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

[Raenia]

Not a personal win, but today I found out my sister has started watching Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, and has been inspired to start decluttering!  Not that she was particularly bad about clutter, but I'm sure she could stand to go through her things.

I have a batch ready to go to the thrift store the next time I head that way, and also a few books to be donated to the library.  Recently added a fruitbowl I was given as a housewarming gift, that I didn't like, and a computer bad of DH's that hurt his back when he used it for work.

Next up, one of these days, we really need to go through the storage space.  I'm sure I've forgotten most of what's down there, but it's a daunting task so I've been putting it off.  Plus I have to have DH with me, because a lot of the stuff may be his.

[HappierAtHome]

Not a personal win, but today I found out my sister has started watching Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, and has been inspired to start decluttering!  Not that she was particularly bad about clutter, but I'm sure she could stand to go through her things.

That's awesome!!

Good luck with the storage space.

[HappierAtHome]

Made so much progress today. I'm proud of me. Cleared out a whole cupboard in the laundry (still lots to do in there!), another kitchen cupboard and one of the hall cupboards. Giving away boxes of stuff on Buy Nothing.

[former player]

Just tried out a whole lot of paints from tester pots I've been saving, and it's quite clear that all but one of them will never darken my walls. 

Gone.

[LaineyAZ]

RaymondR,
re:  coffee tables.  I was a little surprised to find out you can function without one.  I had a relative with a toddler who removed it for safety reasons, because as we all know toddlers will inevitably stumble and hit their heads on those darn things.  Removing it really opened up the living room space, so she kept it that way even after he was school age.

[TomTX]

I'm a little jealous...we have at least a dozen partial gallons of paint in the basement, most from the original owners of our house who used it probably 15+ years ago.  We've kept it because of laziness/intertia, but also because we thought it might be useful to do touch-ups (that hasn't happened) or to color-match if we ever decide to repaint some rooms (not gonna happen anytime soon).  The paint is probably no good after all this time, so I'd really like to start getting rid of it.

That paint is most likely garbage.  Depending on the pigments - it may only work for touch ups for three or four years (anything with reds is quickly faded in a bright room)  And you probably want the lower VOC paints on your walls now anyway.

Most of the colors are neutral -- grays, beiges, light blues.  But you're still right that it's all most likely no good anymore.  I'm going to put this on my list of things that are somewhat annoying to get rid of.  Along with CFL bulbs, rechargeable batteries, old Christmas tree lights, and wood scraps.

Well sealed latex (water based) paints stored in reasonable condition are often still good for well over a decade. Color in the can probably hasn't shifted, though the color on the wall may have faded.

Not as good for touchups (unless you use techniques like drybrushing to blend instead of to highlight) - often still perfectly fine when painting a whole wall or room.

Any "skins" on the surface should be cut off and disposed of, but liquid paint and settled pigment is likely still good.

[Need2Save]

It's a snow day here on the East Coast (U.S.).  Hubby will be working on about ten Ebay postings today. I'm proud of him for reselling a few of his power tools and related accessories that he knows he will not be using for many years until we sell this house and settle down somewhere else. Hoping he can get decent money for them instead of collecting dust. He's keeping anything we may need for general maintenance though or possibly to get this place ready to sell.

Since yesterday, I've found two more things to try to sell on Ebay and tossed or put on the donation pile about twenty more items we no longer need. Some never used. It's sad to see how many things enter our life and are never used, not even one time.

[Roadrunner53]

It's a snow day here on the East Coast (U.S.).  Hubby will be working on about ten Ebay postings today. I'm proud of him for reselling a few of his power tools and related accessories that he knows he will not be using for many years until we sell this house and settle down somewhere else. Hoping he can get decent money for them instead of collecting dust. He's keeping anything we may need for general maintenance though or possibly to get this place ready to sell.

Since yesterday, I've found two more things to try to sell on Ebay and tossed or put on the donation pile about twenty more items we no longer need. Some never used. It's sad to see how many things enter our life and are never used, not even one time.

You are not alone. I have many clothes that have never been worn and still have original tags on them. So many things used once or twice and never used again...

[oneday]

Oneday - you are seriously rocking the email.

Thank you!

My sister is taking the Royal Albert tiered cake stand that was a gift from my BFF. My BFF is taking the Royal Doulton cut glass decanter that was a gift from my sister. I find this HILARIOUS.

This is amazing.  Truth is really stranger than fiction.


Decluttered a pair of pants that no longer fit: gave them to Sis.  Had to put her on a plane to go halfway across the country today, too :(  At least she won't be pants-less when she gets there.

[I'm a red panda]

RaymondR,
re:  coffee tables.  I was a little surprised to find out you can function without one.  I had a relative with a toddler who removed it for safety reasons, because as we all know toddlers will inevitably stumble and hit their heads on those darn things.  Removing it really opened up the living room space, so she kept it that way even after he was school age.

We haven't had one in a decade. Just another thing to clean...

I made the Goodwill run today, do that's a win

[Poundwise]

An article which fits nicely into this thread and forum: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/jan/10/marie-kondo-you-know-what-would-spark-joy-buying-less-crap

Instead of buying more party supplies for my daughter's party, I posted a request on Buy Nothing.

I wasn't able to bring myself to go through all the kid art/sentimental stuff (just chucked it upstairs into the attic) but I did identify three handsewn Halloween costumes that I'm ready to part with.  Husband put them in the garage before I could take photos and post them, but hopefully I'll get the energy to do so soon.

[horsepoor]

I'm having a bit of a laugh at myself.  This weekend I moved our two free-standing book shelves up to the office along with the books.  In their place, I put four wall-mounted shelves - two on each side of the fireplace.  Aside from two small groups of books and two pairs of bookends, I have almost nothing to put on these shelves.  I'll have to comb through the house and try to find a few tchotchkes to keep them from looking completely empty.  I was considering adding a third tier of shelving, but clearly we don't need it!

[adamsputnik]

Continuing to make progress here. Over the weekend we tidied up the kitchen hutch, which involved getting rid of random crap that had built up in the drawers, tossing dozens of old candles and such, and getting a bunch of unused crockery ready for donation. Even that took a couple of hours.

Also took the remaining carload of trash from the basement to the dump today, so that's a lot less clutter sitting around down there.

[I'm a red panda]

An article which fits nicely into this thread and forum: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/jan/10/marie-kondo-you-know-what-would-spark-joy-buying-less-crap

Instead of buying more party supplies for my daughter's party, I posted a request on Buy Nothing.

I wasn't able to bring myself to go through all the kid art/sentimental stuff (just chucked it upstairs into the attic) but I did identify three handsewn Halloween costumes that I'm ready to part with.  Husband put them in the garage before I could take photos and post them, but hopefully I'll get the energy to do so soon.

Yep- I hope Marie Kondo goes over with her clients that the next step is to not buy more things to fill the space.

[Serendip]

An article which fits nicely into this thread and forum: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/jan/10/marie-kondo-you-know-what-would-spark-joy-buying-less-crap

Instead of buying more party supplies for my daughter's party, I posted a request on Buy Nothing.

I wasn't able to bring myself to go through all the kid art/sentimental stuff (just chucked it upstairs into the attic) but I did identify three handsewn Halloween costumes that I'm ready to part with.  Husband put them in the garage before I could take photos and post them, but hopefully I'll get the energy to do so soon.

Yep- I hope Marie Kondo goes over with her clients that the next step is to not buy more things to fill the space.

Good article--more space can and should start by having less all along!

I did toss a bag of ripped flannel sheets that I'd been holding onto in hopes of doing an art project...I then tried to donate them to the local animal shelter as liners but they didn't need them. I felt guilty throwing them out but really couldn't find a better way to dispose of them, no textile recycling around here. Used some to make cleaning rags and sewed some into washable wipes for my sister with a baby..but the mountain of sheets was a bit overwhelming.

[mspym]

It's the feeling I get in IKEA - you generally don't need a Cunning Storage Solution! What you need is Less Stuff!

Two more books into the street library. I am getting holes in the shelves now, instead of everything being double-stacked.

[Frugal Lizard]

4 vases left the house yesterday.
today nothing much happened but I did find the receipt to some stuff I bought just in case and didn't so I will take it back tomorrow.

[I'm a red panda]

An article which fits nicely into this thread and forum: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/jan/10/marie-kondo-you-know-what-would-spark-joy-buying-less-crap

Instead of buying more party supplies for my daughter's party, I posted a request on Buy Nothing.

I wasn't able to bring myself to go through all the kid art/sentimental stuff (just chucked it upstairs into the attic) but I did identify three handsewn Halloween costumes that I'm ready to part with.  Husband put them in the garage before I could take photos and post them, but hopefully I'll get the energy to do so soon.

Yep- I hope Marie Kondo goes over with her clients that the next step is to not buy more things to fill the space.

Good article--more space can and should start by having less all along!

I did toss a bag of ripped flannel sheets that I'd been holding onto in hopes of doing an art project...I then tried to donate them to the local animal shelter as liners but they didn't need them. I felt guilty throwing them out but really couldn't find a better way to dispose of them, no textile recycling around here. Used some to make cleaning rags and sewed some into washable wipes for my sister with a baby..but the mountain of sheets was a bit overwhelming.

Do you have a buy nothing project?
Next time, offer there. Someone else might be doing the craft project. (Though I occasionally worry about enabling hoarders, so there are some people I won't give to.)

[Ducknald Don]

Yep- I hope Marie Kondo goes over with her clients that the next step is to not buy more things to fill the space.

I did get the impression that she was in a cycle of consuming then discarding. If you have a problem with excess stuff then the first thing to do is stop bringing it into the house.

[Sugaree]

Sold the high chair (for $10 more than I paid for it 5 years ago!) and got signed up for the spring consignment sale.  Will just go ahead and donate most of what's left after the sale.  I'd say that it's helping, but I think I'm losing the battle of the stuff (married to someone with hoarding tendencies). 

[I'm a red panda]

Yep- I hope Marie Kondo goes over with her clients that the next step is to not buy more things to fill the space.

I did get the impression that she was in a cycle of consuming then discarding. If you have a problem with excess stuff then the first thing to do is stop bringing it into the house.

I'm not sure it matters which order your stop buying stuff. You just have to stop buying it.  People who do these TV shows aren't taking years to clean out stuff; so it's a difference of like a month if they declutter first or second.


In other news, got rid of a printer that's been sitting on the floor of my office waiting to be taken to the dump.  Finally had room in my trashcan (we have a 35 gallon can with biweekly pickup; so we rarely have spare space in it.)

[Sugaree]

Yep- I hope Marie Kondo goes over with her clients that the next step is to not buy more things to fill the space.

I did get the impression that she was in a cycle of consuming then discarding. If you have a problem with excess stuff then the first thing to do is stop bringing it into the house.

My husband does this.  He's not necessarily buying things as much as he is finding treasures.  Sometimes it works out and he finds cool stuff that we can actually use.  Sometimes he brings home 16 bowling balls.  He's got decent taste, so if I could train him to actually let stuff go I think we could set up a solid side-gig flipping stuff like furniture that's left behind when the college kids move out at the end of the semester. 

[SunnyDays]

I Did toss a bag of ripped flannel sheets that I'd been holding onto in hopes of doing an art project...I then tried to donate them to the local animal shelter as liners but they didn't need them. I felt guilty throwing them out but really couldn't find a better way to dispose of them, no textile recycling around here. Used some to make cleaning rags and sewed some into washable wipes for my sister with a baby..but the mountain of sheets was a bit overwhelming.

Most Thrift stores do fabric recycling simply because they receive so much unusable clothing.  The Salvation Army where I live actually has a facility specifically for recycling things that aren't sold in their stores.  That being said, I have also heard that only 1% of clothing in general ever gets truly recycled and tons of it ends up in Africa, where the unsold stuff there then gets burned.  Regarding sheets in particular, I use old ones for my outdoor plants when frost threatens.  Fast and effective.

[Serendip]

I Did toss a bag of ripped flannel sheets that I'd been holding onto in hopes of doing an art project...I then tried to donate them to the local animal shelter as liners but they didn't need them. I felt guilty throwing them out but really couldn't find a better way to dispose of them, no textile recycling around here. Used some to make cleaning rags and sewed some into washable wipes for my sister with a baby..but the mountain of sheets was a bit overwhelming.

Most Thrift stores do fabric recycling simply because they receive so much unusable clothing.  The Salvation Army where I live actually has a facility specifically for recycling things that aren't sold in their stores.  That being said, I have also heard that only 1% of clothing in general ever gets truly recycled and tons of it ends up in Africa, where the unsold stuff there then gets burned.  Regarding sheets in particular, I use old ones for my outdoor plants when frost threatens.  Fast and effective.

That's great that they can recycle fabric--our community is small so not much in textile recycling resources but turnover at the thrift store is high (due to a transient population of seasonal workers)..so it's always better if  things can be donated because they move through all types of objects at a rapid rate.

Cleaning up my studio space today
--donating some fabric, film, bags and odds & ends art supplies

[Frugal Lizard]

Somehow I have managed to purge so much that I have four large bins that used to be full now empty.  They are quite handy to have to put stuff in for trips and activities ie: Kids, we are going skating - get your gear in this bin for the car" and then all the helmets and skates and water bottles get in there and it is one trip to the car. 
But it also means there is way less stuff in our house because they used to be full of I don't know what.

[I'm a red panda]

I Did toss a bag of ripped flannel sheets that I'd been holding onto in hopes of doing an art project...I then tried to donate them to the local animal shelter as liners but they didn't need them. I felt guilty throwing them out but really couldn't find a better way to dispose of them, no textile recycling around here. Used some to make cleaning rags and sewed some into washable wipes for my sister with a baby..but the mountain of sheets was a bit overwhelming.

Most Thrift stores do fabric recycling simply because they receive so much unusable clothing.  The Salvation Army where I live actually has a facility specifically for recycling things that aren't sold in their stores.  That being said, I have also heard that only 1% of clothing in general ever gets truly recycled and tons of it ends up in Africa, where the unsold stuff there then gets burned.  Regarding sheets in particular, I use old ones for my outdoor plants when frost threatens.  Fast and effective.

That's great that they can recycle fabric--our community is small so not much in textile recycling resources but turnover at the thrift store is high (due to a transient population of seasonal workers)..so it's always better if  things can be donated because they move through all types of objects at a rapid rate.

The way fabric recycling is done in my community is that it is bundled up and sold to someone out of state. There is no facility to recycle it here.

[Goldielocks]

One thing I still want to do is replace some (or all) of the free-standing shelves with wall-mounted shelves.  We have six free-standing units and I really dislike the way they look.  Plus it really bothers me that I can't run the vacuum under the free-standing units!

You can mount free standing units to the wall.  You may need to add wood cleats to the wall across the studs, including one for below the unit to support it, then screw the units to the wall cleats... you can also use L brackets at the top of the unit..  depends on the construction of your units, of course, but we have had success with this..

[I'm a red panda]

I helped husband clean out his closet and drawers. 32 items going to Goodwill. And now I can out his laundry away because they aren't stuffed so tight (but always nicely folded) that I can't squeeze more in.

[use2betrix]

We are moving in March so have made a major effort to get rid of things! Mostly selling on Craigslist and forums. This is what we’ve sold so far.

Motorcycle gloves $50
Skateboard $55
Motorcycle tire $80
Guitar amp $95
Books $65

Today we should be selling my guitar for $295 and this extra extension cord for our 5th wheel we sold for $75.

Hoping to sell my motorcycle soon as well, but we’ll see.

[Frugal Lizard]

A few more things found their way into the give-away box.
Yesterday I defrosted the deep freezer and sorted through the contents before putting it all back in. (it was really really cold last night so I stick all the food out in the enclosed porch and it is just like being in the freezer!)
Tonight's meal is going to be mostly from said freezer.

[Serendip]

Selling a loom, should be picked up tomorrow.
I feel happy to move it along as I didn't have the best relationship with this particular item, and maybe will own another in the future but for now--so MUCH space cleared up!

[better late]

I’ve been clearing out 5 items a day since Jan 1st...today’s the 20th... so I’m at 100 items given away, thrown away or listed/sold on Craigslist etc. since the start of 2019. Not a dent in the visual clutter or in my feeling of being overwhelmed/owned by my items. I will continue for the rest of January at least.

[Fresh Bread]

I’ve been clearing out 5 items a day since Jan 1st...today’s the 20th... so I’m at 100 items given away, thrown away or listed/sold on Craigslist etc. since the start of 2019. Not a dent in the visual clutter or in my feeling of being overwhelmed/owned by my items. I will continue for the rest of January at least.

That's a shame! Have you got time (maybe in Feb) to spend half a day tackling one group of things eg DVDs and CDs or clothes or shoes? Whatever might be taking up a lot of visual space and give you a boost.

[Roadrunner53]

I’ve been clearing out 5 items a day since Jan 1st...today’s the 20th... so I’m at 100 items given away, thrown away or listed/sold on Craigslist etc. since the start of 2019. Not a dent in the visual clutter or in my feeling of being overwhelmed/owned by my items. I will continue for the rest of January at least.

I would suggest you get some giant garbage bags (33 gallon size), the black ones. Go to an area that needs hoeing out. Wing the stuff in the bag that you want to get rid of but not sell. Fill a bunch of bags up and throw them in your car. Drive them to the nearest Goodwill store and donate them. This will be a no brainer. No selling, no advertising, just winging junk in bags that someone else can use. If you don't want to take them to Goodwill, call the Vietnam Veterans and they will arrange a date and will pick them up outside your house. You just have to bag and tag them VVA. Magically, the bags will be gone! I would say go to the area that needs attention, take you bags and a timer. Allow yourself 30 minutes to one hour each session. Don't dilly dally. Do this knowing time is precious and you are on a mission. Don't overthink what you are getting rid of. Bad zones in your house are just junk holes that need to be hoed out. If certain things you pull out are questionable, put them to the side. Don't dwell on them right now. Your mission is to hoe and wing into bags. Do this once a week or more. Make it a game to see how many bags you can fill up in one hour. Hoeing out 5 items a day is fine once you get the bulk of the crap out of your house. Bag it, tag it and get rid of it! Now I need to do some hoeing and winging! Anyone want to have a black bag challenge? There are 10 days till the end of the month. We could all report in on how many bags we filled on January 31, 2019.

[Bird In Hand]

This weekend I had a couple small-but-meaningful wins in the Great Basement Decluttering.

First, after several cluttering/decluttering cycles in the basement over the past 5+ years, I've gradually ended up with three cardboard boxes containing small miscellaneous items that don't have an obvious home.  It seems kind of silly, but these small boxes (~4 cubic feet) have been a disproportionately large mental burden to me.  I see them frequently, and they are a constant reminder of tedious, unfinished business.

So I decided to tackle these boxes this weekend.  I did manage to throw a bit of it away, but mostly it was an exercise in sorting, combining like items, and finding/creating homes for things.  There is a beautiful empty place on the floor where the boxes once sat.  I still need to vacuum that spot for full closure.  But just knowing that I no longer have these dozens of orphaned items with no where to go -- it's a great feeling!

--

Second, I had planned to add some wall-mounted shelving to help organize my basement tool/work area.  I was at the hardware store and had $60+ worth of heavy-duty double-track shelf standards and brackets in my cart.  I started looking at the melamine shelf boards, and I realized that I was going to be spending $100+ just to make four smallish shelves.

My frugal side won out.  I put the heavy-duty stuff back and picked up $12 worth of angle brackets.  They only hold 100lbs, but that's still way more than I need for these shelves.  I also decided on the spot that I was going to use some scrap wood from a long-abandoned project instead of buying new shelf board.

When it was all said and done, it cost me $12 to organize my work area and my garage work bench (by removing 10+ sqft of scrap wood I re-purposed for the shelves).

[I'm a red panda]

Decided in addition to the youtube #hugyourhome (which gets rid of a signifigant number of items) I'm going to do the monthly "minimalism game"- 1 item first day, 2 second day, etc, for a month.  So that's another 496 items.

I don't have time to do that on a daily basis, so I'm going through and looking for items in sets that fit the numbers. 

I have 2 giant bags in my car for goodwill. I also decided the bag I wanted to consign I'll talk to goodwill. It's good stuff, but it's long sleeve and they are asking for summer now. I just want it gone.

[Car Jack]

Craigslisted a starter weight bench with a bar and weights for $25.

Wife decided she was going to take one container of stuff from our bedroom at a time and go through it.  First on included work benefits paperwork.........from 2003, a metal hanger and a bunch of medical receipts from the early 2000's.  So everything was properly recycled.  Container #2 is now chosen and ready to sort.

[Frugal Lizard]

Working on clearing out an area in the basement so I have a space to set up the grow lights and heat mat for starting seedlings.  Lots of tools that don't have a space under the tool bench and cluttering up the surface.  Want to get them an away place or a new home.

[mspym]

Flights booked to go help my mum sort through and pack up her life as prep for moving house. Wish me luck.

[zygote]

I finally had the time to take pictures of and bag up the clothes I chose to get rid of a few weeks ago. I like to take pictures because it helps me be okay with letting things go. At least I'll always have that marker that it was in my life.

Anyway, it turned out to be 7 paper grocery bags worth. I can't believe I still had that much superfluous clothing after doing a giant Kondo-style purge a year ago!! It seriously has felt so good not to have the extra stuff in my closet and drawers. I finally feel like I'm at a click point (for clothing, at least).

Books and papers are still pretty good. Books all fit on one shelf and papers all fit in one accordion style folder. My next plan is to do a sweep of kitchen stuff and bathroom stuff. I can think of a few things off the top of my head that can go.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

I made a goal to better use travel time last week. (International flights for work.) I deleted 565 photos, which is a good starting point. One of my goals for 2019 is to properly organize my photos, so getting rid of the junk will make it much easier to proceed.

[HappierAtHome]

Flights booked to go help my mum sort through and pack up her life as prep for moving house. Wish me luck.

Best of luck, mspym!

[better late]

I’ve been clearing out 5 items a day since Jan 1st...today’s the 20th... so I’m at 100 items given away, thrown away or listed/sold on Craigslist etc. since the start of 2019. Not a dent in the visual clutter or in my feeling of being overwhelmed/owned by my items. I will continue for the rest of January at least.

I would suggest you get some giant garbage bags (33 gallon size), the black ones. Go to an area that needs hoeing out. Wing the stuff in the bag that you want to get rid of but not sell. Fill a bunch of bags up and throw them in your car. Drive them to the nearest Goodwill store and donate them. This will be a no brainer. No selling, no advertising, just winging junk in bags that someone else can use. If you don't want to take them to Goodwill, call the Vietnam Veterans and they will arrange a date and will pick them up outside your house. You just have to bag and tag them VVA. Magically, the bags will be gone! I would say go to the area that needs attention, take you bags and a timer. Allow yourself 30 minutes to one hour each session. Don't dilly dally. Do this knowing time is precious and you are on a mission. Don't overthink what you are getting rid of. Bad zones in your house are just junk holes that need to be hoed out. If certain things you pull out are questionable, put them to the side. Don't dwell on them right now. Your mission is to hoe and wing into bags. Do this once a week or more. Make it a game to see how many bags you can fill up in one hour. Hoeing out 5 items a day is fine once you get the bulk of the crap out of your house. Bag it, tag it and get rid of it! Now I need to do some hoeing and winging! Anyone want to have a black bag challenge? There are 10 days till the end of the month. We could all report in on how many bags we filled on January 31, 2019.

So we did the big purge before we put our home on the market, and  another when we downsized into this home. A lot of what’s left is the stuff I put off to decide about later. Clutter=deferred decisions.
And then a lot of it isn’t mine. DH’s or the kids. I’m finding the 5 a day goal helps rally the troops— it’s so concrete.

[mspym]

Flights booked to go help my mum sort through and pack up her life as prep for moving house. Wish me luck.

Best of luck, mspym!

Thanks, I gotta work out the balance between supporting her, helping her feel in control but also not overwhelmed by decision fatigue. It's a big change for her : /

[I'm a red panda]

Does returning 72 cans to Aldi count as decluttering? I hate living in a bottle bill state. Curbside is so much better.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

I was motivated by this thread, so after posting, I got off my duff & deleted another 500 digital pictures, & started to go through the first four boxes of print photos. I tossed another 100+ print photos, and also discovered our 2007 tax returns. Those are in a box ready to go the confidential shredder. I used the remaining folder to create a file for our 2018 taxes.

I'm getting excited about my 2019 photo project(s). Decluttering & having a usable set of photos is definitely the first and hardest part. I'm hoping that making the actual photo books will be much more enjoyable.

[mspym]

Laptop mouse off to the other house for gaming. 10 more books off to the street library. The donation pile shrinks and grows as we shed and find more things to shed.

[Bird In Hand]

I just found out our local library accepts DVD donations -- not to sell but to add to the library's DVD collection.  This is awesome news to us.  Now we can have someone else store our DVDs and we can still enjoy them if/when we want to re-watch something.  And hopefully others in town will enjoy our DVDs too.

If only we could do the same with our CD collection!

[diapasoun]

Major win this weekend: a housemate moved out, which means that a bunch of clutter moved out, too, and some deep cleaning was done. Housemate was wonderful but I didn't realize how much stuff in the common areas was his; our yard and dining room are much clearer now, and will get even clearer once we get a taker for the huge oak desk he left, too!

It also inspired me to get rid of some clutter of my own. I need to be more ruthless about not bringing things into the house (and especially requesting that no one gift me tchotchkes anymore). It's a lot easier than feeling guilty about l letting something go later.

[zygote]

Update: Cleaned out the bathroom cart last night. Got rid of three or four bottles of stuff that was too old to use and/or I don't enjoy using anymore. Just those few things made a difference; everything fits more comfortably now. I also wiped down the whole cart. The amount of dust that gathers in this apartment is unreal. I have no idea where it's coming from. More motivation to minimize the stuff in the apartment that it can cling to.