The best answer I can give you is that since we didn't know what we'd be moving into, we weren't sure what we'd need to keep. So, we kept darn near everything, it seems. Now that we're here, it's easier to determine what we can really use and what is extraneous. And, if we move again, we expect to move into something much smaller, maybe as small as a 5th wheel parked on a little chunk of land somewhere. In that case, obviously, our belongings would need to be pared down.
With all these thoughts swirling around, I decided to take a look around the house. The kitchen was the first stop. Someone recently mentioned on their blog that they had only three pots in their kitchen. I realized it was time to get rid of some duplication in mine.
I don't need two pressure cookers. Thanksgiving is probably the only time I have both going at the same time. I chose to sell the newer one because I'd already picked up a spare gasket for the older one, which is also the one I always reach for when I need to pressure-cook anything.
The newer, better Cuisinart food processor I picked up at a yard sale recently is too fancy for my tastes so I'm going to just stick with my old one. When it dies, I'll simply do without. It's not that much harder to chop veggies by hand, and some tasks can be accomplished in the blender.
Nobody is going to want my stainless steel large tea kettle because it's missing the whistle part. I don't really need it either when water can easily be heated in a regular pan. It will likely end up in the thrift store donation box.
Fans of traditional Mexican molcajetes rave about how good homemade salsa and guacamole taste when made in one of these. However, the curing process takes a long time and, quite frankly, my shoulder isn't up to hours of grinding rice into the basalt pores. I don't make guacamole very often and I've had no complaints about my salsa, so this baby's up for sale, too.So far, the only other two items we've set aside to part with are light fixtures. This house has nice overhead lighting in every room so there is no need for additional fixtures. We love our lamps, though, and tried hard to find places to fit them in but they just don't work in this house. Because of their size and design, they also would not work in a smaller place, so we are sadly letting them go.
This 5 foot long lamp was perfect when we had a big open wall and ceilings twelve feet high. It will hopefully be on its way to a new home this afternoon.
We picked up this stained glass lamp for its artistic qualities as well as illumination, but can find no place to use it here and don't wish to have to pack it up for another move.Once the last of these items have been cleared out, I will start to go through other parts of the house to see what we truly don't need. I've already warned my sweetie that if I have to move again, we are getting rid of at least 25% of what we have. I am not, I repeat, not packing all this stuff back up again!
15 comments:
Wow - I can't believe you might have to move again! I can completely sympathize with wanting to clear things out though - we have no plans to move but I'm constantly trying to get rid of stuff. I get in trouble when I donate something that someone wants down the road (as I have quite a reputation for getting rid of stuff) but nobody ever thanks me for preventing the house drowning in clutter! Although the kids do mention when they go to friends' houses how much they like our organized, clutter-free house. I go on kicks when I wander around the house and find stuff to get rid of, and I hardly ever regret it. I do regret a lot of my purchases though - like when I start a new hobby like bread making and decide I need a bunch of stuff to do it properly. I usually find I don't bake bread as often as I though I would, or that I don't really need the new things I bought for it. So that's the area that I'm really trying to watch. I find it very liberating to get rid of stuff and do with less - my kids don't always feel the same! In fact, right now I'm off to supervise room clean up (with a very large donation bag handy) of my middle schooler so that she can see the surface of her desk by the time school starts and she has to do homework! It's the third straight day of downpours for us though, so I guess I don't have anything more pressing to do!
Downsizing in all areas is usually a very good thing... imagine you were forced to live in a single room and could only bring items you absolutely needed... This is my last downsizing from having owned a 3200+ sq.ft. home... and, I love it... now, I'm methodically going through years of boxes holding things I haven't touched and toting them up to the thrift shop... I really don't entertain as much, anymore, so gave my daughter all my fine dining etc., items, have brought cooking pots and pans down to just a few, and going through closets tossing clothes right and left...
I've often wondered, after reading your postings after the move, if you hadn't felt truly overwhelmed and might think of moving... if the house is, in fact, restructurable in the way you want it, just take your time and it will all fall into place... if fixing it up is going to cost you the price of a new home, rethink everything... we don't often get to realize our dreams and this place was very special to you... I think you've been trying to do too much, repairing and cleaning the old place, packing and moving into the new, fixing things etc., all in a very short time... just take a breath and know my thoughts are with you...
Ha! In my little world all available space ends up taken over by stuff. I think it is the rule. Just like the rule where increased income is sucked away by buying more stuff in order to fill every available nook and cranny just in case!
Then, everytime I throw something out I find that I need it the next week.
My sympathies. Have been going through bouts of decluttering, too, since we're looking for land. It's very satisfying (the decluttering).
Personally, I was delighted when the teakettle whistle broke. I hate having things whistling, ringing and shrieking at me. Now there's just a sort of rushing steam sound when the water boils. Perfectly audible and much more restful. Now if only I could find a nice, quiet timer ...
NM
I’m sorry you are feeling the need to move on, and hopefully things will work out for you whether you stay or go. I’ve moved a few times in the past few years and even though it gets easier, it’s still a nuisance. (And I’ll be moving again in the not to distant future…)
For me, taking the time to declutter now has helped simplify my life. I’ve gathered more than I needed, as we all do. Those specialty items were just too tempting, but so often we only use them once in a blue moon. But I’ve sifted through everything so that a move would not be a horrendous task for me. If you can take the time without rushing to meet a deadline (moving day), you can feel better about the sorting.
Best wishes, whatever the outcome. I’m hoping it works out well :)
I completely sympathize as we also might be moving once again and back to Idaho. The humidity of the Northeast has not been good healthwise. Our goal has been to downsize by half and so far it's going well. I hope over the winter to ebay a donkeyload of stuff and by next summer we should be able to garage sale the big stuff. I am finding that the more I get rid of the less I want.
We once owned a three bedroom home with a family room to boot, a nearly full basement and big yard. When we sold the house, we moved into a two bedroom 975 square foot apartment. Talk about downsizing! We gave away enough stuff to fill a U-Haul truck.
A few years later, we moved to a bigger city and a smaller apartment, only one bedroom this time. We gave away another truckload of stuff.
Periodically, we cull our closets and cubby holes and unload more bits that have become useless for one reason or another. Somehow, more bits make their way into our lives. Now we're amassing children's furniture, toys and art project supplies for the grandkids. It's always something, as Gilda used to say.
AAArgh! Moving again :(
Might be an idea to give yourself a bit of leeway first - huh...huh....!
We did our last move in about 6 car loads and a trailer once for the big stuff. With the four of us we have accumulated a bit since but we still fit into this tiny house ok.
The only thing I really miss is the bedroom. We don't have space for one here so it is raised onto a wall of the livingroom/workroom. Which is fine - until one of us gets sick!
One day - when the kids leave home - we may have a bedroom again but I'm not holding my breath :)
viv
Chile-just a thought - have you ever looked at neighborgoods.net? I heard about it on NPR I think. But it allows you to network and lend out items when you need it. Might not be a bad idea for those few times you need a pressure cooker.
Hi Chile, very sorry to hear you're getting stressed and thinking about moving again. From your list of items you've chosen to get rid of though, it looks a bit like you're punishing yourself - you're getting rid of the good stuff! Makes more sense to me to keep those hard-won items (that took awhile to find at garage sales or cost a lot or stuff you love), and get rid of regular crap instead, stuff that's relatively easy to get like jars and such. Look, mistakes happen despite our best efforts. Don't punish yourselves for it! Anyway, maybe I'm way off the mark here, but that was my first reaction to seeing those special items you posted.... Please don't be too hard on yourself as you go forward!
very best wishes,
Elli :-)
Just a note to everyone before getting to particular comments: the circumstances surrounding the possibility of moving again are ones that I don't want to get into online at this time. Suffice it to say, we would prefer not to move but it may turn out to be in our best interest to do so.
JAM - I much prefer the simpler, uncluttered look, too, but can't seem to achieve it. I totally hear you on stocking up when you start a new hobby. Perhaps that's part of the appeal? After all, in this country, we're conditioned from an early age that buying stuff equals buying happiness. With a new hobby, it feels as if there is a rational justification for buying. "But I need it!" LOL
Sharlene - we have lived in a wide range of homes, from a 4500 sqaure foot house to a 20 foot long RV. Somehow, though, there's always more stuff to declutter.
Our productivity and house projects have ground to a halt for the time being. We're working on non-house-related projects for now. We'll see where the road takes us.
nova - oh yeah, that was definitely the case when we bought the bigger house! There have only been a few times, though, that we've regretted getting rid of something particular.
NM - honestly, I'd rather just heat a cup of water in the microwave for tea than put the whole tea kettle on the stove, especially in the hot summer months...
4 Bushel Farmgal - changing our outlook (see previous post) is prompting the decluttering as much as the possibility of moving. We got too much stuff just in case - fear-based buying instead of need-based.
Anna M - oh, I'm so sorry to hear the NE isn't working out as you'd hoped. It's sad when you've made a big move, thinking "this will be it" only to find it doesn't quite work out the way you expect. Would you be returning to the same area in Idaho?
Kathryn - we've probably gotten rid of enough stuff over the last couple of decades to set up an entire second house for another couple!
Viv - in the worst case scenario, it would still probably be months before an actual move happened. In some ways, the idea of moving into something quite small that would force prioritizing better is appealing.
Robbie - no, I haven't. I'll check it out. Thanks for the idea!
Elli - interesting thought, but I don't feel that's what I'm doing. When we bought the nicer stuff, we either needed it at that time or thought it would be more useful than it turned out to be. I hate for things to be unused and gather dust.
In my opinion, storing something that you never use is a huge waste of resources. Usually there is someone else out there that would be glad to put it into use on a regular basis. By moving it from my storage to their use, it saves resources that would be needed to make a new one of that item for them to purchase. It also brings me a few dollars that I can put to good use.
OK, glad to hear it! And you're absolutely right, storing stuff you don't want is a waste of resources. Good luck decluttering and getting sorted out then!
Elli :-)
Life sure turns on a dime, doesn't it? Hubby and I are the major caregivers for his dad now. I'm actively purging my possessions and extra clothing in hopes of a move in the next few years. Where to is not set, but a pared down house is a good start. Hope things turn positive for you. And, live in the present. Enjoy your life today, this is not a dress rehearsal. :)
I do very much support decluttering in general -- but I'd be tempted to keep the kettle if I were you. I know it's a small thing to pick on in your list but I've read previous posts about how keen you are to conserve energy, and our kettle is considerably more efficient at heating water than a normal pan, even a pan with a lid.
I haven't done scientific testing but it boils a lot quicker (so uses less gas) and keeps any spare water warmer for a lot longer. Obviously if you don't boil water that regularly, it's not worth keeping it around but if you use it anywhere near as much as we do (us wacky British and our constant cups of tea), it might be worth the efficiency saving.
Oh, and on the subject of clutter, I wrote a post recently about the hidden (?) costs of clutter -- the mental, physical and financial costs of hoarding stuff: http://www.thereallygoodlife.com/284/summer-decluttering-the-hidden-costs-of-hoarding/
Yes we'd be moving back to the same region but not the same town. We want a more rural location. Unfortunately we have just had a wake-up call and unless we can afford health insurance there we cannot move back! We are still going to work towards that goal and we are hoping the 2014 legislation on healthcare works for us. As we age this climate will be a problem.
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