Clearing away ‘Stuff’ - August 2013

I signed up for a charity to pick up stuff from my front porch in the next few days so now I am on a timeline to get as much as possible packaged up so that it can actually leave the house. The pile already identified is quite substantial but I am collecting more. Some decisions are tough.

The pile of shoulder bags and zippered notebooks that have accumulated over the years is a case in point. Some of them are ‘goodies’ from conferences, others are purchased. Most are canvas or tough synthetic fabric; a few are leather. They’ve all be used at some time in the past and most look somewhat battered. We used them as briefcases for work - or when we travelled. They’ve carried papers and books and calculators and laptops…coloring books and etch-a-sketch…clothes for overnight…lunch. But how many do we still need? Several of them had an identification tag with an address from 15 years ago; one had our address from over 30 years ago. The addresses have all been removed at this point; so have the pens and coins and dusty tissues and disintegrated tea bags. The next step is to convince my husband that most of them can go.

There is still a tremendous amount of stuff left to sort through around the house. I am willing to part with more now than I was a year ago. It feels good to be making progress on 'stuff reduction.'