Today, we spent all of our time just rearranging our stuff. My sweetie drove down to the storage unit and rode a bike back. When he got home, we both got on our Xtracycle bikes and rode back to the storage place to put them in the new unit I just rented so we can empty out the shed. It was immediately obvious that the contents of the shed were not going to fit in the smaller unit, so we rearranged our plans and spent the next several hours sorting through everything in the old, and larger, storage unit.
We ended up taking a full load back to the house - things, mostly tools, that we are not going to keep. This opened up a lot of space in the storage unit but created a space issue at home. There's little space available in the house as I'm busy sorting through stuff inside and housekeeping has taken a back seat to everything else going on. We decided to put everything we're going to sell on one side of the shed ... that we also need to sell.
Tomorrow, we'll load up everything in the shed that we're going to keep and haul it over to the storage unit (where it lived for a few months when we first moved up here). We'll try to get rid of the bulky stuff we aren't keeping through craigslist but it would be too labor-intensive to do that for boxes and boxes of smaller tools. We hope to pull together an all-tool yard sale within the next few weeks.
Hopefully, however, the shed will sell before then ... which, of course, means we'll have to move all the tools into the house until the yard sale.
Confused? Tired just from reading that? So are we!
It dawned on us this afternoon, as we sat inside the air-conditioned house drinking ice cold water and trying to recover from the record heat here, that we spend an inordinate amount of our time just rearranging stuff rather than actual doing fun things and living.
This is the price of having "stuff" - you have to house it, maintain it, store it, clean it, insure it, repair it, rearrange it, and, once in a great while, you might even get to use it. We are looking forward to having less stuff so that we spend less time dealing with it and more time living.
How much of your time do you spend just taking care of your stuff?
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12 comments:
We go through spells of mostly re-arranging; the more spectacular of these involved kids moving from place to place (we were their storage unit). Lately we seem to be getting a handle on it. Whenever one of us is not "working" and is the current housewife, that one seems to get to live a lot more. Jobs are hard on living, it seems. My early retirement, a risky strategy dependent on Beloved's job stability, has done wonders for my "living." I have time to get rid of stuff and time left over to admire the mountains! This has been a long time coming, because we raised an autistic kid.
Very little arranging and sorting, absolute miles trying to find where whatever it is has been put! And then putting it somewhere else where it will be easier to find.....NOT!
viv in nz
Balance is key. If I haven't used something in 6 months I chuck it. (donate usually)
You know what you need. Chance are you've used it in the last day or two. Everything else is just a product of bullsh*t consumerism.
I always say if something has more than one use it's chances of making the cut are increased. Versatility is clutch.
Hope this one works itself out for you and I kinda wish I could drop in for the tool sale. As some things leave, others might present an opportunity for usefulness.
Just over a year ago we moved to a much smaller place, and it took several months before the move to get rid of a fair chunk of stuff we had accumulated in our old, larger house.
Now space is at a premium, so we tend to think long & hard before getting anything new - how badly do we need it, where will it go etc & if we own something that we haven't used for a while, we find a new home for it.
It's strange how easy it is to accumulate things that we don't really need, or things that might be useful one day, and how hard it is to break that habit.
Good luck with your decluttering!
I am a compulsive "thrower-outer" so I spend very little time dealing with stuff. DH, on the other hand, is a compulsive hoarder and he spends a LOT of time trying to locate things in his mountain of stuff. I refuse to have any of that stuff in the main living area of the house and he has learned if it starts to accumulate it is quickly sold, tossed or donated.
I agree with Risa, that working is very hard on living... there's so little time for going through and removing stuff... but, I've been getting it done, little by little, since moving to my smaller house... but, it's slow going...
I spend far too much time rearranging the contents of the refrigerator, freezer compartment, chest freezer, kitchen cupboards and closet that we made into a food storage closet. I do this in order to fit the latest grocery shopping extravaganza. For two people! Sheesh.
We've been jettisoning lots of STUFF for months. Seeing the extent of my late MIL's hoarding really made me want to lighten my own load.
Overall, having less stuff in the house keeps us from doing as much tidying and cleaning, so we get to have a little more time for fun (when we're not doing our caregiving for FIL)but that's another topic).
I probably should spend more time organizing but our house is clean with some piles (mostly mine, mostly books!) so I mostly don't stress.
Yesterday we probably should have continued slaving away in the garden but it was hot (90s here in CO!) So, we called the nephews, packed a quick makeshift picnic and headed up for a swim in the reservoir. The water was icy but we just caught the last of the sun before it dipped behind the mountains. We were the only ones there and it was so worth it to forget about the chores!
I have a 91 year old neighbor and he's always telling us to do as much traveling, hiking, socializing as we can while we're young. I think they'll be plenty of time to sift through the ephemera of life when I'm older.
What I dislike about caring for stuff is dusting! UGH! It just accumluates far too fast. With that, you'd think I'd be good at dusting but no I tend to ignore it.
peace, shamba
We've spent a *ridiculous* amount of time fussing over stuff lately. It has taken seemingly forever to clear out my in-laws' house. Everything that entered their lives stayed there. We're talking every scrap of paper since childhood, every item everyone else jettisoned. We removed more than 15 tons of stuff from that house, making every effort to find ways to recycle, donate, sell, or give away anything remotely useful... very time consuming. And of course all this has had a spin-off effect. Lots of stuff has also come our way, so we have to make room for it by getting rid of other stuff. Plus, like you, we are actively managing our storage locker of tools and whatnot. All this is making me NUTS.
Elli :-)
Oh my GOD, my whole LIFE recently has been rearranging stuff. I'm so exhausted.
I hate moving. And the way you put it in your blog title it all just sounds so stupidly hopeless. Oh well, off to rearrange some more.
Risa - I don't know how people working full-time can ever keep on top of the clutter. It's easiest to not have it, I suppose, but then finding time to get rid of it is hard.
I'd much rather spend time appreciating nature than rearranging stuff.
Viv - oh yes, I've got some things stored in great locations. I just have no idea where that is!
Spotty Dog Farm - um, should I admit that balance exercises are a big part of my physical therapy right now because mine is really lousy. Stand with one foot in front of the other and close your eyes. How long until you fall over? I'm up to anywhere from 10-30 seconds. I guess that's an improvement from 3... LOL
We are definitely looking at keeping those things with multiple uses and ditching the specialty items.
Littleblackfox - We've lived in a range of house sizes and one definitely fills the space available. Paring down is such a challenge, though.
Olivia - a mixed household can be the hardest challenge. Keeping separate spaces for your stuff sounds like it works.
Sharlene - what I find hard is once I've decided to get rid of something, I want it gone NOW. Waiting for someone to show interest on craigslist or holding it for a yard sale drives me nuts because it's still taking up space. Right now, we don't have the option to just give everything away - the county work has to be paid for!
nomikins - Food occupies a lot of my energy, too. On one hand, I'd like to simplify our diet because it would decrease the work. On the other hand, I really like variety in the food, which means more work.
I was supposed to help an older lady clean out her house full of hoarded supplies after she returned from clearing out her (hoarding) mother's estate. However, she was so exhausted when she returned, she couldn't face it. Health problems interfered after that and we lost touch. I hope she carried through with her intentions not to leave her kids the same mess she had to deal with.
DC - more fun, less chores! Yeah, I'll get on board with that.
Shamba - that was something I loved about Oregon. They hardly have dust there. I know, it's almost inconceivable!
Elli - my mom was like that; she kept everything. Much of it went in the trash at my dad's hands after she passed away. I try to be careful about what I choose to keep and toss. Lately, I've been much more brutal in what makes the cut.
Ruchi - I hate moving, too. The last couple of moves have been much harder than the previous ones. Emotionally, at least. That's why I was so relieved when we thought this was IT. ... And now it's not. I could just sit and cry. Actually, I sometimes do. :(
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