• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Catholic Review

Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Menu
  • Home
  • News
        • Local News
        • World News
        • Vatican News
        • Obituaries
        • Featured Video
        • En Español
  • Commentary
        • Contributors
          • Bishop Robert Barron
          • George Weigel
          • Question Corner
          • Effie Caldarola
          • John Garvey
          • Father Ed Dougherty, M.M.
          • Guest Commentary
        • CR Columnists
          • Archbishop William E. Lori
          • Rita Buettner
          • Suzanna Molino Singleton
          • Christopher Gunty
          • George Matysek Jr.
          • Paul McMullen
          • Father Joseph Breighner
          • Father Collin Poston
          • Father T. Austin Murphy Jr.
          • Robyn Barberry
          • Hanael Bianchi
          • Amen Columns
  • Entertainment
        • Events
        • Movie Reviews
        • Arts & Culture
        • Books
  • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Our History
        • Meet Our Staff
        • Photos to own
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
  • Advertising
  • CR Radio
  • Printing
  • Subscribe

99 Flyswatters on the Wall…

Rita Buettner June 11, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

Several years ago, way back before my husband and I became parents, he designed and created a wooden rack for me to display some of my flyswatter collection. I have hundreds of flyswatters, but it’s hard to think of ways to exhibit many of them at the same time.

But John is both creative and practical. He likes things to be organized, and he appreciates a good collection.

I know what you’re thinking right now: “Who doesn’t appreciate a flyswatter collection?” The answer might be “the husband who keeps it all well-organized in bins that he stores with the Christmas decorations.” But not in this case, of course. John is very supportive of my unusual collection.

Anyway, we moved into our house almost seven years ago. And, this year, in mid-March, John hung the rack on the wall along our basement staircase.

There’s nothing like taking on a good project during quarantine. But, you see, I wouldn’t know because my quarantine projects mostly found me—the way that they do. In the midst of my struggles with fourth-grade math and grocery ordering and doing my job, somehow the flyswatters just never got hung.

Until now.

Last weekend, more than 12 weeks into this chapter in our lives, I announced that I wanted to fill the flyswatter rack. John pulled out the large plastic bins where he has beautifully organized the flyswatters, and I opened them to dig in and select the ones we would display.

Each swatter is different, though—with a nod to George Orwell—some are more different than others. I wanted to display swatters that were fun and attractive and worked well together. I wanted to include some that were homemade and others that were machine made, some that cost $1 or less and some that cost more than $10.

Many have interesting stories I remember, and some have stories buried in some distant corner of my mind that I struggle to recall. If I had planned my life as a flyswatter collector better, I would have kept a collector’s journal. But no one sets out to start a flyswatter collection—or at least I didn’t.

You might be wondering how the collection began. Back in college, there were occasionally flies in my room when I called home to chat with my mother. My younger brothers overheard her saying I needed a flyswatter, and that year for Christmas they scoured the dollar stores for a flyswatter to give me. Flyswatters are scarce in December.

That spring whenever my family members saw a flyswatter, they bought it and gave it to me. I started hanging them on my dorm room walls, and then my college friends started giving me flyswatters, too. Since then, many friends and family members have contributed to the collection—and I’ve added several myself, of course.

And now several of them hang in our home in all their flyswatter glory. Will I rotate others into the display over time? Will we offer flyswatter tours to any visitors if and when we ever have visitors again?

Only time will tell. For now, every time I see them, I smile. So, I thought I would share them with you. I hope they make you smile, too.

Print Print

Primary Sidebar

Rita Buettner

Rita Buettner

Rita Buettner is a wife, working mother and author of the Catholic Review's Open Window blog. She and her husband adopted their two sons from China, and Rita often writes about topics concerning adoption, family and faith.

Rita also writes The Domestic Church, a featured column in the Catholic Review. Her writing has been honored by the Catholic Press Association, the Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Press Association and the Associated Church Press.

View all posts from this author

Recent Commentary

A Lent full of promise, steak success, cooking with children, and more (7 Quick Takes)

Archbishop Lori reflects on the Year of St. Joseph

Reason for celibacy/ Blessing for non-sacramental marriage?

Pandemic Stories (or why there’s a Nerf gun in the tub)

A pandemic Lent, ox cookies, and Valentine’s gifts (7 Quick Takes)

Recent Local News

Deacon Davis, who served Overlea parish for decades, dies at 84

Archdiocese of Baltimore plans ‘Safe Haven Sunday’ to fight pornography

Pasadena parish cites pandemic in decision to close preschool

Father Snouffer, information technology trailblazer for archdiocese, dies at 83

‘Blessing bags’ a focal point for merged St. Casimir Parish during pandemic

Catholic Review Radio

CatholicReview · Catholic Review Radio

Footer

Our Vision

Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond.

Our Mission

Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform, teach, inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media.

Contact

Catholic Review
320 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-3150
mail@CatholicReview.org

 

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent

  • A Lent full of promise, steak success, cooking with children, and more (7 Quick Takes)
  • Archbishop Lori reflects on the Year of St. Joseph
  • Health care chaplains in Baltimore and beyond embrace self-care in COVID-19 work
  • Religious order withdraws request to transfer founder’s remains to U.S.
  • Deacon Davis, who served Overlea parish for decades, dies at 84
  • Reason for celibacy/ Blessing for non-sacramental marriage?
  • Archdiocese of Baltimore plans ‘Safe Haven Sunday’ to fight pornography
  • Heroes of love: New pathway open for future saints
  • Some English Catholics object to transfer of nun’s remains to Philadelphia
  • Bishops: If passed, Equality Act will ‘discriminate against people of faith

Search

Membership

Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada

Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association

The Associated Church Press

© 2021 CATHOLIC REVIEW MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED