Journaling project, Day 27

[drwex]

When things aren’t adding up in your life, begin subtracting. Life gets a lot simpler when you clear the clutter that makes it complicated. Fill your life with lots of experiences, not lots of things. Have incredible stories to tell, not incredible clutter in your closets.

What forms of clutter have been complicating your life and diverting you from meaningful experiences? How can you simplify and clear some space for yourself today?

At last, a prompt I can generally get behind. I'm terrible about this. I have way too much stuff, too many things, too many half-completed, will-do-someday, not-sure-what-to-do-about projects. Things. I'm dually burdened by my ant-nature (https://fablesofaesop.com/the-ant-and-the-grasshopper.html) and by a desire not to waste. Throwing something away and then needing another costs, too. I also take my shoes to be repaired when worn, and have buttons replaced on shirts and pants rather than buying more.

I could, I think, balance the two, but it's a big mental effort to do so. The easier course is to save things, hold onto them. This is compounded by having lived in the same place for two decades. A lot accumulates in the times when you don't have to clear it out. Elder child is cleaning house in preparation for college and discovering just how much stuff is (was) squirreled away in that one room. Imagine that times all the rooms in the house.

(Except maybe the kitchen. I'd wager that 95% of what's in the kitchen are things that see actual use. I'm not sure why I'm different about that room than all the others.)

That said, I'm not sure my things prevent me from having meaningful experiences. My things don't prevent me from having people over - my biggest source of meaningful experiences. Nor do they hamper me from going out and seeing things, visiting people, doing things. I don't think that simplifying my physical clutter would affect my experiences. Would it?

I could see this as a mental exercise - simplifying my mental life has been an important process for the last couple years and it's been helpful in keeping me from feeling so hopeless and overwhelmed. Maybe the prompt speaks to people who use things as an escape or diversion from experiences. But I've always had trouble spending on myself. Like, this past weekend I felt good that I just picked up and bought a book I've been wanting for a while because it was 40% off in the shop. (David Byrne's "How Music Works")

One thing that I think would help me simplify is if I had good alternatives to "just throw it out". Like, if I'm unlikely to use a thing but someone else might then it's easier for me to pass it on/donate/give away. Just piling up trash is _much_ harder for me. Like, I have a bunch of old board games I'd donate or sell, if I could. I sold a few cartons of things back in the old days (anyone remember half.com?) but kind of ran out of steam and there are a couple cartons worth left that I should dispose of.

Partly it's setting aside time to organize, sort, catalog, list, call, donate, whatever. I hear there are people who help with that sort of thing...

Comments

[flexagon]

I have personally found that expending the (physical and emotional) energy to get rid of things pays off in a simpler physical environment, which I'm mentally more able to cope with. I also have psychological issues though, since clutter reminds me of my childhood.

I probably went as extreme-minimalist in 2010 as I'm ever going to, and am a little more okay with owning infrequent-use items now. I may yet swing back someday though, and I do very frequently get rid of things. It helps to have a "drawer of departure", which is essentially a staging area for taking stuff to Goodwill every time the drawer fills up.

FWIW, I totally remember half.com. Indeed, my ebay username ends in "-half" because I was an imported user from there.

[drwex]

Yeah, I was kind of sad when eBay swallowed half. My business went to zero because of all the snipers and bots that came with eBay.

What happened in your childhood that clutter is a reminder?

[flexagon]

I grew up in a horribly cluttered (and tiny) log cabin, with undifferentiated piles of stuff encroaching from every corner, and every surface perpetually covered. So: my whole childhood, I guess. :-/

[drwex]

expending the (physical and emotional) energy to get rid of things pays off in a simpler physical environment, which I'm mentally more able to cope with

That's interesting. I have generally high comfort with the way my space is arranged now, but that's partly due to not bumping into the corners of the crap I've got squirreled away in half a dozen places (attic, garage, closets). I suspect if those spaces were more part of my usual routine I'd be more motivated to clean up crap from them.

[silentq]

I have some "keep all the things!" tendencies that I combat in short bursts, it is a lot of energy though. :-) I read a book a while back, aimed at people downsizing into retirement homes, that had some good strategies for helping to clear out non useful things. I currently have a large box that I've almost filled and need to take to donate soon.
I have a friend who actively accepts things from people, posts them on ebay and splits the profits. You don't get as much as you would if you sold it yourself, but it's out of your house. I did that with some old Nice Boots that didn't fit well any more but were still in good shape.

[drwex]

If your friend is willing to work with others I'd be interested in talking to them. I had someone who sold a bunch of stuff for me at Arisia a couple years running but he doesn't take a full dealer's table these days so that's not an option I can pursue anymore.

[mizarchivist]

In our copious free time, if you want to borrow my capacity for this sort of thinking and sorting, I'd be happy to help you figure some stuff out after Thing 1 is on to the college adventure.

<3

[drwex]

For sure!