My apologies on being MIA, it was my intention to be consistent in blogging at least once a week. I know what tripped me up, trying to include more blog posts, but I will do my darnedest to refrain myself from posting more than my Wednesday post.

So what has been keeping me away? Well...

It's been a long time in the making. For 8 years, I've been living in one of my parents' apartments which was ideal at the time. I didn't have to be concerned with my parents dictating how I lived. Still, I felt like I was still under their hand. There was also the fact that it was too big for me, so the space was underutilized. Also, my sister wanted to move out from the family home, for some of the reasons I moved out.

After much discussion and consideration, we decided to move in with each other as of the 1st of March. Luckily, the ideal place was found and we moved in on the 16th of March. Unfortunately, moving was a hassle, I have to much stuff. At one point I wanted to burn them all.

It took me about 2 weeks to empty out all my stuff doing it little, little around my work schedule. It reminded me of the George Carlin bit, about stuff



What I recognized was my stuff fell into several categoriest:

• Stuff I used regularly, from daily to every few days. This is stuff I can't do without. What I've discovered was although I had upwards of 7 glasses , 7 dishes, 3 bowls, I only used one of each. Which made me ask the question, Why do I have all of the others?
• Stuff I never use but they have sentimental value. There were things that were left in my apartment during the move and it was not a big deal. Then I would bring them over and it was important that I had them with me. These included photo albums, books I really liked, little souvenirs.
• Stuff I never use and rationalize that I would use them. The only reason I still have them is because as soon as I toss them I will have a use for them. It doesn't matter that they are collecting dust and have probably gone bad, I just might use them. These include art supplies, photography supplies, screenprinting supplies.
• Stuff I don't use on the regular but most likely use again. Months may pass and I haven't used them, but I know for sure there will be a time when a family member or I will use it. These include my guillotine, my laminating machine, my sewing machines.
• Stuff I should toss and know I must toss. I just never got around to tossing them.
• Stuff that might be able to fix and/or I paid quite some money for and I question if I should do away with it. I just might be able to get it fixed, but do I really want to go through the hassle of finding someone just to be told it can't be fixed. This includes old printers, old monitors (big ass monitors)
• Stuff to sell/donate. These are just spread out and I never took the time to put together and take to the consignment stores or donate to the Red Cross. The bottom line is I just don't want them. These include books, clothes, little knick knacks.

After moving all these things to my new home, I still have to sort them which is another hassle. But there is....

Something I Never Thought About
Wanting to get some of the stuff out of the house, I took some to the consignment store I've used before. While waiting to present my stuff to be sold, I looked around and noticed some art supplies, art books, odds and ends. When I went to the sales clerk who I knew long before she worked there, she said she couldn't take my stuff.

A few months back, an ex-pat was killed by her ex-husband and the store was asked to do a yard sale for her estate and what was left back the store could have. It was a lot of stuff.

It made me think about my stuff. How one's lifetime, they accumulate stuff what fall into the above categories. They don't think about the fact that one day, they will die and a family member or worse, a stranger, would have to go through their stuff.

What will my stuff say about me? Are there things I'm embarrassed to own? What will happen to the things that were dear to me? Will they be sold off without a thought? Will they hold on to them in memory of me? Should I go ahead an purge  my stuff? And a very important question,

These are a few questions I will be mulling over as I sort through my stuff. I know I will have to keep repeating to my self, “These things don't really matter.” I know I won't be going the minimalist route, but I will come as close as I can while creating a space that will nourish me and expresses who I really am.

What about you? If you were to move tomorrow, would you be taking all the stuff that populates your current space? Could you live with out most of your stuff?