get rid of things I don't need

I sold a few things that have been taking up space in my tiny apartment and made a helpful amount of cash in the process:

-the silly bike trainer that takes all the joy out of biking
-my old mountain bike that’s too heavy for my uphill commute
-my very old laptop that I was keeping for sentimental reasons

I decided to give my not-as-old apple laptop to my mom, which I sent back home with my boyfriend on his last visit. I couldn’t sell it for the price I think it was worth since all those great new macbooks are out, so I figured my mom might as well enjoy it and get some mac lessons this summer while I’m home. All that’s left is to try and finish a big project at home on my desktop and then try to sell that before I leave in a few weeks. I can do the rest of my school work and studying on campus at the computer lab where I work.

I also planned to sell one of my old trumpets because I decided that I would never play seriously in an orchestra again, but then I realized that even my other trumpet was useless to keep around since I have so many other goals in my life that I have NOT already accomplished in some fashion that I will most likely never put the time in to enjoy playing the trumpet the right way again. If I do, I will most likely be in a place in life to obtain another trumpet, and in the meantime I don’t need to be carting these two around. I’m going to take them to a local store soon to be sold for commission so I can get them out of my hair ASAP.

Once all of this is done, the big event will be my first weekend back at home when I will go through all of my old things (and some of my mom’s that have crept into my old bedroom) and have a glorious, cleansing yard sale! I always loved having an LA garage sale – the quirky neighbors come out of the woodwork, I get to hang out on the lawn all day watching clutter be lifted off my shoulders, I make a little cash, and my nephews get to hang out and sell lemonade. WIN-WIN-WIN.

I already feel lighter and I am about to dig into my stash of trash here in my apartment so I can prepare for the main event!

in fact I don’t need most of the things I own…but maybe I’ll need them tomorrow, or maybe next week, or in two months, or… ;)

i have started this.

I left this for a while but I’m returning to it with a vengence. I’ve finished uni and so can now get rid of all of the books and work that I’ll never need again, therefore am starting with the dreaded computer desk/office space. It’s horrible, full of clutter and mess. Any books etc. that I can sell on amazon.co.uk I’m listing as and when I’m taking a break. I’m basically sticking anything that can be sold/given to charity in the living room and obviously leaving the living room as the last room in my flat to sort out. Hopefully by the end of the month my flat will be cleaner, tidier, have less things in it and be a lot more zen. I may even have made a few bob or two as well. :D

The kitchen and bathroom are practically the same from when I last de-cluttered them but I’ll do them again which won’t take too long. :)

Last week I decided to move away from this country back to where I’m from. In 10 days I should get rid of most of the things that have piled up in 2,5 years.

When I moved here I had one suitcase and my laptop. I’m intending to do the same when going back. Books are my passion and unfortunately I have to give up most of them now. I hate to own too much stuff (though most of my friends say I own much less than an average person…), I’d like to own a suitcase with all the important stuff, all that I need in life. I wonder if it’s possible, but I will try.

Having a friend stay at your furnished apartment for a month while you go away to do holiday things is an excellent way to reveal your magical power of ruthlessly culling the fat from your collection of material possessions. Very efficient.

Plus, impromptu homework/packing/pizza parties are awesome for both fun and giving stuff you don’t use to your friends who will use them.

I want 2009 to be a fresh start for me. I want to get rid of everything that I don’t need. Which I might say is A LOT!! Even if I like all the stuff in my room I realy really don’t need them.
I’ll start next weekend if possible and I’ll be done by the end of December. Hopefully >!<

I am realizing that this goal, as it stands, is about 20% physical crud that creates mental crud and 80% straight up mental crud. That’s a lot of crud!

I closed some more online accounts that just waste precious minutes of my day and it feels good to see my personal tracking sheet of internet password reminders shrink a bit. I am trying to apply my physical stuff techniques to mental stuff. I like to write down what it is I want to buy and then make myself wait a week (or a few days until some sort of deadline I set for myself, like when a paper is turned in) so that I can revisit it when I am calmer and the sexiness of the impulse is gone. Most of the time I end up crossing it off the list and thanking my lucky stars that I didn’t waste money (or space!) on it. Then I can feel really good about the other stuff that I do still need, or sometimes I’ll even make myself wait a few more times (especially for big purchases).

I am trying to do this with my wishlist of activities. I started with a list that looked like this:

races
karate
crossfit
weight training @ univ. gym
swimming at univ. pool
riding bike weekly on local trails
running lake loop at least weekly
speed workouts @ track
interval runs through neighborhood
weekend trail runs

Now it looks like this:

be active 3x weekly
crossfit if there’s time & money
weekend trail runs if there’s time & no money

I was able to cross off a lot of that stuff because it’s now dark in the mornings and evenings when I like to do all my exercising. A mixed blessing, to be sure.

Oh, and I finally reorganized my files and tossed a bunch of paperwork that’s really old. I mean, how long do you really need to keep old bank or credit card statements – especially for closed accounts?

I also only had to wear bikini bottoms for 3 days last week before I finally got to the laundry. Living my life is learning to appreciate clean underwear.

The kitchen is done as is the bathroom and living room. I’ve thrown what feels like a million bags of rubbish away as well. I have my computer desk, hallway and bedroom left. I’ve started listing things on eBay and old books on Amazon as well as have a “give to charity” pile. :)

I’m getting there. :)

I just took care of some financial stuff that has been weighing on me: closed a credit account I don’t need, called to verify my address + shoe size + grandmother’s favorite vegetable so that I can access my new IRA account, and did some general balancing of the books. Next on the list is to attack the mound of dirty laundry that’s growing next to my bed. (If garment orogeny were a major, I’d graduate summa cum laude.) Doing laundry counts as clearing mental space, too, because it can be really distressing when you run out of clean underwear and have to rock bikini bottoms under your jeans for a week.

...not that I have ever done that.