Thirteen things that seem to be piling up around my house....
1. Napkins and placemats. I love to change decor and the easiest (aka cheapest) way to do this is to change colors. I now have a BOX of "old" napkin/placemat combos.
2. Sheets, pillowcases, shams, and other bed linen sets. Same M.O. -- the easiest way to trick the imagination into thinking "ah ha! we moved!" is to change colors. I do love this trick (and maybe it's just the shopping at TJMaxx?) but alas, again with the boxes of old decor.
3. Same with towels. I once did the bathroom in, for want of a color name, maroon. For that little, teeny, tiny bathroom -- what was I thinking? I have an entire set of towels, BRAND NEW, languishing in a box in the basement. Or did dh take to the Rescue Mission? I should hope.
4. Christmas crap. Okay, okay. Does that sound sacrilegious? I'm back to decorating again. Must be a theme? Anyway, one year I'll get all Spirit of Christmas Present, and the next year I'm entirely Ms. Scrooge De Cor. The sad part is the sentimentality with which I approach tossing any of this junk. I can't... boo hoo. I need to get a grip!
5. China. Not the country! The stacks of stuff I never use that now take up valuable shelf space (which could be better used by old towels? placemats? napkins? ha!). Okay, I have LOVELY china. Very delicate. But it's from my Laura Ashley phase of life. From the previous marriage. From the who-was-I-kidding entertainment phase of my life (you know, throwing parties, "having people over," and generally being a woman-who-lived-in-a-country club). I never crack out this stuff . Oh, nice pun. I don't have a daughter to whom I can (or would?) leave it in my will. Noritake. Light pink and blue flowers. Very art deco. Maybe it will come back? Who knows. Doesn't match anything I have in my kitchen/dining room. At. All.
6. Same goes with crystal. Waterford. Kildare. Gorgeous stuff. Maybe I should use this? Hmmm.
7. Boxes o' books. I tried (and for me this is reallllly hard) to glean the bookshelves of books I really don't "need" to keep. I have one box for BookMooch (see link) and one for books to sell on Amazon. Still need room in my bookshelves. I'm pathetic about books.
8. Shoes. Piling up. I never thought of myself as a shoe person. But lately I've noticed I keep shoes a long time. Will I ever wear those high heels again? Snort! I haven't even worn a dress since I moved to Vermont in June 2001. The dressiest I get is skirts and flats. But I so hate to throw out what I paid $$ for at Nordstroms when I nearly had my own parking space near the back door...
9. Summer clothes. Okay I really do have way too many pieces of "Fresh Produce" clothing. And I started a new color line (brown) this summer.
10. Sweaters. I love cozy sweaters. I used to buy one "special" sweater every winter when I lived in CA even though I probably didn't need one. Again, I can't seem to get rid of them. They get that "lived in" feel and ... I'm a gonner. Why get so emotional about clothing?
11. Sweatshirts. I love to buy sweatshirts when I travel. I have stacks.
12. T-Shirts. This list is becoming a sad, sad commentary on my shopping and emotional life. I need to get back to therapy, huh. Don't you love your old t-shirts? Who can toss out that shirt from .... Hill Street Blues? Paris Metro Map? Monet Exhibit at the Boston Museum of...? the Sistine Chapel? Oh, the list is endless. I have t-shirts from The Wizard of Oz phase, the art phase, the European travel phase... oy. I even have an Armani t-shirt that I used to wear to watch the Academy Awards (so I could say I wore my Armani!)
13. Paper. Oy. What to do with all this paper. Of all kinds. Papers to file (or toss?). Paper to wrap (I buy on whim). Cards (I buy on whim). Stationery (again... whim is moi). Paper for crafts. Paper patterns (love old patterns!) Boxes! I order stuff (hey! I live in VT where there is NO shopping) and the BOXES! More paper to fill land...? I try to recycle. But then I order another book...and it's a vicious cycle.
Wow, that list just wrote itself. And I didn't even get to pens and journals and ....
3 comments:
Yeah, I got lots of that stuff, too! Books, shoes, towels. I once discovered I had three sets of sterling flatware in my attic. Why? In case the Pope showed up with a full entourage? I pulled one set out and started using it for everyday ware. So what if it needs to be polished every once in a while. No one sharing my dinners is more important than my own family, right?
I agree. I haven't even used the China at Thanksgiving in years... it's a pain (hand wash!). Oy. I do like your idea about the flatware. I have two boxes of that stuff. Next time I "need" new utensils, I gotta remember... USE those first! Good idea...and you are RIGHT! Who's more important than the loves around your table every night/day/morning!!! Life's too short to save the good stuff "for a special occasion." Every day is a special occasion!
Can I have some of your stuff? After I hire a dumpster to get rid of my crap, of course.
Except the pink dishes. MIL gave me the pink dishes and I'm waiting for the first opportunity to dump them in favour of some nice Mikasa. For Christmas, I just break out the white CafeWare. It goes with EVERYTHING!
As far as clothing goes... the closet is full but there's nothing to wear.
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