New pieces of shit

One day back in my hippy days, I got into a heated philosophical discussion with my parents. I told them that they were "overly materialistic." Gesticulating around the room, I shouted "Look around you at all these possessions that you have accumulated. They are just pieces of shit." Presumably, my point was that I was morally superior to them because I cared nothing for the base, physical things in life, but instead had my mind's eye firmly set on objects in the higher spiritual plane.

So, for the rest of her life, whenever I acquired any new possession -- a new car, or a new piece of furniture, or expensive new fishing gear -- my mother would say to me: "Oh, so you've acquired some new pieces of shit, huh?"

My mother has been dead for several years, rest her soul. But, this morning, as I stood in our backyard admiring the new teak patio furniture that had just been delivered to our house, she called out from the grave "Ah, I see you've acquired some new pieces of shit." Touché, Mom.