Continued: Getting rid of stuff / Clearing out clutter! PART 2

[slackmax]

@slackmax - that sounds really hard. I'm glad you're at a point where you're ready to proceed with dealing with her stuff. Big hugs to you.

Thank you!

[slackmax]

@slackmax you are doing great. I am so impressed with your thoughtfulness and care as you work through the stuff and the emotions.

Thanks, mspym.

[Sibley]

Pulled out some shirts that I haven't worn in 3 years. Apparently, when I'm not at work and not working on the house, I only want to wear geeky t-shirts. So the non-geeky ones went in the box for donation.

Threw out a pair of old jeans because they developed a large split in the crotch. Praying it happened after I was home for the day. (I wear jeans to that point, working on the house/yard)

[horsepoor]

@horsepoor - that's great. I will try that! eBay also just needs a "pause" button, that you can use to pause all of your Buy Now listings & then "unpause" when you're back.

That is what the vacation setting is.  I guess they need to save some perks for the more active sellers who have store fronts, so, they have it, just won't offer it to everyone for some reason.

Yesterday I finally found the holy grail of lunch bags.  It folds, so it can go in my luggage when I have to travel and teach field classes, it's waterproof, and it's big enough to hold my GlassLock containers, so I was able to say goodbye to 3 other lunchbags that each had limited utility.

Also corralled some old bottles and travel mugs and put them in the donate bin.

Extra horse blankets are cleaned, waterproofed, and sitting in the basement just waiting to be listed on FB/CL in October when people start thinking about needing such things.

[mspym]

Two books in the street library, 5 tops & 2 necklaces I never wear donated to the Vinnies.

[Bracken_Joy]

Oh goodness. SO glad I've been working on clearing stuff out. Baby shower yesterday. There are piles I need to sort and store. Deep breaths.

Guy is supposed to be coming by this morning for two runners I've been selling- I've had SO Many people flake on these. For some reason, selling rugs is cursed apparently. Every rug I've sold on FB marketplace involves like 15+ dead end contacts and 2+ straight up flakes before an actual buyer appears.

Avoiding clutter accumulating- had bought wrist compression sleeves for my caral tunnel I developed. After 1 day, it was clear they cut into the web of my hand way too much (deep bruising now). Immediately got a return set up and got them back to amazon. Refund already pending.

[Sugaree]

Whew!  It's been a busy weekend around here.  Dropped off about 125 items to the consignment sale, took three boxes and an old tv to the thrift store, Kondo'd my kid's clothes, and cleaned out/inventoried the freezers and pantry.  I wish I'd been able to cull a few more of his clothes, but between the ones that don't fit anymore and the ones that he didn't pick as a favorite, we cut it in half.  The entirety of his school clothes now fit into two drawers.

[Raenia]

Finally took the necessary steps to get rid of the unneeded boxsprings that couldn't be moved up the stairs at the house.  They've been sitting in the garage because the trash won't pick up large items without a special kind of sealed bag.  We ordered the bags and they came in this week, so we got them bagged up and out to the curb for tomorrow's trash pickup.  One major step toward getting the garage usable!

[LinneaH]

Sort of a fail during the weekend - had to declutter two pair of perfectly good pants since DS2 announced they were way too short (and he was right). He must have jumped a bit in in leg length when I didn't look bc he normally wear pants enough times to destroy the knees (he is an active six year old).
Oh well, I will give them away and someone will make good use of them. And I will actually order two sizes larger for him .

But also a win, my mum was here and we went through a big bag of old bed sheets and kitchen towels, embroidered by deceased relatives 70-80 years ago. She took a small towel, I don't want any of it as I have some saved that are much nicer (but I have been carrying these in many moves and stored it during a lot of years). I will ask on neighbourhood Facebook if anyone wants them and I think some of them will go to the cat/dog rescue place.

[Sugaree]

Sort of a fail during the weekend - had to declutter two pair of perfectly good pants since DS2 announced they were way too short (and he was right). He must have jumped a bit in in leg length when I didn't look bc he normally wear pants enough times to destroy the knees (he is an active six year old).
Oh well, I will give them away and someone will make good use of them. And I will actually order two sizes larger for him .

My 6 year-old had the same problem this weekend.  Though he will deny, deny, deny that his favorite pairs of pants are too small.  One pair looked like high-water yoga pants on him and he still swore that they fit.  I'm actually having trouble deciding what to do about his clothes right now.  He's good on pants and has enough shorts to make it until the weather turns too cold to wear them.  He could also use a few more long-sleeved shirts.  But, it's consignment season and Children's Place is running a sale on the cargo shorts that he really likes.  I'm SO tempted to pick up a few in a larger size for next spring, but I will try to resist since I just finished purging nearly half his clothes.

[SunnyDays]

@LinneaH My inner hoarder gasped at the idea of donating embroidered linens to the animal shelters, but of course it's better for them to be used than to just take up space in your home. I have fond memories of my grandmother's embroidered linens.

Me too, on both counts!  I inherited a few things from my grandmother, but unfortunately not any of the embroidered pillow cases.

So, I'm a day late but not an item short, ha ha, with my weekly report.  Here's Week 11:

71. Framed picture - to go to animal rescue garage sale.
72. 2nd pair of sandals - pretty wrecked, so garbage.
73. Worn out track pants - fabric recycling.
74. teapot with broken handle - going to ceramic recycling.
75. Tank top - to be offered to relative.
76. Blouse that goes with tank top - as above.
77. Broken bag clip - garbage.

It's been two and a half years since my beloved hoarder girlfriend died, and I can finally think about selling or recycling her clothes.  I pulled out her shirts, one by one, from the tightly packed bedroom closet, and got 5 nice shirts to try to sell at a yard sale, and 5 shirts that are very clean but ripped or missing buttons, bless her heart, that I will take to  the 'textiles' bin at the recycling place.       

I had a hard time with this too when my mom passed away.  I found that the easiest way to approach it was to keep the items that she wore the most and that reminded me most of her.  Once I had separated those, I had little problem giving away the rest.

[diapasoun]

We're T-20 days on having to have ALL the housemates and ALL the stuff out of our current place.

In personal decluttering: Tossed more clothes into the donate pile.

In house decluttering: Got rid of a crappy desk chair that Abominable Ex-Housemate left behind, and we have a plan to get a buuunch of stuff off to the dump this weekend. EEK.

[oneday]

It took over 2 weeks, but I finally recycled another 1-page work task list, this one for May.  Feels good, but unfortunately this is not an unfettered happy dance post.  Because I just printed out this month's task list, so I still have 3 pages.  As of now, I'm only 2 months behind on 10 tasks and 1 month behind on 6 additional tasks.  The game plan is to complete prior month's tasks as this month's deadline arrives, but that's been the game plan since I fell behind.  And see how well that worked :-/

Still, happy to be more caught up than I was on Friday.

One week update: I'm only 2 months behind on 10 3 tasks and 1 month behind on 6 4 additional tasks.

No physical clutter gone, but the mental burden is lifting.  Next goal is to get 2 of the 3 done before vacation next week, and the last one done before current month end.  This is lofty, as being on vacation really causes a backup in my workload.  Even if I make this goal, I'll still only be treading water with regards to behind-ness.  Hopefully I can keep even rather than falling farther behind, then make progress in October.

In my personal life, I got the last stack of moving boxes & packing material out!  Given to a nice young couple who is moving.

Adding to the list, I have 4 items still to sell/give away.  Keep coming across stuff I don't need in the new apartment.  But I am also bringing stuff in, so in a way it's just churning. :-\

Those last 4 will probably wait until after vacation at this point.  But one is listed already, so I'm keeping fingers crossed!

[Bracken_Joy]

Did an immediate round of dealing with stuff after my baby shower. Regular pampers: scented to high heaven. Tiny baby dresses: adorable, but way too much effort to actually use on a newborn. So we took a return trip to Target, got a $68 merch card and some items out of the house. We can use that later for items that come up that we still need.

DID get those runners sold, thank goodness.

Organization wise, I'm sorting everything as it comes in that I'm keeping. Thank goodness for those Costco bins I got a few weeks back, it's such a relief to know exactly where stuff can go as it comes in. Currently I have NB and 0-3m sizes in her dresser, then a bin for 3-6m sizes, a shared bin for 6-9m and 9-12m, and then another bin of 12m+ and later use toys/accessories. This also let me clear out an area that was a baby stuff inbox, basically, and now that is diaper and wipe storage.

Challenges still to go:
-I need to sell our "pantry" still. (Book shelf with doors). Thinking we might offer delivery for extra cost, then just go through the hassle of borrowing a truck from family. In a city, I'm guessing that's been the bottleneck with people wanting it.
-I have a bunch of gift boxes and bags to rehome, or possibly use as storage/drawer dividers in the case of the gift boxes. This shouldn't be hard, I just need to get around to listing it all on Buy Nothing. (Any suggestions for rehoming if Buy Nothing doesn't want them? Can I donate these?)
-Need to buy a different cabinet (top part to a bottom we already have) to replace the "pantry". It was out of stock when we went to the store yesterday, annoyingly. Once I get that, I can transfer the "pantry" contents over. MAY have to downsize our wine glasses and vases? That would really suck, since some are custom like from our wedding. I need to brain storm if there's somewhere else I can store them for now.
Once we get that stuff done, I can move my desk to where the pantry currently is, and then the crib can go where my desk currently is.

[dcheesi]

Had a moving FAIL; my gf threw out a bunch of my old bills & records, thinking they were paper recycling. The really important stuff was in a couple of fire-safes, but who knows what moderately-important stuff I may have lost?

On the bright side, this makes it even easier to just call a Junk removal service and be done with the rest of my old stuff! Which is good, since recent family/life events have left me with very little time remaining to vacate.

[slackmax]

Facing reality of how slowly I am decluttering my place. I called up a window and door replacement place today for an appointment for them to come inside my house and look at a French door !

So they are going to see the remains of the hoard, even after my 2.5 years of de-hoarding it. It has gone from a fully packed living room with pathways, to a one-third packed living room, with some loose empty boxes lying around.  A big improvement, I must say.

I'll have enough room around the French door for them to see everything, but the place in general is am embarrassment. Sigh....

And now I have to move a lot of junk out of the foyer into the basement to make the scene upon entering my house less horrifying. 

I'll dedicate an hour today to more decluttering, I guess. Seems so endless. I need cheering up. When the going gets tough, the tough get going, etc, etc.  ha ha. 

I'm OK, just venting !  Onward! 

[former player]

Facing reality of how slowly I am decluttering my place. I called up a window and door replacement place today for an appointment for them to come inside my house and look at a French door !

So they are going to see the remains of the hoard, even after my 2.5 years of de-hoarding it. It has gone from a fully packed living room with pathways, to a one-third packed living room, with some loose empty boxes lying around.  A big improvement, I must say.

I'll have enough room around the French door for them to see everything, but the place in general is am embarrassment. Sigh....

And now I have to move a lot of junk out of the foyer into the basement to make the scene upon entering my house less horrifying. 

I'll dedicate an hour today to more decluttering, I guess. Seems so endless. I need cheering up. When the going gets tough, the tough get going, etc, etc.  ha ha. 

I'm OK, just venting !  Onward!

Cheering squad here: you are doing a hard and necessary job well and with care for your girlfriend's memory and an eye to finding useful homes for everything that can be useful.

Also, I guarantee that anyone who visits peoples' homes for work will have seen far worse and won't bat an eyelid.  After all, their job is to improve houses that need improving, right?  They've never visited a perfect home once in their working lifetimes.

[SunnyDays]

Bracken Joy - I see gift boxes and bags all the time at thrift stores around here, so I don't see why yours won't take them.

Slackmax - do you have a spare room where all the hoard can live as you go through it all?  For me, seeing it all the time would be discouraging.  I would prefer to be able to close a door on it all and see it only when I have time to actually do something with it.  I guess the basement might work, if you don't mind trudging down the stairs a thousand times.

[Tyson]

Just checking in as someone that went from clutter to minimalism.  I lived with a massive hoard for most of the last 20+ years.  Looking back, I can say when I was living with the hoard, just having that clutter in my life made my daily existence a real struggle.  It took a HELL of a lot of work to get rid of all that clutter over the last 3 years. 

BUT, it is so worth it.  I've been full on minimalism for almost a year now and life is soooooo much simpler/easier now.  The house is clear, everything is clean, and it takes very little effort to maintain it.  Emotionally, I'm not surrounded by piles and piles of "to do" crap any more.  All of the old "to do" crap is gone (just binned all that stuff) and it is so freeing.  Nowadays my "to do" list is stuff like 'wipe the counter' or 'cook food'.  And that's it!  I didn't realized before just how much the accumulated crap had been weighing me down.

For example, in the past, I would wake up in the morning and I would literally think, before even getting out of bed "There are at least 20 things I need to get done today, and I know I can't get to them all" and that alone would make my day start off crappy.  I tell you what, having clear space now is so f'ing awesome!  To everyone still working toward clear, keep at it, it's SO worth it.

[horsepoor]

Craigslist came through with a buyer for my old pickup camper shell this morning!  It's been up on a rack at the back of the driveway, keeping the rain off my set of horse jumps and a few other things.  This weekend someone is coming from Montana to buy my old horse trailer, and then my shed construction can begin.  It will be storage for shavings and straw bales, and to keep my set of horse jumps out of the elements in the winter, not just a giant receptacle for clutter. It will be open-sided, which should cut down on the temptation to pack it full of crap. Looking forward to a clean, clutter-free driveway in the near future. :D

[slackmax]

Bracken Joy - I see gift boxes and bags all the time at thrift stores around here, so I don't see why yours won't take them.

Slackmax - do you have a spare room where all the hoard can live as you go through it all?  For me, seeing it all the time would be discouraging.  I would prefer to be able to close a door on it all and see it only when I have time to actually do something with it.  I guess the basement might work, if you don't mind trudging down the stairs a thousand times.

SunnyDays, Thanks, but it is  in *every* room, with the possible exception of the bathrooms.  And my deck is clutter-free, and my yard. Hmm. I could spend more time outside, haha.

I am just glad that I now have enough to space to walk in a complete circle in front of my tv set in the living room, and now can walk in a straight line through my basement to the basement door (ground level basement).  Those space- creating improvements really cheered me up at the time.

One room to contain the hoard?  Hahahahahaha  I wish!    ....  But thanks !   

[Ladychips]

Slackmax, my heart really hurts for you.  Is there anyone who can help?  Friends, family, hired person?  Please try for your own sanity...

[Tyson]

Slackmax, maybe it's OK to start thinking about mass binning (tossing) the stuff out.  I'm sure your girlfriend wouldn't want you to suffer because of the stuff.  And she definitely has no need for it anymore.  Letting go is hard (I know, from experience), but just consider that maybe, just maybe, she would want you to be clear of this stuff, too. 

[oneday]

Bracken Joy - I see gift boxes and bags all the time at thrift stores around here, so I don't see why yours won't take them.

@Bracken_Joy : second data point...my thrift store takes them.

@dcheesi that really is a bright side!  I see a similarity to what Tyson is saying.

@slackmax you have really made a ton of progress!

@Tyson you are right, that clear space is so worth it!  I've had more space before, and the emotional relief was just wonderful.

@horsepoor woot! Things are moving!!!

[slackmax]

Slackmax, my heart really hurts for you.  Is there anyone who can help?  Friends, family, hired person?  Please try for your own sanity...

I may be being overly dramatic describing my situation.  I'm making good progress. There's just sooo much stuff.

I was watching an episode of 'Hoarders' a while ago, and the narrator said that the son of the hoarder was probably going to take a few years to declutter his mother's house. I thought 'how can that be?'.  But here I am taking years to declutter my girlfriend's hoard. It's true. It's such a boring grind, that's the thing.
You have to force yourself to do an hour here, an hour there. And then something time-and-energy consuming happens in your real life, and you forget about decluttering for a few days.   

As for having people help me, I guess I could try it. That might make it easier to jettison stuff.  Maybe not.   

As far as my sanity goes, haha, the decluttering isn't a big deal. Other things in life challenge my sanity, yes, but not the decluttering.

The good news is that I'm about half way done. My kitchen is 80% clutter-free. Living room is 50% clutter-free. Basement is 50% clutter-free. Bedrooms are 10% clutter-free.   

[LinneaH]

@LinneaH My inner hoarder gasped at the idea of donating embroidered linens to the animal shelters, but of course it's better for them to be used than to just take up space in your home. I have fond memories of my grandmother's embroidered linens.

Me too, on both counts!  I inherited a few things from my grandmother, but unfortunately not any of the embroidered pillow cases.

Oh dear! :-D I need to clarify: My grandmother was really good at embroidering, as were some other relatives before her. We have a lot of really fine work  saved (both mum and me), then we both have a lot in good condition that we use regularly (like kitchen towels etc). Then there was this big bag, some of it is nice/good condition but not really our taste - will try to give away. This is also not personalized. And then there are threadbare sheets, towels that are a bit holey (not so holy), things where the embroidery is frayed and not mendable. This is the stuff mum and I agree that will go to animal shelters, something we both feel strongly for, and grandma did so also.

My mum did take one small kitchen towel. She is not a hoarder, which is nice since my dad is somewhat of that (they are divorced and remarried).

[LinneaH]

Organization wise, I'm sorting everything as it comes in that I'm keeping. Thank goodness for those Costco bins I got a few weeks back, it's such a relief to know exactly where stuff can go as it comes in. Currently I have NB and 0-3m sizes in her dresser, then a bin for 3-6m sizes, a shared bin for 6-9m and 9-12m, and then another bin of 12m+ and later use toys/accessories. This also let me clear out an area that was a baby stuff inbox, basically, and now that is diaper and wipe storage.

This really really sounds lovely - it does help a lot to have it sorted so one doesn't miss to use it and then it is outgrown.

[LinneaH]

So they are going to see the remains of the hoard, even after my 2.5 years of de-hoarding it. It has gone from a fully packed living room with pathways, to a one-third packed living room, with some loose empty boxes lying around.  A big improvement, I must say.

I feel for you Slackmax. It's sort of not fair after all the work you have done.
I have done a similar journey but on a much smaller scale. But I sometimes feel when people come to visit and I know they will se piles of paper and stuff that they should see "before" and "after" pictures of my home so they can understand the big improvement and all the work I have done.

[SunnyDays]

Slackmax, my heart really hurts for you.  Is there anyone who can help?  Friends, family, hired person?  Please try for your own sanity...

There's just sooo much stuff.

I was watching an episode of 'Hoarders' a while ago, and the narrator said that the son of the hoarder was probably going to take a few years to declutter his mother's house. I thought 'how can that be?'.  But here I am taking years to declutter my girlfriend's hoard. It's true. It's such a boring grind, that's the thing.   
   

You are making it harder on yourself than it technically needs to be.  The hard part is not just physically getting rid of it.  That could be done in short order, but if you're trying to get as much money out of it as you can, then it will take a lot longer.  From reading your older posts, it seems like you have to go through a process of considering what an item is worth, making an attempt to get that amount for it, and only if you fail, letting it go for free.  Unless you really need the money, there is likely something else going on here.  Maybe an attachment to the stuff because it was your girlfriend's or an anxiety about seeing the house truly "empty.?"  And if it's about the money, how much money in total is it worth to you to go through this lengthy process?  (I also find it interesting that in one post you talk about having given up the battle with your girlfriend around her accumulation of stuff, and yet, now that you can get rid of it all, you seem to be in no hurry to do so.  Humans - we're so contradictory, huh?)

[horsepoor]

And, the horse trailer is gone and the $$$ is in my account!  That frees up about an 8x18' area in the driveway.  I also gave the buyer some accessories I no longer need since I have a gooseneck trailer now.  Everyone was happy!

[slackmax]

And, the horse trailer is gone and the $$$ is in my account!  That frees up about an 8x18' area in the driveway.  I also gave the buyer some accessories I no longer need since I have a gooseneck trailer now.  Everyone was happy!

Way to go, horsepoor!  Lots more space!

[slackmax]

Slackmax, my heart really hurts for you.  Is there anyone who can help?  Friends, family, hired person?  Please try for your own sanity...

There's just sooo much stuff.

I was watching an episode of 'Hoarders' a while ago, and the narrator said that the son of the hoarder was probably going to take a few years to declutter his mother's house. I thought 'how can that be?'.  But here I am taking years to declutter my girlfriend's hoard. It's true. It's such a boring grind, that's the thing.   
   

You are making it harder on yourself than it technically needs to be.  The hard part is not just physically getting rid of it.  That could be done in short order, but if you're trying to get as much money out of it as you can, then it will take a lot longer.  From reading your older posts, it seems like you have to go through a process of considering what an item is worth, making an attempt to get that amount for it, and only if you fail, letting it go for free.  Unless you really need the money, there is likely something else going on here.  Maybe an attachment to the stuff because it was your girlfriend's or an anxiety about seeing the house truly "empty.?"  And if it's about the money, how much money in total is it worth to you to go through this lengthy process?  (I also find it interesting that in one post you talk about having given up the battle with your girlfriend around her accumulation of stuff, and yet, now that you can get rid of it all, you seem to be in no hurry to do so.  Humans - we're so contradictory, huh?)

Here's something interesting:  Even though I carefully evaluate every item while decluttering the house, the 3 packed storage units my girlfriend was renting were another story. After she died, I took a TV and 4 folding chairs, and that was it. Her family wanted nothing to do with the storage units, and they actually thought I would just sell it all off. But it was all 'junk', maybe a few things worth something.  And I wasn't crazy enough to go through it all. I told the owner of the storage place he could have it all, and he agreed, with no charge to me. He wasn't going to allow me to hold a storage unit sale on the property, anyway, so that wasn't even a consideration.  So I saved untold hours of my time by just "letting all that stuff just go".     Yay for me, lol.     

[Captain FIRE]

@slackmax I agree, it seems that the house is holding you back from enjoying your life.  Have you considered trying a fresh approach to help you move things along?

Rather than a little here and a little there, you could:
- Prioritize tackling the bigger items to clear out more space quickly.
- Sort the remaining items into low, medium, and high value items.  Take all the low value items away immediately without spending your time on trying to recoup value.  Your time is worth money too, as is being able to relax and enjoy your space at home.
- Focus on getting one room decluttered, rather than a bit of one and a bit of another so progress is hard to see.  (I suggest the kitchen as a practical matter and that it's the furthest along, but another good choice is wherever you spend the most time.)
- Move all of the remaining items to the basement that can fit.  Move as much out of your bedroom as you can into the basement and other bedrooms.  This should hopefully free up your living room and carve out some space in your bedroom too. 
- Once you have the kitchen, living room, and your bedroom done, close the doors to other bedrooms and give yourself some time off from decluttering.

Alternative 1, contact an estate sale company and see if they can take a large chunk of the items off your hands.
Alternative 2, take a week off from work and give yourself *just* that time to go through things.  Anything left at the end of the week should be donated/gotten rid of.

[SunnyDays]

Slackmax, my heart really hurts for you.  Is there anyone who can help?  Friends, family, hired person?  Please try for your own sanity...

There's just sooo much stuff.

I was watching an episode of 'Hoarders' a while ago, and the narrator said that the son of the hoarder was probably going to take a few years to declutter his mother's house. I thought 'how can that be?'.  But here I am taking years to declutter my girlfriend's hoard. It's true. It's such a boring grind, that's the thing.   
   

You are making it harder on yourself than it technically needs to be.  The hard part is not just physically getting rid of it.  That could be done in short order, but if you're trying to get as much money out of it as you can, then it will take a lot longer.  From reading your older posts, it seems like you have to go through a process of considering what an item is worth, making an attempt to get that amount for it, and only if you fail, letting it go for free.  Unless you really need the money, there is likely something else going on here.  Maybe an attachment to the stuff because it was your girlfriend's or an anxiety about seeing the house truly "empty.?"  And if it's about the money, how much money in total is it worth to you to go through this lengthy process?  (I also find it interesting that in one post you talk about having given up the battle with your girlfriend around her accumulation of stuff, and yet, now that you can get rid of it all, you seem to be in no hurry to do so.  Humans - we're so contradictory, huh?)

Here's something interesting:  Even though I carefully evaluate every item while decluttering the house, the 3 packed storage units my girlfriend was renting were another story. After she died, I took a TV and 4 folding chairs, and that was it. Her family wanted nothing to do with the storage units, and they actually thought I would just sell it all off. But it was all 'junk', maybe a few things worth something.  And I wasn't crazy enough to go through it all. I told the owner of the storage place he could have it all, and he agreed, with no charge to me. He wasn't going to allow me to hold a storage unit sale on the property, anyway, so that wasn't even a consideration.  So I saved untold hours of my time by just "letting all that stuff just go".     Yay for me, lol.     

Yes, that IS interesting.  What is preventing you from taking this same approach with the stuff in your house?  Do you feel that it is more yours, since it is in your house?  Or because you have easier access to it all, you can take the time to go through each item?  Are the items actually worth more than the "junk" in the storage units?  Maybe the solution is to move all the stuff into another storage unit, then let the owner have that too!

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

I've got a friend who is a storage unit broker. She regularly has to clean out units, and it's always absolute junk they're full of. OK, maaaaaaybe the tenants took out everything of worth before abandoning the unit. She sometimes has to go into units with the tenant's permission, to replace rodent traps or whatever else and it's still just all junk. Why people pay to keep acres and acres of absolute shit is beyond me. I've helped her clear out units and it's cardboard boxes of linen that could have gone to a thrift store years ago, paperwork no one cares about, cheap crappy furniture, old appliances etc. The units rented by commercial entities are even worse - advertising material from years ago, shop display systems they don't even use anymore and that aren't complete, hundreds of plastic coathangers, broken desks etc. Just worthless bullshit.

[horsepoor]

I've got a friend who is a storage unit broker. She regularly has to clean out units, and it's always absolute junk they're full of. OK, maaaaaaybe the tenants took out everything of worth before abandoning the unit. She sometimes has to go into units with the tenant's permission, to replace rodent traps or whatever else and it's still just all junk. Why people pay to keep acres and acres of absolute shit is beyond me. I've helped her clear out units and it's cardboard boxes of linen that could have gone to a thrift store years ago, paperwork no one cares about, cheap crappy furniture, old appliances etc. The units rented by commercial entities are even worse - advertising material from years ago, shop display systems they don't even use anymore and that aren't complete, hundreds of plastic coathangers, broken desks etc. Just worthless bullshit.

And they can't seem to build new storage units fast enough around here

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

I've got a friend who is a storage unit broker. She regularly has to clean out units, and it's always absolute junk they're full of. OK, maaaaaaybe the tenants took out everything of worth before abandoning the unit. She sometimes has to go into units with the tenant's permission, to replace rodent traps or whatever else and it's still just all junk. Why people pay to keep acres and acres of absolute shit is beyond me. I've helped her clear out units and it's cardboard boxes of linen that could have gone to a thrift store years ago, paperwork no one cares about, cheap crappy furniture, old appliances etc. The units rented by commercial entities are even worse - advertising material from years ago, shop display systems they don't even use anymore and that aren't complete, hundreds of plastic coathangers, broken desks etc. Just worthless bullshit.

And they can't seem to build new storage units fast enough around here

An entire industry built on the fact that people can't part with useless, worthless garbage. It's not even stuff with sentimental value, as far as I can see. It's really just garbage.

[Tyson]

I've got a friend who is a storage unit broker. She regularly has to clean out units, and it's always absolute junk they're full of. OK, maaaaaaybe the tenants took out everything of worth before abandoning the unit. She sometimes has to go into units with the tenant's permission, to replace rodent traps or whatever else and it's still just all junk. Why people pay to keep acres and acres of absolute shit is beyond me. I've helped her clear out units and it's cardboard boxes of linen that could have gone to a thrift store years ago, paperwork no one cares about, cheap crappy furniture, old appliances etc. The units rented by commercial entities are even worse - advertising material from years ago, shop display systems they don't even use anymore and that aren't complete, hundreds of plastic coathangers, broken desks etc. Just worthless bullshit.

And they can't seem to build new storage units fast enough around here

An entire industry built on the fact that people can't part with useless, worthless garbage. It's not even stuff with sentimental value, as far as I can see. It's really just garbage.

It's the sunk cost fallacy, writ large.

[slackmax]

Slackmax, my heart really hurts for you.  Is there anyone who can help?  Friends, family, hired person?  Please try for your own sanity...

There's just sooo much stuff.

I was watching an episode of 'Hoarders' a while ago, and the narrator said that the son of the hoarder was probably going to take a few years to declutter his mother's house. I thought 'how can that be?'.  But here I am taking years to declutter my girlfriend's hoard. It's true. It's such a boring grind, that's the thing.   
   

You are making it harder on yourself than it technically needs to be.  The hard part is not just physically getting rid of it.  That could be done in short order, but if you're trying to get as much money out of it as you can, then it will take a lot longer.  From reading your older posts, it seems like you have to go through a process of considering what an item is worth, making an attempt to get that amount for it, and only if you fail, letting it go for free.  Unless you really need the money, there is likely something else going on here.  Maybe an attachment to the stuff because it was your girlfriend's or an anxiety about seeing the house truly "empty.?"  And if it's about the money, how much money in total is it worth to you to go through this lengthy process?  (I also find it interesting that in one post you talk about having given up the battle with your girlfriend around her accumulation of stuff, and yet, now that you can get rid of it all, you seem to be in no hurry to do so.  Humans - we're so contradictory, huh?)

Here's something interesting:  Even though I carefully evaluate every item while decluttering the house, the 3 packed storage units my girlfriend was renting were another story. After she died, I took a TV and 4 folding chairs, and that was it. Her family wanted nothing to do with the storage units, and they actually thought I would just sell it all off. But it was all 'junk', maybe a few things worth something.  And I wasn't crazy enough to go through it all. I told the owner of the storage place he could have it all, and he agreed, with no charge to me. He wasn't going to allow me to hold a storage unit sale on the property, anyway, so that wasn't even a consideration.  So I saved untold hours of my time by just "letting all that stuff just go".     Yay for me, lol.     

Yes, that IS interesting.  What is preventing you from taking this same approach with the stuff in your house?  Do you feel that it is more yours, since it is in your house?  Or because you have easier access to it all, you can take the time to go through each item?  Are the items actually worth more than the "junk" in the storage units?  Maybe the solution is to move all the stuff into another storage unit, then let the owner have that too!

Anna, I love your description of the stuff in storage units. Spot on!

Now I remember some more details. I would have had to keep paying the $290 per month rent for the crap. Plus I had all the estate probate stuff to mess with, a huge amount of clerical tasks, and no time for the storage crap. My girlfriend left no will even though we were asking her to make one, and I agreed to help with  the probate work. 

So......... the stuff that's currently in my house isn't costing any rent, so it's less annoying than junk I would have to pay rent on (And no, I can't believe any sane person would pay to store crap month after month forever, but that's what hoarders do. Psychological problems).   

*** Maybe the solution is to move all the stuff into another storage unit, then let the owner have that too!  ***  Love it!  lol. 

Yes, I think the stuff she left in the house is more valuable than the stuff she stored in the units. I'm coming across some "collector items" here and there now. You would not believe what people collect and pay for :  example - a guy at my rummage sale place sells old blank receipt pads for some Texaco station from the 60's, for $4 a pad, and people buy them !!

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I am taking them seriously. And I have already attacked the big things. I even donated a large fake Christmas tree instead of waiting til Christmas to sell it, just to get rid of it because it was big. So I'm not a hopeless case,  lol.

[SunnyDays]

I've got a friend who is a storage unit broker. She regularly has to clean out units, and it's always absolute junk they're full of. OK, maaaaaaybe the tenants took out everything of worth before abandoning the unit. She sometimes has to go into units with the tenant's permission, to replace rodent traps or whatever else and it's still just all junk. Why people pay to keep acres and acres of absolute shit is beyond me. I've helped her clear out units and it's cardboard boxes of linen that could have gone to a thrift store years ago, paperwork no one cares about, cheap crappy furniture, old appliances etc. The units rented by commercial entities are even worse - advertising material from years ago, shop display systems they don't even use anymore and that aren't complete, hundreds of plastic coathangers, broken desks etc. Just worthless bullshit.

And they can't seem to build new storage units fast enough around here

An entire industry built on the fact that people can't part with useless, worthless garbage. It's not even stuff with sentimental value, as far as I can see. It's really just garbage.

It's the sunk cost fallacy, writ large.

Or, as most of us on this thread have discovered, actually dealing with your stuff takes time and physical and emotional energy.  Way easier to just put it out of sight, even if you have to pay for that privilege.

[Ladychips]

[quote
 So I'm not a hopeless case,  lol
[/quote]

@slackmax , I don't think you're hopeless.  I just think you are in a really crappy situation that has been crappy for so long you don't even realize how much it is weighing you down.  I'd like to see that weight gone so you can start living your best life, not weighed down by the past and another person's choices.

[Sugaree]

Made about $100 at consignment sale.  A lot of sellers were complaining about how they made so much less money this year than last.  I'm sitting over here happy because I got paid for stuff that was just going to the theft store anyway.

I purged my drawers and got rid of a bunch of stuff.  I finally came to terms with the fact that it's unlikely I'll ever be a size 2 again, and even if I do I'm entirely too old to wear those clothes again.  Aside from the boxes of stuff that's stored over at my parents house that I'm debating putting on poshmark, that takes care of decluttering all of our clothes.  I need to cut down the number of towels we have, or at least the number we keep in the bathroom, but we're making progress.

[Nederstash]

I vividly remember posting here that I was done decluttering... sigh, what a glorious time that was. I remember, clear as day, looking around my house and seeing a serene, clean space filled with only items I love. But life has a way of sneaking shit into your house, so here I am again. I feel a little agitated when I look around my house. Little piles of books stacked on top of a dresser because there's no more room. A gift I'm storing purely out of obligation. Various books in various states of finishing. My sock basket... none of my socks are folded in the Marie Kondo style and it just looks so messy. Dvd's, even though I recently upgraded to a laptop that doesn't support any discs. Heck, even bike keys from bikes that were stolen (yes, plural, sadly) and are unlikely to turn up again.
 
I'm also dealing with burn out. This means that I will have to budget my energy very carefully. My first instinct is to pull everything off the shelf and have a massive 5 day declutter fiesta, followed by a 5 day deep clean. Perfectionist at heart... I have to keep asking myself "what I can do in an hour?" without committing to anything bigger.
 
I guess I'll start with:
1. Collecting all my dvd's, photographing them and list them online (30 minutes?)
2. Take a basket and go around my house. If I immediately know it can go, it goes in the donation basket. Borrowed items also go in here, I'll sort the basket out later. (15 minutes)
3. Fold my damn socks (15 minutes)
4. Any time left: have a cuppa.

[Roadrunner53]

Nederstash, I feel your pain. I have taken a zillion trips to Goodwill and dropped off carloads of stuff. I have bagged up probably 75 bags to the Vietnam Vets. We have rented dumpsters (gigantic) 3 times and filled them up. We had 1800 got junk to haul some stuff away. The hub has cleaned out stuff in the garage and given stuff to a young guy who appreciates tools and other gizmo's. I gave a ton of professional culinary cookbooks to a local culinary school. We are only two people and have lived in our house over 40 years. We just kept bringing it in and never getting rid of stuff. I still have so much stuff it is ridiculous! I converted my hallway linen closet to a kitchen pantry. I have pots, pans, casseroles, small appliances and it is packed full. All kitchen cabinets are packed full. My bedroom closet is so full I can't fit a thin piece of paper between clothes. Drawers are full. It blows my mind that I have given away so much and still have too much stuff! I cleaned out my computer cabinet and got rid of a ton of stuff and it still is full of stuff. OMG! I think the clutter grows like mushrooms during the night!

I need to get on the ball and start bagging up some junk and get rid of it. It is like a full time job!

[SunnyDays]

Week 12:

Worked on the bathroom this week, so mainly toiletries to report.
78. Inflatable bath pillow-who has time for baths, I'm too busy decluttering!  To be offered to relative.
79. Soap dish a previous roommate left behind - animal rescue garage sale.
80. Battery operated toothbrush.  Hate it.  Thrift store.
81. Huge bag of cotton balls - thrift store.
82. Like new suitcase most recent roommate left behind.  Tear to be sewn and given to animal rescue garage sale.
83. Bag of miscellaneous small toiletries - to be offered to relative.
84. Bag of packing peanuts - thrift store.

2 1/2 weeks to go!  I'm having to look harder to find things, but's it's still not really hard.  Goes to show how much useless stuff I had/have.  I only have one bedroom/storage room and the basement to finish, then I'm done.  Well, and the shed, but that will have to wait until spring, because I'll be running out of good weather soon.

Wow, Roadrunner 53, that's a lot of stuff!  40 years is a long time to accumulate things.  Has more stuff come in too?  It sounds stressful to live with all that.  Maybe you should try my method, but aim for 5 - 10 items a day?  You can't possibly be using it all?

[Nederstash]

Just took a box to fill with 'quick decision items'... and promptly got sucked into my supply closet. I purged, cleaned and organised that for an hour. I can never do things half way...

[Roadrunner53]

SunnyDays, I keep tossing out stuff. Yes, stuff does keep coming in but I try to get rid of something old when something new comes in. Doesn't always work. Last year got an 8 quart Instant Pot and it is pretty huge. I got rid of a pot or two so I could have a place to store the IP. I am going to get on the ball and start purging again. I have a bunch of bags downstairs already for Vietnam Vets but I like to have at least 10 giant garbage bags full before I call them. I think I have about 5 right now.

I should challenge myself to purging 5 things a day or more!

Anyone know what to do with old cell phones? Does anyone really want used flip phones and non smart phones?

[Sugaree]

Anyone know what to do with old cell phones? Does anyone really want used flip phones and non smart phones?

One of my brother's Eagle Scout projects was to collect old cell phones for a battered women's shelter.  They could program them so that they could be used for emergency calls.  I don't know if they can still use them or not, but that's a place to start.

[Bracken_Joy]

Anyone know what to do with old cell phones? Does anyone really want used flip phones and non smart phones?

https://www.cnet.com/how-to/recycle-your-old-phone-laptop-tv-and-batteries-everything-you-need-to-know/

Don't throw them away, whatever you do. Husband's job has him run across what happens when batteries start fires in trash compactors and sorting facilities. It isn't pretty, and it's just so unnecessary.

[slackmax]

Made about $100 at consignment sale.  A lot of sellers were complaining about how they made so much less money this year than last.  I'm sitting over here happy because I got paid for stuff that was just going to the theft store anyway.

I purged my drawers and got rid of a bunch of stuff.  I finally came to terms with the fact that it's unlikely I'll ever be a size 2 again, and even if I do I'm entirely too old to wear those clothes again. 

Sugaree,  What do you mean by consignment sale? Was it  several sellers at the same location, like a 'carboot sale'?    You must have unloaded some nice clothes to earn $100, lol.