Have you every felt overwhelmed with all of your stuff, but didn't want to get rid of anything? For my grandmother, who grew up on the tail end of the Great Depression, throwing away something, getting rid of it, only happened when there was nothing left worth using. If there is a remote possibility that we might use said item, it stays. Same for sentimental items. My sister and I are a bit more heartless. What good is something if it's set in a plastic tub for five plus years? None. Yes, I still have trouble getting rid of my childhood keepsakes, but the truth is I am thirty years old and this stuff will never see the light of day! So why not let someone else enjoy it?
After moving "home" to help my grandmother after my grandfather passed away, we fit a three bedroom house into the already stuffed house I grew up in. Or at least we tried to. We had a garage sale, and got rid of anything that was easily replaceable. Everything else was put into the sheds or garage, after we fit everything we could possibly imagine into our own rooms. Top priorities were books, and computers. If I could do without my bed I would. My books are what was important. And yes, I was heartless and got rid of a bunch of them as well, even though I was crying on the inside.
After two years of living with the clutter, my sister and I have begun the Purge. Nearly half of the things I own are in storage of some kind. Our design style is opposite of my grandmother's, and we didn't want to force her to change anything, though we have slowly been introducing items into her décor. Still, there is so much stuff just sitting there. You never realize how much work it takes to keep a house clean until something gets out of hand. And it has, repeatedly over the last could of months. So as soon as the weather turned warm, we rolled up our sleeves and dug in. Every tub, ever shelf, every drawer and dark corner of the closet are being gone through for items to add to the sell pile. It is amazing what we are finding we can do without.
I had forgotten that I owned a lot of stuff. I thought a few days ago, "where did that mirror go?" And found the mirror in a box that had yet to be unpacked from the move (over two years ago), I had even forgotten that I had spray painted the gaudy gold plastic frame a nice blue. I hung it in my closet as a vanity mirror. But stuff like that has been happening the last few days. What good is something if you can't see it? If you forgot you even owned it? In the case of our abundant craft supplies, things have an expiration date. Maybe not literally, like canned foods, but markers dry out, so does paint and stamp pads. Fashion and fads change. So if we are going to use this stuff, it needs to be soon. Some stuff I would never use, but someone else might. So into the sell bins.
We hope we will make enough money on the yard sale, or as my sister has christened it, the Too Much Cool Stuff Sale, that we can pay off some of the medical bills and accompanying bills that have been adding up over the last year. In the struggle between Money vs. Donate, money wins. I just hope we can get this finished in our timeline. I am running on empty, physically and emotionally, and my ability to keep pushing through is being seriously tested.
I am taking a break from writing and editing, to read a bit when I am not working on the Purge... It is one of my few distressing activities. For the rest of you, I know I said an organized space helps write and de-cluttering can help the mind distress, but remember before you take on this kind of thing; It is always more than you planned. It will take more effort, more time, and probably more money than you thought. So find a friend, set a budget, and make a plan. The really trick is sticking to it!
As for me, The Purge continues! To my fellow writers, Write On!
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