Twist Ties
We all have people and things that we value.
Most of us also have some silly things we're attached to, for one reason or another.
We also have things that seem completely unimportant, but due to circumstances, became valuable.
Well, that's the way twist ties are for me.
Twist ties?, you ask.
Yes, well, as I said, due to circumstances they have become valuable to me.
As far as I can tell, Israel doesn't have twist ties. I kid you not. All the trash bags I've gotten don't include twist ties, and I haven't seen them anywhere else. And you don't miss them until you don't have any. Who'd have thought to pack twist ties? Except, all those half open bags of rice, pasta, raisins, etc. - what do you do with them? I used rubberbands mostly. We had some hard plastic twist ties from computer equipment, too, but there was definitely a shortage.
Then my parents came to visit in January. And my mother was horrorstruck that I couldn't find twist ties here. I'm sure she would have bought me some had she seen some to buy.
A few weeks after my parents left, I got a package.
Yup, you guessed it. It included a plentiful supply of twist ties - not to mention MSG-free boullion, colorful post-it notes for my office, and a silly comic strip about digging tar out of your shoes (let's just say Israel isn't exactly known for clean beaches).
Now, every time I reach for a twist tie it brings a smile to my face because they are part of such a loving, thoughtful gift from my mother.
Sometimes, it really is about the little things.
Thank you, Maman!
Comments
Thank you, sweetheart. I needed that boost.
Posted by: ma | June 8, 2005 09:51 PM
Funny, I just had a few days of rummaging for twisty ties myself. I've been buying garbage bags with built in ties or tabs and was used to always having a good supply of ties in the bottom of the trash bag box that I used for everything except trash bags. Rubber bands just don't work as well on frozen food bags. I finally found a small stash of ties sitting in a windowsill in my kitchen.
I find myself always wishing I had more paper grocery bags. I noticed their absence the first time I went to make merenges and realized I had no brown paper to cut up and line the tray with. I then realized I had nothing to put my paper recycleables in. They are hard to find in Chicago. I end up having to shop at the ever-expensive Whole Foods to get them. I try to bring back a supply every time I visit my parents in Ohio. Weird.
Posted by: Valerie | June 10, 2005 06:10 AM
For me, the thing I miss most is the ability to walk five blocks Eastish, and then North until I come upon a glorious lake (at a less than glorious beach but hey-If I want the real thing I'll make a 20 minute drive, which is decently short too. A beach in which I can swim,, or sun or build sand castles.
I pretty much use those plastic chip clips to seal stuff. Even in the freezer.
Posted by: Rae | June 10, 2005 10:45 PM
I can't _wait_ to miss such things! Funny thing to say, I guess. I'll
never forget how much my grandmother sent for our family in Martinique
while we were pioneering - a tradition continued by my parents with
Charlotte now in Quebec, and by the time I'm out (with children?), I'm
sure I (they) will get my fair share of twist tie/post-it/comic
packages.
Posted by: Danio | June 13, 2005 09:27 AM
Yeah, Rae, I miss the beach too. You'd think I wouldn't, living on the Mediterranean and all, but unfortunately Israel is the butt of the sea. With nowhere for the water to go, all the filth just comes into the sea and heads for Israel. Ick. There's still the Red Sea, but it's a several hour drive. I've realized I have to refine my desire from "living near a body of water" to "living near a clean, swimmable body of water"!
Posted by: Mara | June 13, 2005 09:31 AM
Completely. Chennai has a rather disgusting beach and no one swims for that reason. I'm disappointed to be so close to the ocean and to have it be something just for looking at, rather than playing in. I anxiously anticipate being able to return in another handful of weeks for swimming in Lake Erie.
Posted by: Kristen | June 13, 2005 10:40 AM
couldn't you have just bought a spool of wire? whatever, anyhow, I look forward to coming out and hanging with you guys in Haifa.
whoa, I just had a very cool, very intimate epiphany.
Posted by: Mendon | June 14, 2005 06:57 AM
A spool of wire really wouldn't do the trick. What makes a twist-tie work is the little strip of paper or plastic that the wire is embedded in. Generally, when that wears off, I throw the twistee out.
Posted by: ma | June 16, 2005 05:42 PM
I've noticed that twist ties slowly disappear here. I came with a bunch for electronics, etc. and we get them on our bread every so often. But we have a twist tie scarcity. We found out why last week. Gina walked into the kitchen one morning to make herself some toast. The maid had the bread, though, and she was getting ready to beat Gina to the task at hand. She's holding the top of the bag, looking at the twist tie. She keeps looking at the twist tie. She turns it one way. Turns it the other. Pulls at it. Tried to unknot it. Pulls for the scissors and cuts it right in half! That explains quite a bit for me.
Posted by: Kristen | July 9, 2005 06:00 AM
Hahaha! A maid who doesn't know how twist ties work?
Okay, I could see if maybe twist ties weren't 'native' or something, but if you're getting them on bread, well, it's bread from India, right?
Oh my. Mark met a guy in college who didn't know how to use a toaster.
Posted by: Mara | July 9, 2005 08:50 PM