I think we all heard about the NASA studies about pollution, but nuclear radiation. That I find is really something special. I don't know if sans is all along or is only one in a large group of plants. Any throughts?? Also Greg, He is a link to a lot of different sans. http://www.f-lohmueller.de/botany/gen/s/Sansevieria.htm click on the name and it gives details.

Lulie, It is a wonderful idea of taping things...my heart goes out to you...it is wonderful news that you will have a grandaughter to be in Christin's room....she knows and will always be with you as you wait for your "blessing". It will soon be a year...and we have not gone thur Mom's things....my sister and I waited for Dad to tell us it was time. We are moving...Dad will go with us...he said it is time to go thur things....Mom would want someone to have her clothes....for the last year she wore gowns and housecoats....my niece knows of a lady that lost everything in a fire..so we will give her some of mothers things. Also the nursing home will take for those that do not have much. It will so hard to go thur Mom's treasures....my sister and I are going to get 6 boxes....for her 6 grandaughters and each will get some of her treasures....Mom loved to wear scarves and pins...they each want one of each....Mom knew that something was happening with her...she had gone thur things and had marked who have given them to her....so we will be giving them back. After Mom died I would go to her closet and I would just want to smell her clothes....that smell is gone. It will be hard but the one thing that will help...is I know Mom would want others to enjoy her treasures. God Bless each of you. Nora

I remember when jeans were comfortable and not cut and worn like an over stuffed tow sack. Having searched the back corners of my closet, I have three pairs of jeans (one pair basic denim, one black skinny, one brown) that fit like a glove. At the same time, I just ditched several pair that were not comfortable. Comfortable jeans are available, but they're not all that easy to find. Have you heard of the concept of having a "personal uniform"? Eh, I've read about that, but I can't quite get into that idea. I have so much to say and to discuss on this topic that I have to restrain myself to not even get started. No, don't restrain yourself -- get started! I'm into this topic right now. Paring it down.....life is fuller with less to get in the way and we really need much less than we think we do. Oh, my -- I already see it, and my closet is still very much a work in progress! I read stories about people saying, "I have so much more now that I have less" -- yes, I get it. Is it weird that a couple times I've gone into my closet just to look at my smaller wardrobe? And, as I said, I'm not done-done. I've already thought of a few things and said, "I really could've let that go." Several thoughts -- I'm open to comments on these choices -- I don't feel solid on all of them: - I found a whole box of dresses that now fit again. I'd forgotten that box. I got rid of a few of them, but now I have more dresses than I really "need", especially since we just found out that we're not going back to school in person next month. So I have too many dresses, but they're ALL things I really, really like. - I found some weird weak points in my closet; for example, I discovered that I had three black dresses. (And I don't really wear black - not as a main color!) Still, I kept two of them. Both fit perfectly and look great on me. One is very simple, classic and perfect for funerals -- is that practical or morbid? I don't love it, but it is practical to keep it; I'm wishy-washy on this one. The other is a dressy-dress, which won't get much use, but it's classic, I have perfect accessories for it, and my husband is insane for it. I really kept it for him. - I kept three dressy-dresses that I know won't get much use, but we intend to increase our cruise vacations after we retire, and we all have an occasional dress-up occasion. One dress is the aforementioned black dress that my husband loves, and the other two are lovely colors /lots of lace /very "me". - I am a little upset over a pair of dark brown slacks and a red/brown blouse that I absolutely adore. Why am I upset over them? They match absolutely nothing but each other. This is not a practical choice, and this closet purging project is all about practicality. This is not an outfit I'd wear in retirement, so I've told myself I'll keep this outfit until I retire (a decision which is less practical now that I know we're not going back to school this fall). - I gave away a bunch of things that I couldn't wear because I didn't own "the complete outfit". For example, I had two pair of brown tights -- but zero dresses with which I could wear brown tights. And I found a peach sweatshirt in a style that I love, but the color isn't good on me. This list goes on. This is what happens when you buy things off the clearance table just because they're cheap. - On the other side of that coin, I kept some things I can't wear because I don't own "the complete outfit" ... BUT, with a smaller amount of clothes, I have been able to make a small list of things I need to buy to make those things "work". For example, I really want a pair of shorty black boots to go with my black skinny jeans, and I have a great pink tunic that I'd wear on weekends ... if I pick up a pair of tights to match. - Around the house on weekends (in winter) I love to wear thin sweatshirts and comfortable tights. And I found that I have four thin sweatshirts in good repair that fit well -- not a bad number -- but two of them are black, and I, as I said, I don't wear black! Why did I buy these? What was I thinking? I'm keeping the non-preferred colors for now, but when I find colors that I like better, I'll give away the black sweatshirts. - I have a white cardigan that I wear to work constantly in the spring (I have several dresses that work well with it), but it's on its way to worn out. I found another white cardigan I'd forgotten! Jackpot! - After going through ALL the drawers and the back of the closet, I found that I own two swimsuits that actually fit (this is a weak spot in my wardrobe /not enough for our lifestyle) ... but even after giving away the two black cover ups and the ones with no pockets, I still have EIGHT cover-ups. I see myself wearing these more often in retirement, so I kept them all. Eight cover ups. Have I thrown practicality out the window? - My workout clothes seem to be "just right". Ditto for nightgowns. Issues include, but at not limited to, the effects of over consumption, creation of massive landfills, pollution, misplaced priorities, ill spent resources, and having nothing to wear. Guilty of all. Last year when we ripped out our leaky shower, we drove the tile and other garbage to the dump ourselves. It was an eye opener to see the waste-waste-waste-waste-waste from just our little corner of the world. Not long after I went to a teacher workshop that included touring the Recycling Plant and the Dump. Another eye opener. I have genuinely changed some of my behavior since those two events -- and I'm preaching it to other people. I sew, too. I can sew, but I don't enjoy it. Mainly I just hem (all people my height have to be able to hem) and repair. In this time of covid not many of us are shopping in a department store. Yes, and I don't think that's bad for me right now. With no back-to-school for me, and with retirement coming up soon, I don't need to buy a lot. I am trying to get those couple things that I need to "complete" outfits, but I'm not actively adding to my wardrobe now. I predict that the second hand clothing market is going to explode because the venues and the supply routes for so much of this stuff have been strangled by the virus. Add to that, with time on their hands, a lot of people are cleaning out closets. I have noted that our neighborhood is putting out more stuff on garbage day. I always hoped that cheap and awful stuff would come to an end. Eh, we're inundated with advertising, and buy-buy-buy is a part of our culture. Have you ever watched Marie Kondo's show? I don't have anything like what some of those people have! I know that a few celebrities and internet bloggers had already declared that they were through buying landfill clothing before the pandemic. That is going to be an easier pledge to make, and keep, now. Yes, we had a conversation at lunch (pre-Covid) at work, and someone said that Jane Fonda had taken a pledge never to buy another piece of clothing for the rest of her life. We were all intrigued by the idea that she had "enough" to last the rest of her life. We also wondered whether that meant she intends never to buy things like socks, underwear and nightgowns again -- those things wear out -- or whether she just meant "real clothes". Shoes are even worse - I have very wide feet, so it's hard to find good shoes that fit well. Everyone has some type of shoe problem. Mine is that I wear THE MOST COMMON size, so they disappear immediately! I never wait for things to go on sale -- if I see shoes I like, I buy them right away. Otherwise, I don't have a chance. I'm relatively happy with my shoes. About five years ago I developed a nasty case of Plantar Fascitis, and I had to get rid of a bunch of shoes that no longer worked for me. My two adult daughters were thrilled -- we all wear the same size. My loss was their gain. I wear a pair of hiking boots to work most days, and they are over 2 years old I've gotcha beat on that one: I have the best pair of hiking boots. I bought them at a yard sale for $2 more than a decade ago. I don't wear them to work, but we do hike fairly often. I am less successful at getting my DH to purge old/never worn/worn out clothes. Same. My husband, for example, has about 25 pairs of shorts. And several suits that no longer fit. But he won't part with a thing. Thanks for the discussion, y'all.

To get pants that fit me the way I want, I make them myself, although I haven't bothered to do that lately, as I am less concerned with fit these days. Around 1992 I made some jeans-like pants out of some black and white cow print fabric that fit me very well. I did not put rear pockets on them because I never put anything in those pockets, but of course I did put front pockets on them. I still have them, but they don't fit anymore 😞. The only "pants" I'm making these days are swim trunks. I will say that I may have gotten too much attention when I wore my cow print pants. Judy Tenuta pulled me on stage with her to ridicule me when I went to see her at an AIDS benefit at the PDC in West Hollywood. I was also wearing a Cuban/Brazilian style white shirt with ruffled sleeves, a clear plastic vest, and red Doc Marten shoes, which I still have. She told the audience that I looked like I was ready to spawn, but I think that is one of her stock lines. Later, people in the PDC thought that I had been in the Cabana Boy skit (before Judy came on) and told me that they liked my act. Kevin likes pants that have a certain percentage of Lycra, but I've not worn pants like that. I've never liked skinny leg jeans - they look especially bad on people who have large hips or butts, as they make that part of the body look even bigger and more out of proportion IMO. And if someone is very small, they make them look even smaller and twiggy. Martha Teichner is a good example of why yoga pants or tights should not be worn as street clothes, and most certainly not on a news show. Of course she makes them look worse than anyone else I've seen.