Saturday, August 16, 2014

Studio Journal Episode 3 – Daily Packing Quirks



It has been a while since I posted to my studio journal.  It is only 2 weeks until moving day.  I have to admit feeling some anxiety about it, not because I am worried about the small space, but because of what happens between now and then. 

Getting rid of things is turning out to be harder than I thought.  In three ways actually.  First, I am having trouble giving away the heavy furniture for which I need a pickup.  Every organization that does pickups has a month-long lead time. I guess I waited too long to call.  Who would have thought?  I would have called months ago had I known!!!  So now I have to figure out what to do with my gorgeous white leather couch (hint hint if you live close) and my antique and also gorgeous dresser.  I can’t just throw them away!!!! Their original purchase prices were in the four digit range.

The second reason is my hoarding tendency.  I packed my shoes last night.  I have three pairs of almost identical black dress shoes.  I only need one.  But because these are the kind I like, I will eventually wear them out.  And my foot is not growing.  So I will eventually need all three pairs.  I can give them away and get something like a $5-10 tax break (35% of a $20 value – ish) or I can save all three and save myself future purchases of $100 or so.  But then I have to figure out where to put them in the meanwhile. I packed them, but didn’t seal the box so I can change my mind.

Then there is the silly category.  I used to collect baseball caps.  When I lived in Miami I had over 300 and they were all pretty cool.  When I moved to Boston I saved my 50 favorite and gave the rest to a homeless shelter.  They were much more popular than I expected, since the residents could pick one that actually resonated with them (some favorite sports team, brand logo, funny statement or whatever).  It would be nice to do that again with the 50 I have left.  But . . . .  I packed them, but didn’t seal the box so I can change my mind.  See a trend emerging here?

I found another Goodwill collection site (remember what happened to the old one) and brought over a load.  Today was kitchen goods.  Pots, pans, food containers and that kind of thing.  When I got back, I packed up a load for next time.  Foreman grill, steamer, books – even the solar powered and rechargeable lantern I got in Miami in case of power outages from hurricanes. Then for next weekend I have a color printer with a year’s worth of color toner cartridges and all kinds of office supplies.  


I got rid of some things too.  I tossed two old umbrellas.  I finished my good tequila and tossed the bottle (hey, that counts!!) and the jar from the salsa I had with it.  I also got rid of tons of old tax records.  1993-2003 went out the door, somewhat partially shredded because I was a little too lazy to do them all carefully.  I don’t have any of the associated bank accounts, jobs, utility accounts, blah blah blah any more so I think I am OK. 
 

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