A strange, once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon is occurring. It's a combination of spring cleaning, the honeymoon hangover, and putting all the freaking stuff away. The whirlwind of the wedding is beginning to subside, thanks to a week back in the cab. Nothing like work brings you back to the rigors and ritual of everyday life.

The urge to clean up all the clutter has never been greater, and of course, to put things away usually means something has to go. If you've never been married (and even if you have), you soon realize you have an entirely new set of kitchen items. Silverware, dishes, pots, pans, mixer, toaster, food processor, waffle maker, mixing bowls, beer & wine glasses. Apparently, getting married means you're supposed to cook a lot. Go figure.

New stuff replaces old stuff. Old stuff gets passed on to other folks or ultimately ends up in nearby thrift stores. I'm very pleased with the upgrade in stuff, but every action has a reaction. Once you start cleaning one thing, it leads to more.

We got a new bed from Maria's grandparents. Actually, it was a really nice slightly used bed that they couldn't use. We took it and gave my old queen bed to one of her uncles for doing the moving (he also took some old kitchenware as well). My old queen is still in great shape, and it was the only bed I ever bought. It could have served me for another ten years, but we must all make sacrifices for new stuff. We get a brand new pillow top queen, and a family member get a good used bed. Then, there was all the stuff under the bed. And the dust. Pick up, sweep, dust & viola! New bed replaces old bed.

Summer is finally on it's way, and the 70 degree days are only going to get hotter. That means pull the shorts out of chest and put away those sweaters and pull overs. Unfortunately, the chest is blocked in by other crap I've been meaning to get rid of or move.

With all the new stuff, there's a lot of boxes, cardboard and plastic. I've been to the recycling bins twice this week, and I might have to go again next week. While in the cab this week, a passenger scolded my town for not being progressive with its recycling. Apparently in Portland, they are experimenting with compost pick up with meat included. Amazing! I just stated that Albuquerque is not on the cutting edge of anything, but we do have recycling pick up once week, and I can drop off at bins any time.

So the boxes are recycled, crap is moved around, and I finally make it to my chest of shorts. This means I have to make room on my shelf of clothes. I look through every piece of clothing and decide what I like. It turns out (not surprisingly) that I still like all of my clothes, but I do rearrange and refold them. Once you don't outgrow your clothes, your collection can really swell. I did make enough room through rearranging to put my cold weather clothes on the bottom shelf. This mean we can put something else in the chest. We have decided on some of Maria's shoes. She has far more than a trunk load, but it's a start.

So there's the new kitchen wares, the new bed, the spring time clothes, and things are starting to look better. People talk about nesting with women in the pregnant months before they have a child. This occurred with Maria, but not with me. Now that we're married, I'm experiencing the need to clean up and minimize as much junk as possible. I am marriage nesting.

Even though I've gotten through the new stuff, I know the real difficult stuff is coming: a.k.a. the really old stuff. There's a shed full of who knows what and why. There's an old dryer in my back yard. The weeds are growing in the yard. There's that smell in the corner I probably should clean again, and countless other little projects that should keep me busy for many married years to come.

Who knew settling down would be so unsettling!?!

Chris Jungle promises to talk about something other marriage next week.