stevenpiziks (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stevenpiziks) wrote2020-02-27 09:38 am
stevenpiziks) wrote2020-02-27 09:38 am
Entry tags:
Clear It Out! With Autism
During Snow Day #1, I announced to Max that we were cleaning out the main storage closet in the basement. This spring, we're selling the house in order to downsize, which means everything possible has to go!
Max sighed at first, but finally got into it. We pulled a lot of stuff out of the closet--school pictures, photo albums, Darwin's genealogy notes, letters from German friends from the 80s, old video games, even a VCR. We sorted piles into keep, dump, and donate.
But the biggest pile was the board games.
When Darwin and I got married, I brought with me a decent collection of board games. But Darwin had dozens. They took over most of the closet. Clue. Trivial Pursuit. Monopoly (two copies). Sorry! (two copies) Talisman. The Simpsons. Uno. (three copies) Scrabble. Express. Iron Dragon. Dungeon. Battleship. And more, more, more.
We don't play board games really anymore. So what to do with all these?
I called Aran and asked if he wanted any of them. He did. Kala wanted a couple. I wanted only Iron Dragon. (I'm a big Talisman player, but I have it on my iPad now and don't use the physical version. Same for Monopoly.)
This still left more than 40 games. I didn't want to throw them away. I'm not up for selling them on eBay. I thought about Goodwill, but . . . meh. There had to be something better.
And then I remembered--the Living and Enrichment Center, a new community center for people with autism, has opened up in Northville, not far from here. Aran, in fact, has in intake with them next week. They run a bunch of activity slots, including video game night, an RPG night, an anime night, and a board game night. Games, you see, are an excellent way for people with developing social skills to spend time together--the game gives you something to do when you can't think of anything to say, and it gives you something to talk about.
I called them and asked if they wanted a pile of gently used and new board games. They said they definitely did!
So we'll be dropping those off soon. I'll be glad to know the games will get some use by people who can really benefit.
And now the storage closet is nearly empty.
Max sighed at first, but finally got into it. We pulled a lot of stuff out of the closet--school pictures, photo albums, Darwin's genealogy notes, letters from German friends from the 80s, old video games, even a VCR. We sorted piles into keep, dump, and donate.
But the biggest pile was the board games.
When Darwin and I got married, I brought with me a decent collection of board games. But Darwin had dozens. They took over most of the closet. Clue. Trivial Pursuit. Monopoly (two copies). Sorry! (two copies) Talisman. The Simpsons. Uno. (three copies) Scrabble. Express. Iron Dragon. Dungeon. Battleship. And more, more, more.
We don't play board games really anymore. So what to do with all these?
I called Aran and asked if he wanted any of them. He did. Kala wanted a couple. I wanted only Iron Dragon. (I'm a big Talisman player, but I have it on my iPad now and don't use the physical version. Same for Monopoly.)
This still left more than 40 games. I didn't want to throw them away. I'm not up for selling them on eBay. I thought about Goodwill, but . . . meh. There had to be something better.
And then I remembered--the Living and Enrichment Center, a new community center for people with autism, has opened up in Northville, not far from here. Aran, in fact, has in intake with them next week. They run a bunch of activity slots, including video game night, an RPG night, an anime night, and a board game night. Games, you see, are an excellent way for people with developing social skills to spend time together--the game gives you something to do when you can't think of anything to say, and it gives you something to talk about.
I called them and asked if they wanted a pile of gently used and new board games. They said they definitely did!
So we'll be dropping those off soon. I'll be glad to know the games will get some use by people who can really benefit.
And now the storage closet is nearly empty.
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