Moving makes you think about things and whether you really need this massive pile of junk or not. A lot of the things I might otherwise consider getting rid of (i.e. spare decorating elements) are staying because I don’t know what I’ll want to use when we do eventually buy a house, and if I throw something out or donate something and end up needing it, I’ll be furious with myself.
But there is a whole heckuva lot of other stuff floating around that we’re going through, and not just at our old place. I’m also going through a lot of the junk I kept from my early years at my parents’ house. Like, for example, shoe boxes full of a sampling of notes from all of my years of high school. Luckily, I got rid of all my old boyfriend crap quite awhile ago, so that wasn’t a problem, but reading my old notes really took me back, and man, have I matured! I would say 95% of them were about absolutely nothing except, “I’m bored.” Overall, I threw away a tall garbage can full of stuff and pared down my ol’ sentimentals to just the few special pieces, like the movie stub from my first date with my husband (we saw Dickie Roberts: Child Star at 7:50 on September 12, 2003 in the Florence Cinema, which no longer exists).
The best thing I came across, though, was a shoe box full of things from Kentucky Governor’s Scholar Program. I especially liked reading the letters that my friends and family had written me. One card came from my mom and had an air freshener enclosed, saying, “Just in case your room smells funky.” I cracked up at that one. I think I might just write a few of my friends some handwritten letters over the coming weeks.
A lot of you will start purging and minimizing as part of your New Year’s resolutions – what is important to you to keep and what do you get rid of? Are you a pack rat like us, or do you have no problem tossing your old favorites out the door?
Two Blue Pillars 
i hate to say it, but i’m a pack rat. unfortunately, my parents house is a warehouse of clutter so it’s really hard for me to discern what’s good and what’s not anymore. but i am working on it! this summer got rid of 30 pairs of shoes. after coming back from centre, i dumped a ton of clothes and goods to charity, family and friends. when i go home in the summer, i’ll keep purging old things–i keep a lot of mementos but i don’t scrapbook and they end up just being junk. i have photos and stories to hold memories for me now, instead of stuff.