get rid of all my clutter

...And almost through the first stack, and the shredder starts to overheat. I guess it’s not really designed to be run constantly—just short runs of a few seconds at a time. If I really need to do it this way, it’s going to take a while. Maybe I need to go through my stuff and make sure I actually need to shred it.

I have two full size (4 drawer) file cabinets. A few days ago, about four of the drawers were filled with files. Went through them—do I really need credit card bills from my first credit card—in 1989? NO. So out it went. Found a couple of web pages that tell how long to keep records… And there was just no real good reason for me to hang on to a lot of the stuff I had. I think I’ve kept most of my insurance documents for the last 20 years. They’re all out now, except for what’s current. Banking has kinda taken care of itself—now I get statements on line, if I even bother with them. Whittled down those four drawers full of files to less than one, now I can get rid of one of my file cabinets. It’ll be nice to have a bit more room in my apartment!

I did the books as a separate project last week, and that took care of organizing three tall and two short bookshelves. I moved on to the boxes I had still sitting on the floor—went through and organized stuff by the room it should be in, tossed out, or set aside for charity. I’ve got six boxes of stuff to go to charity—mostly books, but also blank CDs that I’d likely never use (I kept a spindle of 100—I must burn one or two every three months or so, so those will last a while), CD sleeves and jewel cases, loose leaf notebooks, and a few other miscellaneous items. The amazing thing is that I can actually put my coffee table down now—it was sitting on it’s side before because I didn’t have room for it!

I’m loving this. It’s actual livable space now. There are still a few things that need to be taken care of—I have a halogen lamp that was on my desk at the office that I need to find a home for. There are two tea chests that need to be put in the storage closet, but not before they’re filled with things that I don’t need immediate access to. There’s also a moving box containing my dad’s reel-to-reel deck… not sure what I’m going to do with that. I don’t really want to get rid of it just yet.

Next up is the bedroom & closet—then I’m done.

I’ve got six boxes of them to go to charity, and I’ve thrown out probably at least one more box worth.

That felt good. This place finally is starting to look like somewhere someone lives, and not just camps out.

I know this is real common advice for tackling clutter, but I just can’t do that. I always wind up organizing things by general categories (stuff that goes in the kitchen, in the bedroom, in the office, etc.) and THEN finding space for them once I get to where they should go. That makes much more sense to me.

At last count (er… estimation—I’ve never kept a count of them) I had about 700 books. They mostly fall into just a few categories: Science fiction, science, business, cookbooks, computer, textbooks, and self help books. When I moved in, I just wanted them all on the shelves, no matter what they were or where they should REALLY go. So now I’ve got computer and textbooks in the kitchen, cookbooks in the bedroom. All mixed up. A bit part of decluttering is going to be determining where the things should go! Also, it’ll give me a chance to take a second shot at which books need to be donated, and which I’ll keep.

Got rid of a broken book case—now I have to go through the books and decide what to keep and to give away. My mom gave me a bunch of her old cookbooks several years ago, and I’ve never even looked through them. They’re on their way out. I tossed some old computer books—nobody wants them, so they’re pretty much garbage. Still have a lot to look through.

Can’t wait to see what my living room is going to look like without it. I’ve got WAY too much stuff for the apartment I live in, so it’s kind of like living in a crowded warehouse, with all the stuff piled up. Glad I’m going to be moving forward on this one.

...is to get rid of the boxes of stuff that I’m giving to charity.

2nd step: sell my old computer hardware on eBay, and the camera stuff to KEH.

3rd step, sadly, get rid of a bunch of books. I really don’t want to do that, but I’ve got several hundred… I’m looking forward to this one about as much as I’d look forward to dumping old friends. :(