Even though we don’t plan on moving for quite awhile, I’ve been thinking about it a lot. We know that if are going to have any chance at eating, we’ll have to get a smaller house. I have mixed feelings about this. Really, the house we’re in is too big for us but I love having all the hiding space for crap. There are several rooms that I consider spare rooms. I have crap in all but one of them, the “formal” dining room which sits totally empty. Why do we have all this crap? Because I’m a part-time packrat. Some things I’ll toss without a second thought, others I hold onto because I might need it someday. Like, those 5 1/4 floppy disks that have programs on them. Good grief, can you even buy a 5 1/4 floppy drive anymore? We probably have over a hundred 3.5″ disks too. I have somewhere around 120 music boxes because once upon a time, I collected them. Then there are boxes that have barely been opened since we moved here 4 years ago. Anyway, you get the idea. We have a lot of crap. So while I know we have to downsize to a smaller house and I’ll miss all this space, I’m somewhat relieved because it forces me to get rid of some of this useless stuff and I won’t have any empty rooms. I’ve been going through things a little at a time. I started with *gasp* yarn. Tossed it right into the garbage bin. Okay, it was one of those plastic grocery bags so there wasn’t much, but still, the horror of throwing away yarn. I went through some clothes and came out with some that I haven’t worn in years. One bag goes to Goodwill or some such place, another hits the garbage, another is old jeans that aren’t good enough for giving away but my daughter will cut up to make another jean quilt. But there’s also stuff that I can’t bring myself to toss. Most of them are things that belonged to the girls when they were little. Report cards, drawings, awards, favorite blankies and stuffed animals. Just can’t do it. Then there are things that are in fine shape but I don’t know what to do with. Dolls still in their original boxes, beach toys, a couple pairs of rollerblades, computer parts, etc etc. I hate organizing for yard sales but I may have to suck it up and do it anyway.
As for knitting, well there hasn’t been much. I did give the half circle shawl another shot, but I didn’t like it either so the yarn is in time out until I can figure out something else. I have un-startitis. It’s irritating, really. There are so many things that I want to make but I don’t want to start anything that I might not finish. And with my track record of actually finishing things, there’s a huge possibility that something isn’t going to get completed. I don’t even want to start a washcloth. Bleh. Maybe if I had different yarn….
The Man is out of town so no huge plans for the long weekend, other than staying in my jammies alot. I might go yarn shopping (not in my jammies) and see if that cures my un-startitis.
August 31st, 2006 at 3:04 pm
I think we should declare another International Pajama Day this weekend.
Pajamas
Knitting or Movies (or both)
Wine
Ignoring the rest of the world for a day
That’s my idea of a good time.
August 31st, 2006 at 3:50 pm
This week has still been crazy-busy for me. I’ll be glad when Labor Day is past — then things *might* get back to normal. I won’t make as much $$, but jeezopete, I’m *tired.*
OTOH, I should finish the knitting on my Oregon shawl tonight sometime! w00t!
August 31st, 2006 at 5:14 pm
Oh, wow, I’m with you on the downsizing. I can’t count how many trips I’ve made to Goodwill (just didn’t have the strength for a yard sale) and I’m about to go through the house one more time before the packers come. I’ve been wanting to downsize for a while, but moving may not be the best way to go about it! Good luck.
August 31st, 2006 at 7:47 pm
I’m so glad you wrote. I was getting ready to send you an e-mail to check on you. I’ll still send an e-mail.
As far as junk, I always think I’ll sell it on eBay. I have boxes of stuff to sell, but I can’t motivate myself to do it. Throwing it away would be much quicker.
Where are you going to go yarn shopping? I wish there was a way to cure the opposite problem of startitis!
September 2nd, 2006 at 7:39 am
Downsizing is good - it streamlines your life. It forces you to take a look at attachment to mere “stuff” -and no, I wouldn’t throw away the treasured children’s drawings, etc. either. But there’s plenty of other stuff, as you’ve pointed out, that CAN be gotten rid of. Having been engaged in this sorting process in preparation for an upcoming move myself, I know what you’re going through. What I did was join the FlyLady list on Yahoo to get in the mindset of sorting and purguing.
I attack one closet, one drawer, one small area at a time. I set a kitchen timer for 20-30 minutes at a time - trying to get rid of as much as possible during that time. I always have a “throw” pile, a “donate” pile and the rest I’m packing.