And she tosses that, too

For some reason, my mother started throwing random things in the house.  Nothing breakable, and usually not with any strength, but tossing objects has become one of her favorite hobbies.  The plush basketball is a frequent flyer, as are her magazines and a piece of Styrofoam that looks like a brick—an object that, when she isn't throwing, she sometimes tries to use as a Kleenex.

As long as I can remember, my mother accessorized rooms with throw pillows.  We have amassed quite a collection over the years, and there are currently about eight spread across the various chairs and couch in the living room.  When my mother sits on the couch, she looks at the surrounding pillows and crinkles her nose, almost as if they are not decorations but someone’s shoes instead.  One by one, she grabs a pillow by its corner, places it on the coffee table, picks it up again, and swings it gently to the floor.  Often, I notice my mother sitting alone on the bare couch, the pillows strewn about the floor like confetti. 

A wicker footstool in the basement includes a cushion that is about the size and shape of a large pizza.  Apparently, my mother has a vendetta for this particular piece of stuffing, because almost every time she sees it on the wicker frame, she flings it to the floor.  Sometimes she shakes her head and exclaims “nooo” while she does this, and sometimes she just laughs.

If she finds herself holding something in her hand that she does not know what to do with, she will generally give it a gentle shove and see what it does when it lands.  Over the last few months, she has chucked blankets, the obligatory pillow or three, magazines, paperback books, socks, television remotes, CD cases, and, on occasion, vegetables.

For Christmas, McKenzie gave her a small plush toy kitten.  The fur is very soft, and she likes to pet the toy and slide her fingers over the smooth plastic eyes.  My mother laughs when we pretend the kitten is meowing, and it always makes her smile.  She loves that toy.  And yes, she tosses it, too.