# I Have Too Much Stuff.



## Remy (Dec 11, 2021)

I admit it. I have things in boxes. I need to go through things and take some items to PAWS. I need to stay out of PAWS as a shopper!

I don't strive to be a minimalist but I think some things will have to go. I'm just going to have to make myself do it.


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## Pepper (Dec 11, 2021)

Then you can teach me Remy!


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## PamfromTx (Dec 11, 2021)

Can you give us all a mini course on this topic?


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## jerry old (Dec 11, 2021)

But, but,  I've tried, but I'm attached to my junk.


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## Bellbird (Dec 11, 2021)

Be 'strong'


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## PamfromTx (Dec 11, 2021)

I just pack stuff and go drop it off.


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## debodun (Dec 11, 2021)

Preachin' to the choir, here.


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## GeorgiaXplant (Dec 11, 2021)

@Remy, get pointers from @debodun! She's had a lot of very recent experience and has probably earned a Ph.D. in the how-to-do-it department


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## Remy (Dec 11, 2021)

Pepper said:


> Then you can teach me Remy!


Oh good, I'm not the only one then!


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## Remy (Dec 11, 2021)

@GeorgiaXplant I sure have followed deb's downsizing and selling adventures. I'd probably buy something at one of her sales.


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## Ceege (Dec 11, 2021)

I sometimes think of leaving my house and moving to an apartment where I wouldn't have concerns about keeping the grass cut or the snow removed.  I could open every drawer and closet and just take out anything I haven't used in the last year and donate it or toss it.  I've done a little bit of that.  But still have way too much to want to take to a small apartment.   A lot of it has sentimental value.  
Of course, I could pack those thing up and store them somewhere.......but where?  They're already being stored right here.


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## Remy (Dec 11, 2021)

I went through the boxes that were between the couch and wall. I have 2 1/2 medium-ish boxes ready for PAWS. Will go through the boxes under the dining table next week.


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## Alligatorob (Dec 11, 2021)

Far too much stuff here.  I have some boxes that have been through multiple moves without being opened.  No idea what's in them, but it must be valuable...

I really need a good fire.


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## Nathan (Dec 11, 2021)

Has anyone successfully done meaningful downsizing while married to a pack-rat hoarder <cough> I mean...crafter?


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## Remy (Dec 11, 2021)

This isn't my picture. I swiped it off the internet. I have this cookie jar. It's wrapped up in towels next to the bed and wall. I got it at a thrift store over 20 years ago. One listed on Etsy for 85 dollars. Another on ebay for over 90. Some things I have to keep.  But I don't have counter room here and my tabby...


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## Remy (Dec 11, 2021)

Nathan said:


> Has anyone successfully done meaningful downsizing while married to a pack-rat hoarder <cough> I mean...crafter?


I did take some yarn to PAWS. I still have plenty more. I'm having trouble getting rid of any fabric. This is a hard one.


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## Ruth n Jersey (Dec 11, 2021)

I purged last year and did a pretty good job. 
I have another problem I don't think anyone has mentioned.

I have a tendency to put away gifts that people have given me or things I bought on sale. Kitchen towels is a good example. They look to pretty to use and yet the ones I'm using need to go in the rag bag.

Another example are night gowns. The ones I'm wearing make me look like a homeless person and yet I have a drawer full of new ones.
I also have trouble using some of my nice blouses or t-shirts for around the house. Yet I run for cover when the door bell rings. 
The first of the year I'm breaking out the good stuff and throwing out the rags.


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## RadishRose (Dec 11, 2021)

Remy said:


> This isn't my picture. I swiped it off the internet. I have this cookie jar. It's wrapped up in towels next to the bed and wall. I got it at a thrift store over 20 years ago. One listed on Etsy for 85 dollars. Another on ebay for over 90. Some things I have to keep.  But I don't have counter room here and my tabby...
> View attachment 198493


What is this cookie jar bringing to your life Remy?


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## J-Kat (Dec 11, 2021)

I still have clothes I wore when I worked full-time (10+ years ago) hanging in my closet.  I have shoes that are now too small sitting in my closet.  I have a large box full of old towels that need to go to the animal shelter.  I guess that should be my New Year's Resolution.

Ruth n Jersey, I do the same thing.  Every Christmas I'm gifted nice night gowns/PJs but I continue to sleep in a stretched out man's tank top with holes in it.  Weird.  I wear sweatshirts that are at least 15 years old.  I have long sleeved tee shirts I still wear that have ragged cuffs and are stretched out around the neck.  My rationale is they still fit and are comfortable.


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## GeorgiaXplant (Dec 11, 2021)

C'mon, guys! What the heck are you saving the good stuff for? Enjoy it! Wear it! Use it!


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## Ceege (Dec 11, 2021)

Ruth n Jersey said:


> I have a tendency to put away gifts that people have given me or things I bought on sale. Kitchen towels is a good example. They look to pretty to use and yet the ones I'm using need to go in the rag bag.


*What you said reminds me of this article by Erma Bombeck*​"I would have burnt the pink candle that was sculptured like a rose before it melted while being stored."​“*If I had my life to live over...*​*https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/49262-if-i-had-my-life-to-live-over-someone-asked*


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## MickaC (Dec 11, 2021)

Don't mean to brag.....but.....i'm proud of myself for the sorting frenzy i've been on since late fall.
Donate......give away......recycle......garbage.
Been through all the storage stuff downstairs.
Been diddling with main floor stuff, not much needs attention, just some light sorting.
So......
I'm running out of stuff to sort.
Anyone need help with their stuff....


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## Don M. (Dec 11, 2021)

I'm selling some stuff on EBAY....have gobs of things I don't really need.   This past week my wife packed up 2 big bags of clothes....most, like new...and we dropped them off at the Salvation Army.   Now, If I can convince her to slow down at Kohl's, maybe she can maintain a little free space in the closet.


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## bowmore (Dec 11, 2021)

My wife was storing some of her clothes in my closet. One day I did some stealth downsizing. I packed them up and dropped them at Salvation Army.


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## John cycling (Dec 11, 2021)

MickaC said:


> i'm proud of myself for the sorting frenzy i've been on since late fall.



How did you transition from the inertia of letting things accumulate, to inspiring yourself to get rid of them?


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## Jules (Dec 11, 2021)

When we were under evacuation alert this summer, I stood in my closet and packed the few things that really mattered.  Funny, all the rest as much as I thought they were essential no longer had any meaning.  I’ll be donating more clothes soon.  Comfortable clothes are essential for working around the house, I just don’t want to look slovenly.  Nor do I want to be overdressed.  

In the basement workshop I set up a big bag for things that need to go.  My biggest weakness is keeping things for travel, just in case I need them.


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## Trila (Dec 11, 2021)

GeorgiaXplant said:


> C'mon, guys! What the heck are you saving the good stuff for? Enjoy it! Wear it! Use it!


My whole life, I have saved and saved and saved!  Recently, I realized that my "nice" clothes fit a younger me, and there was no one come to eat dinner on the "good dishes".....

I have closets & cabinets full of "good stuff", and it's all going to waste!  Now, I'm trying to learn to use the good stuff first. It's not easy to change life habits, but I'm working on it.


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## Ceege (Dec 12, 2021)

My sister-in-law has a good rule.  For everything she brings into the house, she has to then get rid of something.


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## JaniceM (Dec 12, 2021)

I don't really have too much stuff.. but it certainly seems like it as I'm starting to prepare to move.


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## WheatenLover (Dec 12, 2021)

I am the lone non-pack rat in my immediate family. I continually get rid of things, but never anyone else's things. I am amused when family members go through my donations boxes. They say, we should keep that, we might need it someday. But they have never used that stuff even once.


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## Grampa Don (Dec 12, 2021)

Things do accumulate don't they.  I'm not a collector, but I have a hard time parting with neat things.  I have several calculators and slide rules that I take out and look at once in a while.  The same with my pipes that I used to smoke.  I have no use for them now, but I couldn't part with them.  I still have every camera we have owned.  They are useless now and not worth much.

I have donated a bunch of books to the friends of the library.  But, there are still a few shelves worth I probably won't read but still want.  Clothes, I don't have a problem with.  I generally don't buy any until the old ones start wearing out.  Yesterday, my wife took three big bags of hers to Goodwill.

I've had several computers, and I did trash most of them.  But, my TI 99/A and Commodore 64 are still in the attic, along with their monitors and accessories.  Too many fond memories.  Same with my short wave receivers. 

I feel a little guilty for leaving junk for my heirs to dispose of.  But, as long as I have the room for it, it's my happy stuff.


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## hollydolly (Dec 12, 2021)

Remy said:


> This isn't my picture. I swiped it off the internet. I have this cookie jar. It's wrapped up in towels next to the bed and wall. I got it at a thrift store over 20 years ago. One listed on Etsy for 85 dollars. Another on ebay for over 90. Some things I have to keep.  But I don't have counter room here and my tabby...
> View attachment 198493


just take a picture and put it on Ebay, and facebook market place right now... and while it's making money you can be carrying on with finding more things  in the house which will make you some extra cash


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## JaniceM (Dec 12, 2021)

hollydolly said:


> just take a picture and put it on Ebay, and facebook market place right now... and while it's making money you can be carrying on with finding more things  in the house which will make you some extra cash



Or, if you simply want to get rid of items and don't care about making money, try Listia.com.  
Some people charge shipping fees, but the point is giving away items in many different categories for free.


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## hollydolly (Dec 12, 2021)

JaniceM said:


> Or, if you simply want to get rid of items and don't care about making money, try Listia.com.
> Some people charge shipping fees, but the point is giving away items in many different categories for free.


you can put it on FB marketplace for free too......unfortunately Listia.com has been steadily going downhill for a while.. but it's still an option...

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.listia.com


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## JaniceM (Dec 12, 2021)

hollydolly said:


> you can put it on FB marketplace for free too......unfortunately Listia.com has been steadily going downhill for a while.. but it's still an option...
> 
> https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.listia.com


I didn't know Listia was declining, hadn't been there in awhile.  Thanks for the info!!


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## WheatenLover (Dec 12, 2021)

My mother always bought clothes in a couple of sizes smaller than she could wear. She planned to shrink in to them. She had tons of clothes with the tags still on them, collected over the years. When she sold her house and bought another one, she only kept one closet full of those clothes. My sister donated them when she died. My mom was excellent at donating her belongings, too.

Her house never looked cluttered, no matter where she lived. It was all stowed away in cabinets or closets.


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## Remy (Dec 13, 2021)

RadishRose said:


> What is this cookie jar bringing to your life Remy?


You are right. At this point nothing but I keep having the hope that I will move and have counter space for it. I used to have it displayed on the counter at that house I owned. But my two cats then were much better. Even at 10 1/2 my tabby is a bad girl. So wrapped up it stays but I'd like to keep it. Some day it could go to PAWS but not right now.


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## Remy (Dec 19, 2021)

Took 3 boxes and 3 bags to PAWS thrift yesterday. I found a few more things today. Right now I only have about 5 small to medium boxes packed. Lots of it is cat figures and I won't get rid of those. I want to get rid of a chest in the closet, a chair and a shelf if I can get one of the local charities to pick up from an upstairs apartment (my understanding is that salvation army won't) I'd like to get another little china cabinet for the cat figures and I put the cat cookie jar on top of the kitchen cupboards. My tabby can't get up there. Yet.


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## IFortuna (Dec 22, 2021)

I literally had to buy a small barn for storage.  Turns out it is too big but I will fill it up for posterity.


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