Parkinson's law is the adage that "work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion". It is sometimes applied to the growth of bureaucracy in an organization.
Author: C. Northcote Parkinson
A worthy compliment to this adage would be "Stuff expands to fill all available space." Perhaps it should also say "and then some" witness all the storage rental spaces that abound! Buy a large house and soon it is full. When Joanne and I were downsizing for our move into a condo we were given sage advice. "Examine an un-needed object, recall the memories connected to the object, then decided 'do we need the object to retain the memories' if the answer is 'no' dispose of the object." Full disclosure requires that I confess that possession of The Little House allowed us to cheat a bit on disposal.
Yes, indeed stuff abounds as attested by this poem.
The Things
by Donald Hall
When I walk in my house I see pictures,
bought long ago, framed and hanging
— de Kooning, Arp, Laurencin, Henry Moore —
that I've cherished and stared at for years,
yet my eyes keep returning to the masters
of the trivial — a white stone perfectly round,
tiny lead models of baseball players, a cowbell,
a broken great-grandmother's rocker,
a dead dog's toy — valueless, unforgettable
detritus that my children will throw away
as I did my mother's souvenirs of trips
with my dead father. Kodaks of kittens,
and bundles of cards from her mother Kate.
by Donald Hall
When I walk in my house I see pictures,
bought long ago, framed and hanging
— de Kooning, Arp, Laurencin, Henry Moore —
that I've cherished and stared at for years,
yet my eyes keep returning to the masters
of the trivial — a white stone perfectly round,
tiny lead models of baseball players, a cowbell,
a broken great-grandmother's rocker,
a dead dog's toy — valueless, unforgettable
detritus that my children will throw away
as I did my mother's souvenirs of trips
with my dead father. Kodaks of kittens,
and bundles of cards from her mother Kate.
Takk for alt
Al
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