Not quite a horder - decluttering

Suzwes: Thanks for starting this thread and for your latest post. I too can relate to health issues derailing us.  That's whate happened in October thru March.

Bunkie10: Glad to hear your felt good and inspired a friend. Way to go.

So, I spent more time in the garage this weekend.  Now I'm down to things I feel like I need to sell on e-bay or craigs list.  Still not able to pull 2nd car in.  I have a box of vintage linen tablecloths.  I have some vintaqge bookends, silverplated trays and silverware and more.  How do I get motivated to sell on ebay or should I just donate all this stuff?

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Been decluttering out old hospice papers for storage.  I think I need to keep them 5 years for documentation.  Also stacks of old newspapers.  I never met a newpaper I didn 't like.  But recycling all but family/obit. sections.  DH took large nylon leaf thingie like you put yard debris in to the school paper dump.

Our county had dump day 2 weeks ago.  Got rid of lots of junk from garage area.  County took in lots of boats.

Have to clean out living area.  AC on the fritz and repairman coming tomorrow.  89 degress here yesterday and about the same today.  We are the worst at maintenance.  I am getting a journal and documenting everything we do to house/vehicles.  And though DH does not so much I believe in preseason checks of AC/heat and that will restart NOW.

I noticed a pair of brown jeans in my drawer. I only wear them to the animal shelter. But I wear other things there also, so these need to go to the round file. They are too tattered to donate.

Bunkie, Good plan but do not touch the asbestos tiles. They need to be removed professionally. Nephew's neighbors did it themselves and were both diagnosed with lung cancer two years later. The masks you get  at home stores aren't sufficient.

I won't even be in the house when they remove those tiles. I will be gone for 2 months. I thought they were just regular tiles. My contractor schooled me.

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My decluttering has fallen off the last 2 weeks and I plead NO excuses. Well, maybe more surfing on net and BCO reading. Think DH is pi**ed with me and I need to get up off my a**. Thanks for the kick in the pants Bunkie and Teka. I wish we would have a lovely rainy couple of days and I might make some progress. Though I have been cleaning out old mags. The past couple of years I have not read hardly any and take wayyyy to many. BUT I do use them as entertainment value as we go out very little. Once DH gets home and he works every other weekend, he will not budge so even on his weekends off we stay home.

DD has given me permission to clean out her old room but she only had an hour or two to go through it. I think I will start lightly and work my way into stuff she might actually want. Clincher is it would have to stay here. She has teeny apt with one closet. My DM kept some of my things for years and love that she did. And we moved often every year or 2. So we are planted here so what would it hurt me to keep her stuff. She is a great DD, college grad, paid off student loans, good job, making car payments. Can you tell I'm proud?

Happy Wednesday to everyone. Are we having a May challenge?

Wow, Bunkie, I am proud of you.  I feel that the longer I keep a magazine, the harder time I have trying to let loose of it.  Since it isn't new, I will procrastinate even opening it to see why I saved it.  After all, I can always thumb through it tomorrow.

My place always had alot of stuff, but there was something about my dx that made me just keep everything--I couldn't even get rid of mail.  I've been de-cluttering, slowly but surely for the past few months.   At first it felt as if nothing was happening.I could take bags of stuff out, but the place looked the same.  Finally it is beginning to show (slowly, slowly).    I have given enough books away that the book cases are starting to have room in them.  Right now I have 8 bags of clothing to take to a thrift shop.  My goal is for things to look better by October and to get three or four bags of stuff out each week. I hope that is realistic. 

Thanks to you gals for giving me an incentive to keep going.

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I just contacted a Commodore computer user group about donating three Commodore computers, with some peripheral devices, software and hobbyist magazines. I couldn't find contact info for anyone in the local User Group, so I sent an email to the club in Portland OR asking them to put me in touch with the club up here, or forward my email. But if I can't get in touch with the club in Seattle, Portland isn't all that far away. I'd rather drive there and have the computers go to people who will enjoy them than just throw them away or send for recycling.

Still working on the de-cluttering but feeling a bit overwhelmed.  Just before my diagnosis, my dear sister died and left me all of her possessions.  Although I gave away two small moving vans of furniture and household goods (about 14 foot trucks) to Habitat for Humanity, and gave 35 bags of more stuff to Goodwill as well as gave to people who helped,  I ended up with much too much---family heirlooms and things I want for my kids.   So I am trying not to be too hard on myself and to take things one step at a time. But today is one of those days when it just seems to be standing still.  I have an acquaintance from Bermuda coming to visit in the fall, who has never been to my house, and I am petrified that I won't be ready for her---thanks for listening.

Thanks for your thoughts Teka. I got rid of the junk when my sister first died...the stuff I have is actually valuable--a jade statue, my great grandmother's tea set. I don't mean that they are worth millions but maybe a few thousand which for me is real money.  The problem is that I have to get rid of all of my "junk" to either display this stuff for my own pleasure or to have a dealer come over to see the pieces I'd like to sell. E-bay is not an option for me.  That is why I am going through stuff and working on getting rid of the stuff that I don't mind just donating to the Salvation Army--to make room for the stuff I want, which is packed up in my basement.

I don't know how not to put this woman up in my home. She is traveling  to my home town to do the Komen Three Day Walk which she views as helping her breast cancer friends, ie, me.  She basically invited herself and at the time it seemed ok.  I also had a young woman helping me one day a week with my decluttering but she has decided to move to Costa Rica and soon--leaving June 7--which I think is part of why I am not sure I can get things ready enough.  I guess I need to stop worrying and  see where I am in August--I can write to my Bermuda friend and  explain about the clutter--I am doing well in making inroads,  but I had become a pack rat and it will take a long time to have a pristine environment. I had too much stuff but during chemo, I really got messed up in the house and I am still trying to organize.  I am hopeful that I eventually will find a place for the antiques and get rid of my junk.

I really appreciate the support of this board.

Mandy

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