"Stuff"

Sunday, April 25, 2010
People these days have too much "stuff".

I include myself in that statistic, because, well, it's true.

Granted, I am not to the level of the people you see on Hoarders, where an intervention is needed. No, I'm quite the opposite. I actually pride myself on my ability to keep myself mostly in check with "stuff".

When I knew I was going to be moving, I got rid of as much crap as I could. Even when you think you do well at keeping your life mostly clean, you still do find stuff you don't need. I donated or threw away clothing, dishes, and other random items that I unwittingly accumulated over the years.

Through the process of unpacking in my new place, I'm finding a new batch of "stuff" that I probably should get rid of. But for one reason or another, I can't get myself to do it!

For example, I have a box of bold, solid-colored velvet-like curtains.



I used them in my last two places, but my current place doesn't need them. Easy to get rid of, right? But they have photographic possibilities! A good solid-colored backdrop can be useful! Granted, I've used these curtains as a backdrop exactly once, but I used it! Is it worth keeping around a box of curtains in hopes I may use them for this one day?

I have a few boxes of other things I haven't been able to get myself to get rid of, like a bunch of original NES games. I haven't hooked up that NES in five or more years, and 98% of the games I want to play are available on the Virtual Console on the Wii. I have no good reason to keep them around.

Other things I still haven't gotten rid of include:

- Clothes appropriate for camping, which I've worn twice in the last three years.
- Two rolls of Furby wrapping paper. I have no clue where they came from cuz I sure didn't buy them, but they're so awesome that I can't get rid of them.
- A set of TV trays. What if I have a party and people need a place to set their drink down? Perfect!
- A huge box of painting supplies. I'm perfectly happy with all the paint here. Why do I need them?

But let's take this one step at a time. Comment and tell me whether I should keep the curtains. What would you do?