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Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,721
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

Re: Too much stuff!

[ Edited ]

Me too for too much and no more stuff!!!

 

 

I've gotten rid of a ton of stuff, and when I see storage containers being sold on QVC, I think..."Nope...no store...get rid of it.

 

If it needs to be "stored" it's going. That includes clothes I don't wear, blankets and throws still in thier plastic covers from purchase years ago, christmas ******. I am using the Xmas stuff each year and then getting rid of it.

 

Getting rid doesn't mean throwing away of course. Good Will, Salvation Army, friends. Womens and Mens shelters. Just put on end of driveway with FREE sign ( l live in a rural area...but stuff goes by the time I get back to the house!!!!).

 

My weakness is cooking stuff. Being single, I of course have WWWWWAAAAAYYYYYY too much of that too!!! But the colors!!! and the grill marks!!!! and the ability to leave it to your heirs ( LeCreuset etc...)

 

I have no heirs!!! 

 

NO MORE STUFF is coming in. I have TWO china cabinets full of "good" dishes etc...At age 64, I don't have enough life left even if I start using them tomorrow for daily use and the stuff breaks, for me to use the stuff up. So I will buy no more plates, cups, bowls etc.

 

Funny how it goes. You think you need all the junk, you picture in your mind the fantastic meals, the pretty decorated house, the gifts you'll hand out to people from your gift closet.

 

But most of it is in "storage boxes with windows so now you can see the junk you never ever use!!!"

 

 

 

 

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 7,743
Registered: ‎03-15-2010

@nevergivesup 

 

If you could see my husband's garage, you would probably faint!  He is a builder and still working.  Not only does he have every auto tool known to mankind, he has duplicates.  And, he has work-related items that he has gathered over the years.  This includes many vehicles and large building equipment.

 

In all fairness, he uses most things, but it really has gotten out of control.  And, he saves EVERYTHING!

 

I cannot go into his work area without getting queazy. 

 

Like you, I think of what will happen if he's suddenly gone and I have to get rid of things.  

 

This is how I resolved it in my mind. 

 

I've told him that I'd call his best friend and give him the first chance to take what he wants.  After that, I'll have an auctioneer come and clean the place out to the bare walls.

 

What cannot be sold/auctioned, will be removed for junk.

 

Just having a plan helps me deal with it mentally.

 

For my own part, I have been purging/cleaning our large home for several years and still doing so.  No children and my two nieces are not interested in inheriting anything I have.

 

The things I used for entertaining just remind me of days gone by that will never come again.  I find no comfort in having "extras" of anything.  It's an endless process of getting rid of stuff.

 

Unlike me, my husband just goes day to day and doesn't let it bother him.  I wish I could do the same!

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,073
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

I’m a ruthless purger, but my DH likes to hold on to things.

 

He still has college textbooks from over 40 years ago that he refuses to get rid of. He has boxes and boxes of old computer & electronic parts. He has more clothes in his closet than I have in mine. We have an entire wall full of his DVDs & CDs on shelves. 

 

I ask him to go through & get rid of things once a year, but he never does it. I purge what I can & leave his stuff alone. 

 

I’ve purged a lot of holiday & seasonal stuff. I gave all my teaching supplies to other teachers when I retired. I purge my wardrobe regularly. I went through & got rid of a lot of collectibles, vases, kitchen stuff, housewares, etc. 

 

Our flooded basement a couple years ago finally gave DH incentive to put more metal shelves in the basement so we no longer have boxes stacked all over the floor. Other than luggage & holiday decorations just about everything on the shelves down there is his. That’s a lot of stuff. 

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,313
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

@ScrapHappy   your husband sounds like my best friends husband...sadly he died unexpectedly several years ago.  He had several very expensive hobbies and she has spent 3 years clearing out, selling, etc.  It has been a huge job.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,073
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

639E230E-92FF-4EC2-B511-91E0D09226B9.jpeg

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,073
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

If you have to buy more stuff to store your stuff, you probably have too much stuff. 

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,902
Registered: ‎03-12-2010

Re: Too much stuff!

[ Edited ]

Keep what you use and love NOW, not for someday in the past or future. You only need things for the life you are living NOW, not some fantasy someday life.

If it was a gift or "heirloom" and you neither use or love it- if you are keeping out of some kind of guilt- you have my permission to get rid of it before the sun sets today.

 

The items must have value to YOU, not some perceived monetary value, unless you have had them appraised recently. Things you think have great monetary value, just because you paid a lot back in the day, rarely do. (fine jewelry and some musical instruments among the exceptions).

Honored Contributor
Posts: 20,648
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

"Too much stuff" is what I say almost every day.   I had been so overwhelmed by it for some time and finally I decided to try and hack away at it, a little at a time.  Then I was sick for a week and that cut into it and I need to get back to it.

 

The only way I can stay out of the overwhelmed mindset has been to do a little each day - either find a place for stuff, put it into donations, or toss it.  

 

As long as I stay away from being overwhelmed, I can go back to just dealing with it a little each day. It's not like a hoarder house, or anywhere near, but there is just still too much stuff and it will be a relief if I can get totally on top of it one day.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,162
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

I'm the organized minimalist in our family. Childhood family was tidy, parent with military background, and we didn't have a basement so we didn't 'collect.' Hubs' childhood family is a different story. We don't think, at age 19, to ask the guy we're dating -- How do you feel about keeping a tidy garage? 

 

When we moved from our 24 year residence 3 years ago we were able to shed a lot of junk. I could breathe again. Hubs' garage is getting out of control after 3 years. He promised to keep it tidy.  We still park both vehicles in the garage, but he's keeping junk again and garage isn't organized. So ... I'll start tossing things soon. Married over 41 years. We have a good relationship but this subject has been our conflict. Can you tell this is a real subject for me?  

"I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than the trees." Henry David Thoreau
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Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,889
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

@CrazyKittyLvr2 wrote:

@Group 5 minus 1   If you mean in your home, the answer is yes I have too much.  In the last year since my husband died, I have gotten rid of a lot.

 

I went through my kitchen and unloaded a ton of stuff.  It's just DD and I and I don't entertain or do big family holidays so I didn't need four or fice 9x13 pans. I had enough mixing bowls for 3 households. Gave most away. Same with glasses and dishes.

 

My nieces will be thrilled, I have a huge armoire with nothing the purses. I am keeping a couple and they can have the rest.

 

I am over stuff.



@CrazyKittyLvr2 -I have been ruthless getting rid of kitchen things.  I now live alone. I really don't cook.  I have gotten rid of a ton.  I figure if I have use for some things down the road that I got rid of, stores sell them.


Why is it, when I have a 50/50 guess at something, I'm always 100% wrong?