Why can’t I play pool?

By Eric Riddle

 I always wanted a pool table, probably because I had one growing up. Nothing fancy, just the cool factor.

Thirty years later, my family has a game room with a dartboard, air hockey table, ski ball, pinball machine (now broken), and a pool table. We even have the same lamp that hung over my parents’ pool table. Truth be told, I never wanted that lamp. I wanted a Budweiser lamp!

I have it all. Right? Not quite …

The pool table provides a large flat surface I can use to sort things—mostly paperwork. For months, I’ve stored years of Toastmasters material on it. Until I decide what to keep, I will not be able to play pool on the pool table I wanted so badly.

Not fun.

Recently, my wife, Susi, needed to practice for a pool tournament—a fundraiser for her Relay for Life cancer walk team. She and our daughter Maggie offered to help clear the pool table.

 Always accept help when it’s offered,
especially for something you don’t feel like doing!

Unfortunately, they don’t know what to keep or toss. And I do not agree with ‘when in doubt, throw it out,’ because I would rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. So, Susi and I removed the material off the pool table, carried it into our daughter Beth’s room, and neatly stacked it in piles on the bed, on the floor, and on any other flat surface we could find.

 

Problem solved! Sort of. Now, what about the rest of the house?