Here are the scraps of ephemera I saved in June, a solid third of which are related to a dental disaster I endured that spanned nearly every single day in June.

Top row

• Packaging from the Kroger-brand Orajel
• Tag from NASA Rise plushie
• Packaging from the water at the oral surgeon’s office

Second row

• Packaging from the red and white twine I used to package my Lonely Hearts Club Postcards
• Packaging from my new eyelash curler
• Portion of the medication guide that came with my Tylenol 3 prescription from the dentist

Third row

• Underwear packaging
• Various packaging for items related to my dental disaster
• Packaging from my Persnickety Prints order

Bottom row

• Shipping label from my long-lost Ulta order (an absolute fucking nightmare, I will never order from them again)
• Piece of the KFC box my Michael Jackson Memorial Lunch came in
• Packaging from yet another protein pancake mix I tested out

Here are the scraps of ephemera I saved in May.

Top row

• Wrapper from the piece of gum I chewed during my first run in forever. (Before CrossFit and weightlifting and powerlifting, I ran. Often. Seven to nine miles a day, rain or snow or shine, and through two pregnancies. I miss it and I’m very excited to (incrementally!) add it back into the mix.)
• Packaging from my favorite fun/fizzy drink. (I’M SORRY, MICHAEL!!!)
• Packaging from the cupcake mix I cooked for one of my kids’ birthdays.

Second row

• Some of the receipts from my many Michael viewings.
• Portion of the envelope my ballot arrived in.
• Packaging from one of my gym snacks (gummy bears).

Third row

• Packaging from a mini candy I got at one of my weekly volunteering gigs. (I hadn’t had these in YEARS! Maybe even decades.)
• Pre-printed postage from a vintage envelope.
• Shiny packaging I found on the ground during a walk that caught my eye.

Bottom row

• Paper wrapping that was around a wall calendar I had printed at FedEx Office.
• Items found on the ground during my walks.
• Packaging from a canister of Bar Keepers Friend, which I used to clean all the gunk off two stainless steel frying pans I scored from a neighborhood free pile.

Here are the scraps of ephemera I saved in April.

Top row

• Piece of postcard advertising PIPEX 2026
• Red Robin sticker from a takeout order
• “WAR IS NOT THE ANSWER” sticker found in the street

Second row

• Flower found on the sidewalk during a walk
• Items found on the sidewalk during different walks
• Street sticker found on the sidewalk during a walk

Third row

• Prescription label
• Wrapping paper scraps and Funfetti mix packaging from one of my kids’ birthdays
• Scrap of packaging that my Artemis II double-sided mission patches arrived in

Bottom row

• Scraps from a current work in progress
• Label from a photo order for another work in progress
• Corner from the box of Artemis II launch-day doughnuts from Krispy Kreme

Here are the scraps of ephemera I saved in March.

Top row

• Migraine medication blister pack
• Magpie Vintage business card
• Rafael stamp, a souvenir from a mail art meetup

Second row

• Coins and confetti found on the ground throughout the month
• Portland Art Museum sticker
• My name written on a scrap of paper by the dance store employee who helped me choose a pair of ballet slippers for the adult beginner ballet class I signed up to take (!!)

Third row

• Tag from one of the pinback buttons I thrifted in March
• Dried flowers found during my first evening walk through the neighborhood of the season
• Packaging from Trader Joe’s Protein Pancake Mix

Bottom row

• Oil change sticker
• EKG lead and scrap of Coban wrap from a mid-month trip to the ER (everything’s fine)
• Two quarters with designs on the back I’d never seen before

Here are the scraps of ephemera I saved in February.

Top row

• Packaging from G2 pen ink refills.
• Packaging from a Hostess cupcake, a favorite childhood snack.
• Scrap from a “puzzle history sheet” from the puzzle exchange I’m launching at my gym.

Second row

• A coin and sticker I found on the floor.
• Tag from a stuffed animal I gifted one of my kids for Valentine’s Day.
• Packaging from a favorite Crystal Light flavor.

Third row

• Price tag from A Room of One’s Own, which I bought in 2017 and (finally) read for the first time in February.
• Packaging from my weekly Rice Krispie Treat.
• Label for a new medication.

Bottom row

• Packaging from another favorite childhood snack (the good news: I finally found a place that sells the individually boxed version; the less good news: they cost $3.69 a piece!!!).
• Piece of cardboard from a puzzle I had made of a photo I took years ago.
• Image sheet from a puzzle in my collection. I have no idea why it’s so small. I’ve never seen a puzzle come with an image sheet this small. It’s pretty useless.

The first ephemera grid of the year is in the books. Here are the scraps of ephemera I saved in January.

Top row

• Packaging from the bread crumbs I use to make my daily lunch and dinner of crispy breaded chicken breast (it’s just store brand).
• Portion of an old hard drive I had destroyed.
• Packaging from a box of M&Ms that my son gifted me for Christmas, and that I finished in January.

Second row

• Wrapper from an Andes “after dinner” mint. (When the kids were much younger, we each had an Andes after dinner every night. Early in the pandemic when we became split between households and then states, the nightly tradition died out. In January, I decided to buy a box and began having one each evening before bed.)
• Packaging from an electrolyte sample.
• Tag from a new gym t-shirt.

Third row

• Tamper-proof seal from one of my supplements.
• Portion of packaging from a natural toothbrush that I tried.
• Tag from a new pair of gym leggings.

Bottom row

• Receipt from a library hold.
• Lifting tape from a workout.
• Flower I found on the ground.