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author=Gary Allen;

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Text of the page (random words):
potlatch by gary allen in other words in other words subscribe sign in potlatch probably not gary allen may 20 2026 5 1 share you ve no doubt noticed that i haven t posted a substack page lately the reason is that we ve been busy preparing to move to our new forever home we have to clean out all the stuff we ve accumulated in 25 years in this home going through it all is a fascinating kind of triage and an exhausting process the attic especially is a challenge dust and hundred plus temperatures mean working only for short periods followed by multiple hydration breaks which suggests dying from heat prostration would spare me from the rest of the moving process just something to think about moving and down sizing mean we ve made a lot of donations at least twenty cartons of books have found new homes used clothing has gone to goodwill household goods have gone to the salvation army thrift store scrap metal is collected by a neighbor who recycles it for cash friends and relatives have not only helped move this stuff but have taken some of it home with them share the wealth wealth being a tad too grand a term for the kind of stuff i m talking about then there s the dumpster parked in front of our house countless formerly useful or potentially useful items have been heaved in and will continue to be heaved in furniture that might be of use to someone else goes out to the curb with a free sign attached usually these items get picked up within one day the other day i happened to be outside when a young couple was picking up a dresser i told them that it was good that someone else had a use for these things it was all very pleasant the next morning we looked out the window and spotted the back of the dresser with its free sign still attached somehow during the night they had returned it perhaps i said to my wife when they got home they discovered it wouldn t fit later that day i checked the dumpster to see if they had chucked in the dresser s drawers they weren t there i walked around to the dresser it wasn t the same dresser it was a different piece of furniture a kind of dark wood sideboard buffet with glass doors and cubbies it was a much nicer piece than the one that had been picked up it made me think of the trades that crows do rewarding friendly human behavior with shiny treasures they ve found elsewhere but why would the young couple give up this good furniture for the rather ordinary piece we d left for them if this had been a bartering event it would have involved the opposite of haggling i remember reading about potlatches events that had been held by tribes who lived on the pacific northwest coast at them people demonstrated their status by exchanging gifts that were more desirable than the ones they received but doing it anonymously would defeat that purpose there was a likely explanation for this odd behaviour the young couple hadn t left the new piece at all someone else someone who had driven by and seen the free sign just decided that this was as good a place as any to drop off their stuff our corner has become a new free trading post where strangers can gift other strangers with things they might need apparently we ve established an entirely unintentional public service paid subscribers to these substack pages get access to complete editions of two of my novellas noirvella is a modern story of revenge told in the style of film noir unbelievable is a kind of rom com that forms around a pompous guy who is conceited misinformed and undeservedly successful both books are sold by amazon but paid subscribers can read them for free also substack pages older than eight months automatically slip behind a paywall where only paid subscribers can read them if you re interested in reading any of them you can subscribe giving you free access to them or buy them in book form should you prefer the feel of a physical book meanwhile it is easy to become a paying subscriber just like supporting your favorite npr station it s entirely optional and even if you choose not to do so you ll still get my regular substack posts and i ll still be happy to have you as a reader subscribe 5 1 share discussion about this post comments restacks alison pearlman may 25 as exhausting as it is moving is such a great opportunity to align your life priorities with your stuff or reexamine your life priorities through your stuff every once in a while i wish i could move just for this reason enjoy reply share top latest discussions no posts ready for more subscribe 2026 gary allen privacy terms collection notice start your substack get the app substack is the home for great culture this site requires javascript to run correctly please turn on javascript or unblock scripts