In my pocket
As I wander round the house, I often find things in odd places. I usually put them in my pocket, thinking I’ll put them away where they belong, wherever that may be. Frequently, things remain in my pocket for quite a while, especially if the garment is not worn for a few days. The next time I wear it I am surprised all over again by the contents.
The finger puppet above is the sole survivor of a set of five. I’ve always liked puppets, although I’m not very adept at manipulating string puppets. Hand and finger puppets are fun for children.
We have many, many steel tape measures. A few years ago, I became so irritated by their propensity for disappearing that I bought half a dozen in bright colours and assorted sizes – 3m, 5m, 8m, 10m – and the problem was alleviated to some extent.
Button tins have a fond place in my memory. As a small child I played with my mother’s button tin, handling, sorting, grouping. Some of the buttons in my own tin came from my long-ago coats or dresses or from my children’s garments.
The collection varies from week to week.
What's in your pocket, if you have one?
The finger puppet is so cute! I have pockets...but my pockets are always on tops that I wear (of my jeans), and so just things I need when I go out such as keys, change, etc. are in those pockets. Once I get home and remove my outdoor clothing, I empty my pockets immediately. Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteEmptying pickets immediately is the correct and sensible thing to do - it's about time I learnt that!
DeleteMy pockets only hold my door key and building fob, and a tiny container of hand sanitiser. I don't like bulges in pockets.
ReplyDeleteHow sensible to carry hand sanitiser - what a careful man you are.
DeleteMy pocket usually has my phone and maybe glasses. Tissues. That's about it.
ReplyDeleteMinimalist . . . 😉
DeleteI am a stickler for putting things back where they belong. Carlos, on the other hand, is always misplacing things and hates it when I say, "If you put it back where it belongs, it's be there."
ReplyDeleteBut it's true.
You're absolutely right, Bob, but it's an uneven struggle, and I've mostly given up after 50-odd years of repeating, 'A place for everything and everything in its place.'
DeleteA fencing staple, some 4" galvanized nails, dog treats, a carpenter's pencil, and some plastic rubbish I meant to put in a bin. I know exactly what you mean about tape measures developing legs and wanderlust. I kept three in a kitchen draw with same intent - one came out of a zmas cracker (a key ring ornament but it worked) . One of the other two was too tinny to be pocketed by Mr Man and the third was attached to the drawer by very strong (imaginery) elastic😀
ReplyDeleteSomehow, the contents of your pocket don't surprise me!
DeleteI begin to doubt my sanity when things go astray - and then I finally realise all sanity departed long ago.
Sometimes I’ll need to take a Tylenol so I get 2 of them, place in my pocket because my water is in another room and then I forget they’re in the pocket until I wash and find mushy pills in the pocket. I guess I didn’t really need it after all.
ReplyDeleteYou have a suitably calm washing machine now! 😂🤣
DeleteI seem to find bits of sticks and leaves in my pockets. Sometimes small rocks. And tissues which all too often find their way into the washing machine. Not a very exciting collection.
ReplyDeleteIt is so irritating when tissues creep into the washing machine and spread their blessings all over the laundry, especially the dark garments.
DeleteI rarely put random things in my pockets, just tissues and hankies which I use to filter my breathing when passing mouldy gardens or when people get on the bus reeking of something I am allergic too, like patchouli, or smoke saturated clothing.
ReplyDeleteSome perfumes are overwhelming. I remember when 'Poison' was the perfume of the moment - it was awful on my daughters, but perfectly pleasant on my daughter-in-law.
DeleteIf I put things in my pocket they'd stay there alas and end up in the washing machine. But we have a very small house, and buttons, baubles and such are deposited in a big glass bowl (the door of an old washing machine) in the middle room. Eventually that is emptied and things returned to their right places.
ReplyDeleteBut most things are put immediately back where they belong.
The big glass bowl sounds perfect, but putting things away immediately sounds so much better.
DeleteWhat interesting pocketses. Mine only have paper tissues. Very boring compared to yours.
ReplyDeleteYours sound sensible!
DeleteMy pockets are too small for anything but a hankie.
ReplyDeleteI also have a button tin. It is a hinged, gold coloured, large biscuit tin that I have had for around 30 years. It is currently overflowing with buttons of all shapes, sizes and colours, some of which I inherited from my mother in law.
Button tins are wonderful, a real treasure trove of memories.
DeleteI love a button tin, mum's neighbour had two huge dishes full of buttons, a true place to lose yourself. I tend to pop stuff in a wooden bowl, when it's full I pop items back to where they should be.
ReplyDeleteI suppose these days children don't play with buttons. Such a shame.
DeleteEach forgotten object tells a story, like your trusty tape measures and that lone finger puppet quietly marking their place in your daily life
ReplyDeleteAs you may have realised, I relish things that spark memories. 😊
DeleteI'm enjoying seeing the items that you end up with in your pocket sometimes. I guess I have to say that most of the things I find in the house since it's a small house, mostly end up in the kitchen junk drawer. And then when I empty it out once a year I'm amazed at all the goodies I find.
ReplyDeleteIt's an annual journey of discovery and delight for you. 😊
DeleteYou've had quite an assortment of items in your pocket. I don't always have pockets and I will pile things up that need to go to another room. I've discovered that the piles sit far too long waiting for me to take care of them though.
ReplyDeleteThere's always, 'I'll do it later' to fall back on! 😂
DeleteYou appear to have very deep pockets, so to speak. My pockets are usually bare except perhaps for tissues. When I go out, I fill them with wallet, keys, phone and so on, but I empty those pockets as soon as I get home. In fact, I take those pants off.
ReplyDelete'Deep pockets and short arms' is an insult aimed at some people!
DeleteHi Janice - earrings and watch as I've taken them off in the wrong room ... usually mop-rags/tissues ... but then I only have me around! I used to love odds and ends as a kid - cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteAt least you only have yourself to blame if things go missing . . . 😂🤣
ReplyDeleteThe rather unromantic answer to your question, in my case, is - usually, a scrumpled up tissue and a couple of dog biscuits!
ReplyDeleteI love a button tin too, hoarders paradise 😀
Alison in Devon x
Dog biscuits leave so many crumbs behind😊
DeleteIt's interesting where things often turn up! I can relate to the tape measurer saga. I am often surprised when I find an item in a drawer that is so foreign that I can't imagine who put it there and why. It's probably like the pocket- a quick way to pick it up and find a quick place for it with intentions to move it later.
ReplyDeleteSometimes a swift tidy before visitors arrive means things end up in the wrong place.
DeleteI empty my pockets daily, if not multiple times a day, so things don't tend to accumulate. Usually it's phone and wallet (with only a debit card and a tube card in it) in my left pocket and my house keys in my right. What to do with my glasses is always a conundrum!
ReplyDeleteGlasses are a pain. I often find myself wearing them all day long when I don't really need to.
DeleteFun things in your pocket. I don't keep things in my pocket, more my purse
ReplyDeleteI only take a bag (purse) with me if I go out for the day. 😁
DeleteYour memory of playing with your mother's button tin brought a smile of recollections to my lips. I thought I was the only one who ever did that!
ReplyDeleteIt always felt like a privilege to be allowed to play with the buttons.
ReplyDeleteAround the house I just have my phone in a back pocket. If I leave to take a walk I will put my keys and a tube of lip balm in a front pocket.
ReplyDeleteMy phone is always on the charger. I put it in my pocket when I take the dogs out, or in a bag (purse) if I go out for the day.
Deletebutton tins are something that I believe intrigues a good many of us. I love to go to the antique shops and I see so many people who stop and admire the button jars and tins. My pockets seem to fill up as well... Thank goodness for pockets.
ReplyDeletePockets are useful!
DeleteInteresting collection! If I had all those things in my pockets I fear they would be at knee-level :) The most I ever have in a pocket is a tissue and I try to avoid even that, as I am prone to forgetting them and then they go through the wash.
ReplyDeleteI love buttons, and have numerous tins and bins of them. I was given several collections including a very large one years ago. I craft with them and sometimes even use them for their intended purpose, although it's harder than you'd think to find a match for a missing button or have the right number of the right size of the right colour and the right style to replace all the buttons on a garment. But I have had countless hours of enjoyment sorting them - it's a kind of zen activity for me.
I know what you mean about never having the right number of buttons - so annoying. I love buttons - the colours, the textures.
DeleteIf there's anything at all in my pocket, it might be a hankie or, if pushed, a lost button. What a collection of stuff you've got in yours! xxx
ReplyDeleteI know - shocking! 🤣😂
DeleteI love that. The only thing in my pocket is my phone and camera unless I find something interesting outside.
ReplyDeleteI find it too easy to stuff my pockets! I should sew them up, really. 😉
DeleteThe finger pocket is so cute! In my pockets right now are my phone, some tissues, and some change. But I've done similar things - picked things up and put them in my pocket. Some change and minor odds and ends have ended up in the laundry.
ReplyDeleteThe coins emerge remarkably clean and shiny, if they haven't gummed up the works!
DeleteSorry to be boring but it's just a tissue in my pocket!
ReplyDeleteButton tins also have a fond place in my memory.
I too as a small child used to play with my mother’s button tin, handling, sorting, grouping... such fun.
All the best Jan
Childhood pleasures were simpler and more easily achieved then. Life has become rather sophisticated from an early age.
DeleteWhat a fun post! I usually have a tissue and a mint in my pocket. Sometimes there is an accompanying list and maybe even a lens cap.
ReplyDeleteAh, yes, lens caps - so important, so easily misplaced.
DeleteLiving in a flat I don't have all that much space to wander, and I don't always wear clothes with pockets either. I have a number of baskets and bowls around the flat where odds and ends tend to end up, though! I,enjoyed your post :)
ReplyDeleteBaskets and bowls are a good idea, attractive as well as useful.
ReplyDelete