Revelations

I've been back in Minneapolis for almost a week now. While in KC, I had a lot of time for introspection and deep thought and I used my time and intellect to answer the age-old question: what is the purpose of the paper in the Altoids tin? Foolishly, I always thought that the paper was used to keep the mints from touching the bare metal and to keep the mint dust contained. As I sat at my mother's bedside, I removed the paper from my Altoid tin (the paper had become unruly) and then placed the tin in my backpack. As I wandered around the ICU, it made the most horrible racket. People on respirators actually sat up with puzzled looks on their faces. My sister asked, "What is that noise?!" It was the paperless Altoid tin. The paper keeps the mints from rattling around in the tin...in case you ever need to wake the dead, you'll know.