The General and I resumed our roles as temporary caretakers for Samson and Charlotte, the two labs belonging to our daughter and son-in-law, on Friday. Andrea and Kevin are out of town for a four-day holiday weekend. As is generally the case, the labs were pleased to see us.
While it is true that Samson and Charlotte were pleased to see me, it is equally true that they were a lot more pleased to see the General. She works her magic with the grand-dogs with an assortment of treats and the level of attention she provides them. She also talks "baby talk" to them. It makes me a little crazy.
Being back in the Dripping Springs neighborhood makes this an ideal time for us to remove a few remaining items from the temporary housing location we called home for a 21-month period.
It begs the question of what we will do with the croquet set that belonged to the General's family. It is currently in the garage of the home we vacated.
When the croquet set was gifted to us by the General's mother years ago, the General was adamant that it be placed on our sun-porch. It didn't seem terribly out of place there, and we had outdoor spaces where we could have played croquet. However, we didn't.
The croquet set was simply a trigger for her of memories from her childhood. I surmise that the croquet set wasn't used often because it is mostly in like new condition, with the exception of one mallet that is broken.
Did I mention that we have no possible place to play croquet at our new home? That begs the question of why we need to hang on to it? Other than referencing the question in my blog, I doubt that I will mention it again.
In a self-protective kind of way, it figuratively is not a hill I'm willing to die on. I learned a long time ago to pick my battles. If push comes to shove, the croquet set can be added to the assortment of things that have made their way to our walk-in attic storage.
Our family also had a croquet set. Our neighborhood played on Mr. Voss's lawn. His home was setback from the street and his lush lawn was an idea location. Mr. Voss lived directly across the street from our home.
Of course, we played there with Mr. Voss's permission. Actually, truth-be-told, the adults in the neighborhood played croquet more than the kids.
For that matter, my maternal grandfather and his cronies, composed of other retired men, played croquet at their home in Ringgold. The croquet field was fenced next door to their home.
As kids, we weren't allowed to play there. At least, I don't remember that we did. Some men play poker. Grandpa didn't. He played croquet.
In the late 1950s, croquet wasn't an uncommon pastime for many. In 2023, it seems like a game lost to the annals of history. I'm not particularly overjoyed that we have a croquet set, but "it is what it is".
I am not a gambler, but I will bet the "dollars to donuts" that we don't get rid of the croquet set. I am also equally certain that we will never use it.
All My Best!
Don
No comments:
Post a Comment