I love Amanda for her patience. The local Zellers, like so many others, is going out of business shortly. For the past two months or so, the entire stock of the store has been marked down.
I saw an opportunity. For years, I've loved Lego bricks. I started playing with them when I was a little kid, continued making creations on and off through my teen years, and took my Lego bricks with me when I left Williams Lake. Now and then I'd pick up a new set that intrigued me (such as a giant bulldozer), or I'd try making something that interested me (a replica of the Red Baron's triplane).
So when Zellers was going out of business, I seized the moment and dragged Amanda into their building toys aisle. She stood there for nearly twenty minutes while I perused every Lego and Mega Bloks set, and eventually decided on a tub of basic Mega Bloks bricks.
While getting ready for the annual Community Connections event, I had acquainted myself with the Library's collection of Lego (and other brand) bricks, and found that Mega Bloks were actually pretty decent. Prior to that time I had solely purchased Lego bricks -- no other brands.
Anyway, Amanda and I came home from our trip, and while she was reading or knitting, I busied myself opening each bag in the tub and letting the bricks clatter together. To amuse myself and get her to look, I made I (heart) U out of bricks, and designed a small black car that I proclaimed was actually a picture-perfect model of her car.
If you've read through the archives of this blog, you've learned that I'm a fan of Minecraft. I enjoy the creative process there so much because even in survival mode it's like having a bottomless box of Lego bricks. But even with the crafting and zombies, there's something missing.
There's something special about the tactile response of Lego bricks. It's simple to identify a brick just by touch, even without looking at it. When two pieces are joined, they fit snugly together. Finally, when pulling them apart, there's often a satisfying pop.
As I write this, I'm staring at a Mega Bloks tub near my iMac and thinking about my similar (but much more populated) Lego tub in the storage room. It may be time to build something. The only problem is that I'm not sure where I'd display it!
In spite of all our efforts, our apartment is still fairly crowded. Amanda and I have decided that (especially since my condo in Tumbler Ridge still hasn't sold) it makes more sense for us to stay here until after our wedding next year before looking for a new place. We could weed through our belongings somewhat, but it'd take something on the level of discarding couches, bookshelves, or my computer desk to free up an appreciable amount of room.
Or we can do what I'm doing right now -- think about how cozy our place is and how cute Amanda is. Ahhhhhhh. Satisfying.
