also had a stash of dog cookies but unlike the kitty litter, the dog cookies were actually used for her granddogs or ANY dog for that matter.
In the rare case the chains and kitty litter did not work to get her unstuck, she had a miniature pillow and two wool blankets to keep her warm. She also had her choice of musical entertainment: Kenny Rogers Love Connections, Dave Brubeck’s Greatest Hits or Tom Petty’s Highway Connection. But if she wasn’t in the mood for music she could always listen to one of her two audio books: Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons or David Baldacci’s First Family.
When the tow truck finally arrived she would definitely look presentable having taken great care to comb her hair and apply Chap Stick while looking in the 5x7 mirror she kept tucked away in the glove compartment.
In the rare case the chains and kitty litter did not work to get her unstuck, she had a miniature pillow and two wool blankets to keep her warm. She also had her choice of musical entertainment: Kenny Rogers Love Connections, Dave Brubeck’s Greatest Hits or Tom Petty’s Highway Connection. But if she wasn’t in the mood for music she could always listen to one of her two audio books: Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons or David Baldacci’s First Family.
When the tow truck finally arrived she would definitely look presentable having taken great care to comb her hair and apply Chap Stick while looking in the 5x7 mirror she kept tucked away in the glove compartment.
 |  |  |
Also in the glove compartment was a handicap permit. Handicap permit??? Please. I have a hard time thinking of her as handicap. Especially when I find a zip lock bag full of of bungee cords, straps and florescent pink ribbon used to harness her bike onto the back of the car. Although if I’m wrong about the cords and straps being used for her bike….I must admit my mind goes back to the OJ Simpson theory.
It truly is amazing she had any room whatsoever left in her glove compartment after finding the EIGHT receipts dating back to 2012 from Brown Bear Car Wash. Did she keep the receipts just in case she was dissatisfied with the Beary Good car wash and wanted to dispute the charge??
It truly is amazing she had any room whatsoever left in her glove compartment after finding the EIGHT receipts dating back to 2012 from Brown Bear Car Wash. Did she keep the receipts just in case she was dissatisfied with the Beary Good car wash and wanted to dispute the charge??
Of course there was all kinds of regular stuff in her car. Stuff that most of us seem to carry with us: coupons for Burger King, pens, phone charger, garage openers, umbrellas, gift cards, registration, insurance cards and a plastic Jesus with broken off feet carrying a baby on his shoulder who is sadly missing his head.
Of all the things I’m throwing away I’m having a hard time giving up Jesus. There has GOT to be a reason she kept this in her car.
Of all the things I’m throwing away I’m having a hard time giving up Jesus. There has GOT to be a reason she kept this in her car.
Our stuff. Their purpose. The story.
What would your car say about you?? Mine would say I was scared of starving. I don’t have blue gloves, bungee cords or kitty litter….but I do have snacks. Lots of them.
What would your car say about you?? Mine would say I was scared of starving. I don’t have blue gloves, bungee cords or kitty litter….but I do have snacks. Lots of them.
RSS Feed