If we could play a good game of hide seek in my house based on the amount of stuff stored in it then I'll deem that a limit of accumulation has been reached. Likewise if my stuff is piled so high that I fear one day being buried in it...
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| Out of bookshelf space for books and out of house space for more bookshelves. |
Limits of Accumulation
At the beginning of 1981 I secured jobs for myself and my girlfriend with the show with which I had previously toured. Before leaving for the road life, we moved all of the stuff in our apartment to a storage unit. At the end of that tour year we decided that since what we had spent on storage probably exceeded the actual cash value of what we were storing, we should get rid of most of it and store what little must-have keepsakes at each of our parents' houses. We had reached our limit of accumulation.
Now, after being off the road for over 25 years, I have a houseful of space to store possessions. As much as I like warehouses (I've worked in various warehouse situations), our house is not a warehouse. This is a place to live and not a giant storage unit. Fortunately I am nowhere near capacity stage other than a few corners and closets. My books runneth over as the overflow goes into piles and boxes. But they are books and by my estimation books deserve special consideration.
Oftentimes, good organization masks a hint of over-accumulation. That's been one of my main focuses: I've been tackling potential trouble spots where amassing great quantities poses a threat. I've been sorting, boxing, labeling and re-stacking wherever this has seemed appropriate. My garage is far neater with everything more compact. My office closets come next.
Do you have things that you rarely see, stored in closets that you rarely open? Have you ever rented (or do you now) a storage unit? What would you deem worth storing in a space that you rented?
Almost all of my belongings are in storage 900 miles away, and most of the rest is in my parents' garage. The space I have allotted to me isn't much bigger than the stateroom in A Night at the Opera. I remain hopeful I'll have my own home again in this lifetime, instead of indefinitely stuck in a place I hate.
ReplyDeleteCarrie-Anne, I've had stuff in wait at my parents' house for years. I got the last of it 3 years ago after my mother died. I hope you get to your dream place soon!
DeleteLee
We've had storage units a couple of times in our married life. When the cost of the storage went higher, I rented a pod to put in our driveway so that we could reorganize the garage in order to accommodate the things from the storage area. It was a good plan in theory in that we did get rid of the storage bill but my hubby had back issues (and issues around getting rid of things) and wasn't able to completely clean out the garage so now that area is getting pretty full again. If it was up to me...but then I wouldn't want him organizing my craft room either - LOL
ReplyDeleteJanet’s Smiles
Janet, I'm thinking about going the pod route for our next move, but that could be a few more years. I'll be taking it easy. I can empathize with your husband.
DeleteLee
I have never rented storage space. Right behind me in this room is a closet that has I don't know what in it and in front of it, boxes of my husband's tools that is is "just getting ready to use." and Xmas decorations that won't fit in the closet that is full of. Sigh. Our garage is full up with things my husband is saving too!
ReplyDeleteKristin, I think a lot of husbands have to have their stuff. But so do the wives.
DeleteLee
I have a large basement. previously converted to office space, where I keep records from previous businesses, manuscripts never published, articles never used, ad nauseum. Once I file or stow something down there, I seldom look at it again. Why don't I just back up a truck and transfer it all to a dump? Transfer implies that I could somehow dig any of it up if I ever REALLY needed it. However, I'd have to carry it up from the basement to get it there, so the saved labor is probably a better excuse.
ReplyDeleteJack, your downstairs office always seemed so neat and organized when I was down there. Maybe all the stuff down there will act as additional padding for your bomb shelter if you ever have to go down there.
DeleteLee
lol. There are definitely days when I feel like my house is a warehouse too. Of course, I always seem to need to clean it out over and over again. It's too bad there isn't a fairy that will do it for me… :)
ReplyDeleteWith Love,
Mandy
Mandy, in many ways I think our houses are warehouses.
DeleteLee
If we can't store stuff in our house, then we don't keep it. Altho, we did found mystery treasures when we moved from our old house to here.
ReplyDeleteSusan Kane, I like to find mystery treasures. That's part of the fun of decluttering and reorganizing.
DeleteLee
Everything I own is with me in Ecuador and came on the plane with me. My husband and I rented a storage unit during our move to store things for a few months. We made three trips over the course of a year to get it all here and close the storage unit. A friend moved back to California after seven years here and she tossed about half of the things she had in storage. Some had rotted and others she did not like anymore.
ReplyDeleteEmily In Ecuador
Emily, some people can just get rid of stuff and get new stuff later. I guess I would too for a lot of things. I think storage for pay is usually not worth it.
DeleteLee
I've yet to rent any storage space, but I don't feel alone in having "stuff" after reading the above posts. It does and cans mother you and often I feel it does with me, but it's hard to let go. I have let go of many things, and there's many more I need to let go. I gave my kids all their things back, finally after holding onto it way too many years. Now I have to give me stuff away, bit by bit. I could open up my own Michaels craft store. This has been an interesting A to Z, and the best one I've enjoyed this month.
ReplyDeleteJeanne, I'd like to put all my stuff on display in a store and have that be where I work. I'd probably have to have a lot of other stuff to sell if I were to pay the bills with my sales.
DeleteLee
I'd rather have my stuff with me even if it has to stay in boxes in a back room or something. We bought a storage locker on auction last summer. It's sad when people can't afford to pay and lose all their stuff.
ReplyDeleteJoJo, I like watching those storage wars shows on TV, but it is sad to know that people lost their stuff.
DeleteLee
I was house hunting in March and was discouraged at how many places I looked at that had very little storage, closet or cabinet space. No wonder people end up needing to rent storage units.
ReplyDeleteTrudy, a lot of the newer houses seem to have big closets. I like the big closets in my house. People often think they need the unit and then find out what a waste it was.
DeleteLee
Hi Lee!
ReplyDeleteI knew sometime during this challenge that your theme would shame me into clearing the clutter ;-)
So I'll start with closets - in order to make room for the rest of the stuff.
We rented a storage unit only once, when we closed our Auto shop and didn't have room at home for all of the parts we still had. We sold the parts right out of the storage unit.
Diedre, Shame you? I'm also shaming myself into continuing my clean-up project. Using your storage unit as a warehouse for stuff you are selling on an ongoing basis sounds like a good reason to have the unit.
DeleteLee
We have rented a 15x20 storage unit at $70 a month for over 20 years. We have NO storage space in our 1800 sq. foot house. But apart from numerous boxes of books and some furniture we had to move out of our guest room so our son and his wife could move in with us, there's probably nothing there we really want. THIS SPRING...,
ReplyDeleteCalensariel, 20 years is way too much, but I can understand how you might keep it "one more year" and then justify keeping it another. You've spend a fortune on storage.
DeleteLee
You're right Lee about the limits, but where does one start to thow things away? I wish I knew.
ReplyDeleteYvonne.
Yvonne, maybe start with things closest to the trash and keep working in? Maybe not though.
DeleteLee
Every spring, I spend a week in each room to go through drawers, toss, clean, purge. It feels like renewal and rebirth.
ReplyDeleteBeth
https://bethlapinsatozblog.wordpress.com/
Beth, aren't you the industrious one! Good for you!
DeleteLee
I've been working on my clutter but still have boxes I haven't looked at for years. I did tape up the (grown-up) kids stuff and ship it to them to occupy their space instead of ours. But no, we will not rent a storage space. I'd rather call Habitat for Humanity and donate big stuff and also give away small stuff to whoever might need or want it. It was hardest to get rid of books, but I managed to eliminate two bookcases and their contents last year. I've done so much, but still have so much to do.
ReplyDeletePatricia, most big stuff--namely furniture--is not worth storing unless it is valuable or irreplaceable. The job never ends as we near that point where we can't take anything any farther than we end up.
DeleteLee
so far, no renting of storage space, though this MAY have to happen if we relocate from our home in Johannesburg to the sea where we have a home we plan to retire to ... but I've heard from those who re-located that to rent storage space is expensive and the chances of getting to it again to make decisions re what to keep or get rid of, takes a very long time ..
ReplyDeleteSusan, out of sight, out of mind is probably the best caveat about putting stuff in storage. Probably better to look at the pay going out of the bank account to decide whether it's worth it.
DeleteLee
I've only rented a storage unit for a short term before a move. Thinking about doing it again.
ReplyDeleteMike, temporary short term is okay. How about a pod that can be transported? That's what I've been thinking if I have to do it?
DeleteLee
Lee,
ReplyDeleteWe have long since reached our limitations of what we should accumulate and yet we have not tossed much of the loot out. Now with the passing of DH's dad and this chapter of our lives is now closed, we have the daunting task of removing our private property from his boyhood home back to Tennessee, as well as the few items left to him in the will. We plan to rent a small unit until we know what to do with our stash. Much of which is baby/child related items that we hope to pass to one of our kids which we might be doing sooner than we thought. DD#1 is expecting but she's considered high-risk so I hate to plan too soon until the blessed event happens. Kindly keep her and baby in prayers. Thanks for hosting the A2Z fun, my friend. I'm sorry for being so slow to visit.
Curious as a Cathy iPad Art Sketch 'L' is for Lamppost
Cathy, try not to keep that rental unit very long if you do get one. It's easy to just keep paying the rent and put it out of mind until you realize you've blown a lot of money for no real good reason.
DeleteLee