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Throw Away Fifty Things

By georgegsmithjr ⋅ May 15, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment
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So, I was walking through Barnes and Noble the other day when I ran across the book, “Throw out Fifty Things – Clear the clutter, Find your life.”  If there was ever a book whose point could be summarized in it’s title, it would be that one.  Without even picking up the book, I started to think about my material possessions.  What do I have that’s a waste?  I don’t own that much and the decluttering of my life started when I packed up my Ford Taurus and moved out to Boulder two years ago.

Still – I have a lot of stuff.  A lot of stuff that I realize I simply do not need.  Take DVD’s.  Do I need Season One of Laguna Beach that I picked up to be funny (and because it’s a guilty pleasure)?  Do I need random movies that I own but haven’t watched in a year?  It’s somewhat funny that I have a fairly large box of DVDs – DVD’s which I could easily convert to fit into a hard drive that takes up 1/1000th the space in my house.  Why do I have a disproportionate amount of property in my limited space dedicated to the physical representation of a digital medium?  It makes no sense.  The DVD’s have got to go…

Clothes.  While I definitely don’t have the large assortment of clothes that I once had, I still have an overabundance of clothing.  I’m not even talking about the clothing I wear.  I’m talking about clothes I won’t wear.  The “one day” clothes as I daydream of skinnier days or pray that maybe that ugly ass shirt will come back in style.   Or the clothes that no longer fit but someday maybe they will (see Fly, Fatass, Fly).  While these daydreams of a fashion revival or a skinny George may come true – why don’t I just get rid of everything and, when that day comes, I can then acquire the things I need then.  Why hold on to stuff I may never need?

That’s the point.  Why do we hold on to things we may never need.  I used to collect CD’s and loved being considered a music connoisseur.  When I made the move to digital music, the physical presence my music collection diminished and it became a reasonable pursuit – instead of lugging thousands of CD’s and vinyl records all over the place (editor’s note: I still have around 100 vinyl records.  Some habits die hard).

So, as I prepare to enter some new chapters in my life, ditching old stand by’s is the first step.  Bye DVD collection.  Bye useless clothes.  Bye (some) books.  Bye tech toys I never use.  You’ll find better homes.  I promise.

Discussion

4 comments for “Throw Away Fifty Things”

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/jennyjenjen jennyjenjen

    Awesome post. Ya know I forgot to suggest talking to/checking out Kath's blog (http://alikelystory.blogs.com). I think you met her at Kegs and Kites. She's totally awesome and has worked professionally in either interior design or organizing (or both?). Anyhow, totally check out her blog, tweet her, or something — she'll give you inspiration!

  • Naomimimi

    Dude, doesn't it feel good?

    Last winter, I gave away (close to) everything I didn't ditch when I moved here 2 years ago myself :) It's amazing what you can do without, how programed we are to think "I NEED THAT" and how amazing it feels when you actually progress from just thinking about giving stuff away to actually loading up those 5 or 6 trash bags and hauling them over to Goodwill.

    All my books, most of my movies (I can't do without my battered Knight's Tale DVD), any clothing I hadn't worn in 6 months, office supplies, tech stuff I no longer used – all of it. Gone. No regrets.

    Just don't ask me to give up my yarn or dance shoes ;)

    ps. I like big George. Skinny George would just seem… wrong.

  • Jill Zmolek

    Thank you for posting that!!! I may be young, but I have discovered the joy of having less! Many poor soles will never realize it, but, the less you have the happier you will become. I used to think, why would anyone want to get rid of all of their special stuff? It's not special if you only hold on to it because it was once special to you. This doesn't mean that to be happy you have to be homeless or anything, it just means that a good life is a life with no stress every minute. (Most)Material items don't bring anything that will help you though life.
    So remember this:

    “When God made the earth, he didn't also give you a plasma-screen TV,
    thirteen ipods, and three summer houses spread across the US. There is a reason for that.
    Think about it.”

  • Jill Zmolek

    Thank you for posting that!!! I may be young, but I have discovered the joy of having less! Many poor soles will never realize it, but, the less you have the happier you will become. I used to think, why would anyone want to get rid of all of their special stuff? It's not special if you only hold on to it because it was once special to you. This doesn't mean that to be happy you have to be homeless or anything, it just means that a good life is a life with no stress every minute. (Most)Material items don't bring anything that will help you though life.
    So remember this:

    “When God made the earth, he didn't also give you a plasma-screen TV,
    thirteen ipods, and three summer houses spread across the US. There is a reason for that.
    Think about it.”