I took some time this weekend to look over my Dad’s old tools, and it brought back some memories.

When my Dad passed away last summer, my sister moved into my folks’ house (my Mom passed away a few years ago). The plan was that she would sell her old house, and then my folks’ house as she herself downsized to a condo. She just completed the first step, and this weekend I drove down to help her get stuff out of her old house before the closing.

Needless to say, with the addition of her things my folks’ house is becoming a repository of years of collected belongings. We’ve already addressed much of this by distributing items to various family members, but there’s still a lot to do.

No small part of this is my Dad’s tools. My folks downsized tremendously when they retired – they had an enormous fully equipped shop – but my Dad kept some tools for household repair and such. I’ve already taken a few odds and ends, but still have to go through the bulk of the tools and dispose of them in some manner.

I’ll address this task this spring when it’s warmer (everything’s in an unheated garage), but I did a quick once-over this weekend just to see what’s there. I already have a fully equipped shop, so there’s not much I need but I’m sure I’ll take several items for sentimental reasons. Likewise, my daughter, a budding woodworker, will give several of the tools a second life. But that will still leave a lot of tools.

I’ll probably donate as many of them to the local tech center as they’d be interested in, and then get rid of the rest in a yard sale or something, which is kind of sad.

Still, it’s good to know that most of the tools will “live on” and continue to be used not only in my shop, but my daughter’s and others.

A.J.