Although I would never consider myself a collector (Tree would consider this denial), I go through phases when I collect things. There was a time, in 2005, when I collected coat trees. Not a lot, just enough for my coats, and I have a lot of coats. After that phase I collected lamps. I really didn’t see it as collecting, rather, a positive way to ‘light up my life’ while providing a tribute to Debbie Boone.
As you know, if you are a regular reader, which you may not be because ‘followers’ are not something I collect, I recently purchased a large chaise lounge. I thought it would be great in my basement, however, I can’t get it through the stairway opening. I probably could if I was missing a step or two, which 12 steppers probably think is the case with me anyway; Tree definitely does, especially after I sent him a picture of my front room that featured wall-to-wall couches. “You’ve got a problem. I never thought I would say this, to anyone, but you are a couch collector,” he told me. “I don’t think so,” I replied while trying to decide on which couch I would sit. “You’re missing the first step: admitting you are powerless over this problem. Denial girl,” he replied.
Later, while sitting on my couches, I decided to review the steps, both of them – those going down into my basement and those related to addiction. I really only felt comfortable with the eighth step, but only half of it, and then I realized I read it wrong. “Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.” I agreed with the first half when I thought it read, “Made a list of all persons who have harmed us.” Once I read it write, I didn’t agree with any of it. There is one word of the 12th step that works for me, “awakening.” Having this many couches provides me with plenty of places to sleep, thus, plenty of places for awakening.