The faucets in my shower broke today, so I can't turn on the water. Knowing my landlord it will be a long time before I get to shower again. It's a good thing I work from home. I think I am going to keep a running count here of how long it takes her to get it fixed and / or for me to bathe.
I really need to stop living in apartments. If I didn't have a kind of fat car payment I could afford a house pretty well. Since I only drive about two days a week I'm thinking about selling my car and buying something that I could pay for up front or finance with very small payments. I remember my $119 payments on my Jeep Cherokee... that was nice. Too bad someone had to hit me and ruin it.
It would be nice to live in a place where you could rely on walking or public transportation. Unfortunately Jacksonville has a serious case of sprawl. Everything is at least a 20 minute drive from everything else. That rules out a car-free life for me.
I cleaned off my desk today for the first time in about a year. Of course the only reason I cleaned it off was to replace it. Regardless, it is a nice feeling to have things neatly arranged. If only everything else was as easily organized. I simply have too much stuff. For example, one closet in my house is mostly filled with posters. Yes, posters. I must have... 20 that aren't hanging anywhere. I don't want to throw them away. I don't want to hang them up. As a result they sit there, much like the old Mac that I have never used and know I will never use.
I guess what's going through my head is a desire to simplify things. I want to lose whatever I don't need and make more room for what's important. I seem to have inadvertently done this with a lot of friendships lately. I don't really know why that happened, but maybe it's something I was willing unconsciously. Maybe it's wrong to blame myself. Either way, compared to that, cleaning out my apartment should be a breeze.
Posted by Xkot at October 28, 2002 04:22 AM | Speak It | TrackbackSave water, bathe with a friend.
I know what it's like when you have too much "stuff". Things you haven't looked at in years and haven't used. I also have the need to simplify and when I open a drawer in my Mother's old hutch and see things that haven't been moved since her death in 86, I feel connected to her. Silly isn't it? I guess it's my way of feeling comforted. It connects me to my past family life.
Shoes and clothing that I haven't worn forever will be donated to a safe house. Old magazines will make their way to a Sr. Citizen Center.
It's healing to make your surroundings serene and uncomplicated. Too much "stuff" takes..too much time to filter through. I am making a promise to myself to empty drawers, boxes, closets and get rid of dishes and cookwear I never use.
My two-man single blade saw in the shed will remain there. It was found on my great grand-daddys tobacco farm and I am keeping that sucker.
Donating items to a good cause can warm your heart and soul.
Posted by: Moxt on October 28, 2002 06:40 AM - linkI know that for me, every time something leaves the condo, either thrown out or sold or donated to St. Vincent's, I feel lighter and better.
Posted by: Adam on October 28, 2002 08:22 AM - linkI've been fighting that battle for years now. I inherited a fair share of packrat genes from both side of my family. When my father died two years ago, I had to clean out his house. It had been my house before I married, and so had all my old stuff -- stuff from my childhood, teenage years, etc. Along with all that was the strange stuff my Dad had been collecting for years and years.
Most of it went to the dump. Some was sold, some was given away. Some of it has to be shipped to my brothers. What's left is sitting either in a store room we keep, or tucked in small boxes.
Paring down all that stuff was like pulling off an old skin. I was used to the old skin, comfortable with moving it out of my way, accustomed to dusting it and cleaning it. When I pulled it off and tossed it out, it felt strange.
And that's when I learned the real secret, the "why" of why clearing things out feels so "lightening". Stuff owns us. We don't own it. We spend our time tending to it, guarding it, protecting and preserving it, and in general serving it slavishly. Dumping it is like pulling off chains.
And, of course, makes room for new and improved stuff. ;>
Posted by: Sherri on October 28, 2002 09:03 AM - linki hear ya on all you said - similuar vibe here
Posted by: paisley on October 28, 2002 12:33 PM - linkhey xkot...can i store some of my unused posters in your closet? i've got one for the star wars radio show, back in 1980! i think it would look great rolled up in your closet...
Posted by: dangerbarrow on October 28, 2002 04:07 PM - linkA couple of years ago I had a friend who would always give me really good deals on cheap trucker speed, and it always helped me to embark upon massive cleaning binges. I got so wound up that I was washing dishes that were not even dirty! Ended up throwing about 30% of my earthly possessions out back in the alley for the homeless people to have.
Posted by: stacey on October 28, 2002 04:11 PM - link