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Why Garrett Hardin Complicates Cleaning the Garage

Garrett Hardin said, "You cannot do only one thing."

Everything is connected to something, like Pick-up-Sticks.
A Pick-up-Stick lying off to the side is a Pick-up-Stick
belonging to some other universe.  In our universe,
everything touches other things; depends on other things.

I am re-arranging the lower garage to make room
for the snow blowers.  So far, I have sharpened the mower
blades so they will be ready when Spring comes. 
I raised the edges of the rubber mats under the cars
in the garage, above, so that water will not drip down
onto my tools, there where I intend to put them.
I knew that the opened bag of lawn fertilizer would
petrify over the Winter if I did not spread it, so I spread it.

Mari had asked that I put a blind on the outside door
on the lower floor, so when I went to Home Depot
to get materials to raise the edges of the rubber mats,
I had them cut a blind to fit, then I installed it.  I picked up
a bucket in which to break up the lumps in the fertilizer,
and a mouse ran out, so I brought down a couple traps.

You understand!  I have not freed up a single inch of space,
yet, in which to park the snow blowers, because I have not
moved the things that have to go somewhere so that I can
move the table saw to the other side of the garage. 

I have been thinking of our habit of saying things such as,
"I went through that intersection just a few seconds
before the garbage truck hit that trailer!", or "Had Trigger
Williamson not struck out, we would be ahead by three runs,
now, because Dewey Longdale hit a homer in his next at-bat!"

No, there is a whole pile of Pick-up-Sticks, and if you pull
out one, everything changes.  The next guy has a different pile.
You cannot change only one thing in the web of things.

I will just tell Mari that I will have to finish rearranging
the garage tomorrow, because I got to thinking about things.
Then she will say something about procrastination, and that
will make me stubborn, and I will put it off until November.

One thing leads to another, you know.

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