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We were gone all summer and came home with ideas to redecorate......were getting new living room carpet. Husband has to mud the wall in the kitchen we moved a few years ago and then we can paint.
Been packing up good china, hope to sell in near future, non of the second hand stores would take right now.
Got rid of magazines. Gave curtains and tablecloths to a friend.(Her daughter is getting married) Same friend is taking the old living room carpet for her bedroom. Should be able to get a nice piece with out to many stains showing.
We cleaned the pantry out of food we bought for y-2k.
Been reading the frugal forum and they kept talking about cleaning and it got me motivated to really start getting rid of things.....can't believe how much we have collect in the last ten years.
 
When I downsized from my farm in WA state to 2 bedrooms in my daughters house in PA four years ago, my eyes were opened to my serious problem with OCD. :p
No, I haven't been professionally diagnosed, but the evidence was there. Many many pick-up loads of "things that might come in handy someday" went to the dump. I cannot tell you how many old yoghurt containers there were, as well as useful jars with screwon tops. (I saved all the canning jars which we don't use here) I really tried hard to get rid of all kinds of stuff. My son came down twice with a huge trailer and took most of the outdoor stuff as well as a huge sectional couch. I was appalled at how little I could unload on used book dealers, used furniture places, consignment clothing stores. In the last few weeks, we were carting stuff to the Goodwill bins and trying to overlook how much was spent on the stuff. Boxes of books, pots and pans, dish sets, linens, etc. After the drastic paring down, it still cost $9000 to move cross country!

Have lived here almost 4 years now. There are still boxes that have not been unpacked. There were 3 years where the house was not entirely ours and the other owner was extremely uncooperative, even stored his stuff in the garage. Well, this summer, he came for SOME of his stuff, passed by all the "by this date" times, so last weekend, we cleaned out the garage!!!!!!!!!!!!! There was a lot that had to be thrown out because of mouse damage and evidence. Our church thrift store got a lot of fabulous stuff.

Daughter and granddaughter cleaned out 50% of the stuffed toys and I carted 6 bags to the church. They also went thru all the outgrown clothes and old toys. Daughter is very good about always staying ahead of the clutter. She'll throw anything away.

We are about to embark on turning the garage into my own space. We are extending one end and putting in a bath. I will divvy up the spaces with various storage units from IKEA. So-o-o I am now going thru boxes of clippings I knew I'd need, eliminating more clothing, simplifying etc. I find the business of deciding what to throw out extremely difficult. However, changing my life, as well as getting far more proficient on the internet has change a lot of what I used to keep. Why cut a clipping when it is in the archives of the publication. My discovery of these forums is a fairly recent one. The information contained herein is just amazing. I cannot hardly drag myself away.



I have made some decisions that have helped a great deal. I have kept several nice black pants, some jackets, various nice tops. Like Kathryn Hepburn, I eliminated dresses and just wear pants. I cut back my shoes to 5-6 pair. Birkies all summer and splogs all winter. Socks with Birkies during spring and fall. Wear jeans, T-shirts, and flannel shirts year round here at the house. The hard part is that life is also making some decisions for me. I have developed a familial tremor that effectively wiped out any carving. I have a very complete set of carving tools and refuse to just give them away. I also have a complete set of camera and lenses. The shakes have eliminated that--the digital added to the demise of that set. The dimming of eyesight has affected my ability to focus, so I wonder who would want that set. I cannot just give them away. With each of those hobbies goes a bunch of books.

I did make the decision to focus on a FEW hobbies that I can do and NOT be tempted by any other neat ideas. I chose quilting and needlepoint. The eyes still work well enough for that. So, any other crafty stuff goes.This includes all clippings other than those that pertain to Q and N. I can and do plant propagation and personal landscaping(ie, not for others). In the spring I will get some rabbits and chickens because I like them, but I caught myself exploring raising game birds. NO!! slap my hand, hard. :no: :no:

I have one 4-drawer file cabinet. Every clipping I keep, personal finance, the backyard nursery business, Q&N material, old calendars, cards, and pictures I think are nice, patterns, photos, etc. has to fit in that cabinet. No more boxes of etc. There is still way too much etc. in my life. Also, too much Misc. :eek:

The best part of all this is that there is a time frame I must follow. No postponing for "later" whenefer that is. An additional incentive is that when I die, my daughter said she would be going through every paper I have. I am truly trying to spare her that. :eek: Another good thing is that winter is fast approaching--the perfect time to do all this.

Oh, yes, I am also studying Benedictine Spirituality with a group from my church. Hopefully, this and learning more about centeriing prayer should bring order to my life, especially thought processes.

Why, oh why, didn't I discover some of these neat ideas when I was in my 20's?

Sandi
 
3girls said:
When I downsized from my farm in WA state to 2 bedrooms in my daughters house in PA four years ago, my eyes were opened to my serious problem with OCD. :p
If you're talking about obsessive compulsive disorder, I really think my sister has it! And I'm pretty sure another friend of mine has it!

Me, however, I have OPD: Obsessive Project Disorder.

I'm learning to deal with this by firmly telling myself I cannot start another project until I finish at least two of the other ones I've started. :yeeha:

It's really hard --- every fiber of my being screaming *but --- but --- but I just know I can get the entire barn torn down by this afternoon and use the wood from it to build three raised beds and a chicken coop!*

I cannot tell you how many old yoghurt containers there were, as well as useful jars with screwon tops. (I saved all the canning jars which we don't use here)
You're my sister masquerading as someone else, aren't you? ;)
 
3girls said:
Why, oh why, didn't I discover some of these neat ideas when I was in my 20's?

Sandi
Oh man... doesn't that say it all? As I go through stuff I find myself thinking "what in heavens name did I think I'd want that for?" But of course, at the time I acquired it it seemed like a good idea, didn't it?

Bless my Mom.. she's on the 5 year plan. She's selling off her stuff and sorting through her papers in preparation for selling her home: 5 years from now. She's my inspiration. And bless her, I won't have to slog through a ton of "stuff" when she's gone.

But what do you do with the old family photos if you've got no family left? I get so sad when I see family albums at flea markets or antique stores... the last record of a family tree that dead-ended on that branch. And nobody visits the graves.

sigh
 
I am going to let the next hurricane blow it away! I procrastinated cleaning up after the last one and sure enough Jeanne is headed my way. I feel smug because the French doors (2 sets) are still covered and the grills are still horizontal. Sometimes not being energetic pays off! I'll tackle whats left after hurricane season!
 
I'm thankful that I don't have all that much stuff to keep de-cluttered. My daughter and I are living with my grandmother now, and other than bathroom stuff and a few things in the kitchen, all our stuff has to fit into our small bedrooms. So we definitely have serious space limitations that prevent accumulating too much junk! However, I'm planning to add a small loft (cathedral ceilings) in one end of each of our rooms so we have a place for seasonal items, and some camping gear that I don't want to put in the storage shed for the mice to nest in.

The really hard part was moving here. Grandma had two houses on her property, the old one that Grandad built fifty years ago (which was about to fall down -- very wet coastal climate, no foundation, and lots of rodents as it had been empty for several years), and the 'new' one that my great-grandmother built after Great-Granddad died about thirty years ago. There was still a lot of stuff in the old house, even though no one had lived there for quite a while, and Grandma didn't want to get rid of any of it. And in the newer house, she still had boxes of Great-grandma's stuff that she had never gone through in the twenty years since Great-grandma died. That, on top of her own things, which stuffed the little house to overflowing. I had to go through everything in both houses before we moved over here, and try to get rid of anything not worth keeping while Grandma wasn't looking! My uncle came and helped a little right before we left, and I know he got rid of some things too. We still filled the moving truck and trailer, two vans, and a station wagon as full as they would hold! We ended up renting for about four months while we waited for this place to be built (manufatured home), so we moved all that stuff AGAIN!! In the process I managed to do a little more sorting out, but it is really hard to sort out another person's stuff! Grandma was born in 1913, and raised her children during the Depression and WWII, and it is really hard for her to let go of anything, no matter how useless (and on the other hand, there were some things I could see a use for that she wanted to get rid of -- some of Granddads tools, mostly). She says she is going to leave this place to me when she dies (which hopefully won't be for a long time yet -- she says she is going to live to be the oldest woman in the world, and she may just make it!), and when she does, I'm going to have my mother, uncle, and aunts come and take everything they've given Grandma over the years, and likely most anything else of Grandma's that they want. That should clean a lot of it out!

In the meantime, I don't let the newspapers, magazines, paperback books, yogurt and cottage cheese containers, and so on, build up. We mostly cook from scratch, so don't have as much trash as a lot of people, and that helps, too. When I buy something, I weigh carefully our need for it versus the amount of space it will occupy and decide which is more valuable. (It's harder when it's something someone has given you and you want to keep it for sentimental reasons.) And, once in a while I have to go through the closets and filing cabinets and get rid of things we don't really need. Then I have room to buy one or two new things!

Kathleen in Oregon
 
countrygrrrl said:
If you're talking about obsessive compulsive disorder, I really think my sister has it! And I'm pretty sure another friend of mine has it!

Me, however, I have OPD: Obsessive Project Disorder.

I'm learning to deal with this by firmly telling myself I cannot start another project until I finish at least two of the other ones I've started. :yeeha:

It's really hard --- every fiber of my being screaming *but --- but --- but I just know I can get the entire barn torn down by this afternoon and use the wood from it to build three raised beds and a chicken coop!*



You're my sister masquerading as someone else, aren't you? ;)

How about OPPD - Obsessive Potential Project Disorder. :D I have the stuff (manuals, clippings, tools, materials, etc.) for Ukranian eggs, mosaics (mountains of old dishes, bowling balls, etc. etc., scroll saw projects, stained glass, mat cutting, poetry stones (see also mosaics :D ), sewing, cross stitch, etc,etc,etc.

I HAVEN'T STARTED ONE OF THEM YET SINCE I MOVED IN A YEAR AGO!!!!!

Instead I got a vaccuum sealer, almost got the house of tomorrow!!!!, 35 chickens, 20 ducks, 3 turkeys, 17 peacocks, etc. etc. etc.

Sigh, I think I need FOCUS! :haha:
 
!! Yes! OPPD, that's it!

:haha:

Along with a deep underlying suspicion that the only thing that's really wrong is I just need one more cup of coffee to get it done! :haha:

Deb-orosa, you got to admit, the House of Tomorrow is the Supreme PP of PPs. :worship: :worship:
 
countrygrrrl said:
!! Yes! OPPD, that's it!

:haha:

Along with a deep underlying suspicion that the only thing that's really wrong is I just need one more cup of coffee to get it done! :haha:

Deb-orosa, you got to admit, the House of Tomorrow is the Supreme PP of PPs. :worship: :worship:

Oh, it gets even more silly. I got the birds to lay eggs for the egg art, and haven't used a one for that yet! There are 5 dozen duck eggs in my fridge. :eek: :eek:

And I am a project manager for my "day job" (a real good one too when it's someone elses project!). :haha: :haha: :eek:
 
Nothing inspires clearing out like the thought of moving all the trash! Although, I've lost count of how many times I've moved bank statements and paycheck stubs from the 1970's. Time to clear out! I've even gone to the extreme of throwing out fuzzy and nearly black photos. Still, I know I'll keep and move way more than I truly need. Maybe I'll be neat and unclutterred in my next life.
 
deberosa said:
How about OPPD - Obsessive Potential Project Disorder. :D I have the stuff (manuals, clippings, tools, materials, etc.) for Ukranian eggs, mosaics (mountains of old dishes, bowling balls, etc. etc., scroll saw projects, stained glass, mat cutting, poetry stones (see also mosaics :D ), sewing, cross stitch, etc,etc,etc.

I HAVEN'T STARTED ONE OF THEM YET SINCE I MOVED IN A YEAR AGO!!!!!

Instead I got a vaccuum sealer, almost got the house of tomorrow!!!!, 35 chickens, 20 ducks, 3 turkeys, 17 peacocks, etc. etc. etc.

Sigh, I think I need FOCUS! :haha:

Deb--back to my earlier posting: You have plenty to do with all the animals, and they are more fun than the crafty stuff. Find one or two crafts that you can focus on, concentrate on, perfect. There is even profit potential in a craft done perfectly and artistically. There are so many wonderful crafts from around the world that no one of us could possibly do them all. Creative people without focus try to do that. It is much easier to say no, when you are focused. I wish I now had the money invested in yarn for knitting projects that I no longer seem able to do. Needlepoint and quilting--period. I also have a bunch of counted cross-stitch (see?) which is just like needlepoint. I've also run out of money, so I do not allow myself to buy more until I have finished the four rubbermaid bins full I already have. SIGH--I wish they'd just stop sending the catalogs. I just cannot bring myself to tell them that!

Try to go to a few craft shows (the more upscale the better) in the fall and see what is selling and what is junk. Of course, junk to me is treasure to someone else. I have seen wonderful fabric art pieces, gorgeous beading (try doing that with a tremor), stunning crewel work. Those russian eggs are works of art and sell well. Go to galleries that sell stuff like that and find what the qualities are that they are looking for. And remember, you are not some little housewife dabblling in her whatever. You are an artist.

I like the Nearings idea of doing "bread labor" for four hours and then doing the soul work for four more. I'm good for about 3 hours in the heat and have to come into the a/c. I just have an awful time shifting focus from plants to quilts.

Best wishes to all for a very simple life. Someone once pointed out that if all you own can be stuffed into a trailer (not home), you are free to pull up stakes and go whenever you want. Wish I could afford an RV!!

Sandi
 
But what do you do with the old family photos if you've got no family left? I get so sad when I see family albums at flea markets or antique stores... the last record of a family tree that dead-ended on that branch. And nobody visits the graves.

sigh[/QUOTE]


There are a number of heritage museums and universities that collect this history. When my grandmother passed on, we donated extensive letters, pictures, etc. to the Norwegian Museum in Seattle. They were thrilled to get it. There are professors from all over the world who come to that museum for research. One just needs to hunt around to find the best place for your family's heritage. There are museums and collectors for old needlework, old cloths, etc.

Sandi
 
Parted with 36 fowl (ducks, geese and chichens), only 7 ducks and 12 guineas to go. Cleaned off the stable and kennel porches and made a run to the storage unit we rented (3 miles away). Tonight will go through the space we store the horse trailer in...Joan
 
Lt. Wombat said:
Free Cycling is a wonderful way to get rid of stuff while helping out other folks who are short on $$$$. We have unloaded a boat load lately and it was as easy as posting it to the forum then answering an e-mail.
Wow, this is great - I just found the Freecycle closest to me, this will really help. Thanks!
 
3girls said:
There are a number of heritage museums and universities that collect this history. When my grandmother passed on, we donated extensive letters, pictures, etc. to the Norwegian Museum in Seattle. They were thrilled to get it. There are professors from all over the world who come to that museum for research. One just needs to hunt around to find the best place for your family's heritage. There are museums and collectors for old needlework, old cloths, etc.

Sandi
This is absolutely true. I have, in the past, spent weeks and days in the archives or various museums and historical societies, going through old letters, photos, documents, etc.

I even paid my way through two semesters of grad school doing exactly this for someone at an east coast university.

As soon as get a bit more organized ( :haha: ), I'm actually planning on giving a lot of stuff I currently have to museums. Eg, I have ancient crab apple dolls one of my grannies used to make, even older handmade containers for the sale of pralines, old letters and documents from Indian Territory.

I also have tons of recordings and transcriptions that I did. A lot of this stuff is already sitting in a library in Philadelphia, of all places, and at another university back there. :confused: This week, I've been going through my filing cabinets, and am planning on just donating the rest of my stuff ASAP, as I simply don't have the facilities to protect the stuff and I've seen so much amazing stuff go by the wayside.

Things of truly historical value, if you don't have the facilities for preserving it over time, there are lots of archives and museums which will gladly take it, and lots of researchers who would be thrilled to see it. :)
 
My mom had a stroke over the Labor Day weekend, but she's home and doing fine. We have spent the last three weeks CLEANING, sorting, and tossing out. She hadn't thrown out any junk mail in the last few years, and we have found bank statements back to the 1960's.

Found her college notes from geology class....in the 1940's.

Did find a nice pic of my grandmother, and a legal paper that shouldn't have been in the stack of scrap paper that it was in, but on the whole, it's going well.

LARGE Trash bags at the curb number well over 50 over the three week period, not counting the truck load I paid to have hauled off.

We aren't finished yet, either.

I've been coming home and tossing out stuff, too. It's very inspiring to sort someone else's junk and then look at your own.
 
Discussion starter · #39 ·
this is funny actually,

We just bought two new cars today so we had to clean our olds ones! Actually, we kept one truck (the 4wd) and and trade my 2wd in.

What a way to be forced to clean huh??

Next job: the garage!
 
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