Penultimate Trip

Winthrop, WA

4.4-4.6.26

Surrounded By Piles

51% Reminiscent 

49% Appraisal 

9:30 PM Easter

    It was a pretty good day. And so far, a good trip. Well, adequate trip. It started out pretty rough. 

   Rewind a month or two back. Someone (Let’s call him Brat) with a financial stake in, well, everything, decided that maintaining an empty condo didn’t make much sense. He asked that (Holly and Wendi) come over to clear out any personal items; especially those items listed specifically in Tina’s will: art, jewelry, personal mementos. 

   Brat’s plan was to do an estate sale, the proceeds of which would be split 4 ways to the recipients in Tina’s will. Finally, get it on the market by late spring. 

  Holly, with an entrepreneurial soul, quickly reasoned out that anything with took away would NOT have to be split 4 ways. 

  Thus commenced “Operation You Sure That’s Nailed Down?” 

  However, with less that 24 hours to go, I messaged Brat asking whether anything taken would come out of their inheritance.     

   He got right back to me with basically a “Well, duh…”He further informed us that we would need someone there at the Condo the whole time. WTF? 

   We needed a moment for a bit of outrage. 

   We all piled on asking for more detailed clarification and he told us that the above three categories were fine. So, we can’t take the couch of refrigerator? Well, that blows our entire Operation!

  Brat further explained that we would have a minder inventory person and it was lawyer “Natasha’s” idea. 

  Whatever, you’re all dicks. 

  In addition to Brat hiring Jay (the Minder), he also told us that he was too busy to open Tina’s two storage lockers. He didn’t know exactly what was in them: he thought one held furniture and the other Xmas decorations. 

   Well, Wendi was there back in 2018; getting a scatter-brained Tina moved from the large Ranch house to a two-room condo. Tina had dithered on packing  for months so everything that was weak was a rush. 

   And she always considered the Condo temporary until she could get her new house built so she needed to save lots of items until that day. (Which never happened.) 

  So, anyway, we’ll need to come back with an another SUV when Brat can find the time. (And the keys; which he claims are lost.) it’ll probably be our August high school reunion. 

  So anyway, Wendi had a 3-tiered shopping list:

Gold Tier

-The two stone lions, which Tina bought on a trip to China

-A pearing  knife.

-Mom’s jewelry; shared with Holly. 

Silver Tier

Stuff that could be sold. Both H&W were upfront about the fate of all the pieces stacked in the center of the table. 

(What goes into the Pawn Plate?)

(Wendi goes nowhere without her jeweler’s loop!)

(Post Script: Holly just sold all the Tier-Silver items for $11,300) 

Then there was the 

Bronze Tier:

  These were items that The Girls didn’t particularly want but really didn’t want sold for $2 at the estate sale that Brat would slap together. 

   This was the largest group of the lot. This is why we had 15? 16? Paintings, a few statues, a zillion quilts, vases of various sizes and a zillion towels to go between all those delicate items. Good thing I rented the biggest possible SUV.

Home now. 

   It was a long trip but we got the rental back before 5:00 so late was a win. 

  On the Return Trip Debrief, we both agreed this process was very draining.

Part of it is just going to Winthrop: the long drive, the sleeping in a different bed, the repeatedly being reminded of The Tina Situation. 

    There was another reason. As we got closer to departure, I kept looking about; mentally trying to fit item after item into the two inches between the top of the boxes and the car’s roof. No dice. 

   I had a similar quandary looking through her collection of coats and sweaters. There were at least 20 in her closet. All stylish and in good condition. There should must have been someone in my life who would appreciate one. 

  Just didn’t want Tina’s favorite alpaca wool sweater to go to some stranger. Someone who didn’t know its story. Yes, the folks at the women’s shelter would really appreciate all the apparel. And only a monumental dick would be against that happening. But..

  But it was hard to let go of so many reminders. Of a healthy Tina. Harold. The Pond. Picnics by the river. Of three decades of Ranch Fun. That leads me to my other issue. 

   After we left Brat started the estate process. It will probably be this month. Anything not sold would be donated to local businesses or charities. 

   Everything must go. That lame-oh tea kettle. That stupid photo of a heard of sheep. All those jugs of “Mosquito Beater”; the most useless product I’ve ever encountered. 

  I have been seeing but mostly not looking at all these artifacts since I was a teenager; more than 40 years. They were just..there. Part of the Ranch Experience; even after the Ranch was sold. 

   And they are now all gone. I will never see any of those wonderful, stupid, handy or useless things again. Never. Another tie to a wonderful time&place gone. 

   The only relics saved for family posterity were the items were could stuff into Holly’s Bronco or our Jeep. 

  So, I went a little nuts.  

  We have spent much of today (Tuesday) inventorying the jewelry and trying to organize all the boxes so they are slightly out of the way. 

   The actual Going Through will be a long process. Weeks. Maybe months. Wendi has already picked out spots for a couple paintings. Not sure what we’ll do with the 73 towels, blankets, and quilts we used to protect the fragile stuff on the drive over. 

  I guess my main message here is that many of you all can expect a lot of wonderful, practical, but possibly stupid gifts in the near future. 

  And then we will all go over again to clear out the storage units this summer. But we also have our reunion to occupy our minds so it might be an easier task. 

  All through this process-this Tina Experience, Holly, Wendi, and I have had only one constant:  our loathing for certain people who made it all so much worse. Spoilers: Brat is mighty high on that list. 

  As one parting well-deserved F-U, we left Dollies’ ashes in the condo garage and will be leaving Aunt Ginnie’s in the storage unit. They weren’t claimed by The Daughters so both containers are officially part of the estate and thus, Brat’s problem.  

(Pause for Applause)

   So, that’s the story of my Spring Break. At least the first half. Lord Willing, the second half shall be too boring to write about. 

Brian

(All the duties of an heir without any of benefits!)