We are not pack rats. In our 41 years of marriage, we've moved many times and every time have cleared out and pared down.

Even so, there are still some things you find when you prepare for another major move.

This morning we cleaned out Tom's file cabinet. Tom is a self-employed musician ( see We interrupt this blog) so he needs to keep business records, music files etc. But as we delved into his papers we found the kind of things that make you wonder "What the hey?"

• Like programs for concerts he never went to.
• Letters of rejection from publishers that went belly-up years ago.
• His 3rd place award for a radio ad that he can't remember writing.
• And our daughter's school newsletter from 1991 when she won the local spelling bee.

We could get all sentimental and nostalgic, maybe shed a tear for time's swift passage. Or we could feel guilty for the amount of stuff we will now be adding to our local landfill.

Either way, moving can be...

...bloodcurdling.