So honey, this really isn't extremely public nagging. Consider it....the ultimate before shot!
Because I sometimes imagine what our house would be like if our closets didn't look like this...
and this...
and don't forget the sauna...
and these aren't even in a closet...
I'm very suspicious of these boxes in the garage because I don't know what's in them and they're too high for me to get to easily...
No doubt about it; some of those boxes have my stuff in them. But I can't wade through the rest to find them unless I'm aching for my daily workout. As for the rest, I just don't know what's in them. I mean, I've looked inside and I still don't know what's in them. Of course, anything I don't understand isn't important, so I could dump it all. But I know better. Close family members fight their own "You never use this!" vs "You never asked me before you got rid of this!" wars, and I've innocently caused too many tightened lips mentioning this or that object, now MIA.
OK, so instead of this silicon jumble, how many small families could we house? But seriously, I would love to have enough space to make some passive income boarding a foreign student (harking back to my goal of staying home with the children as long as desired). Empty space...hellooooo empty SPACE...I know you're there somewhere....
Perhaps I should run a fundraising raffle - 1st prize to the closest guess (to the month) for sorting through the last computer bits box... On second thought, let's get real. There are boxes filling up even while others are emptying. How about a prize for guessing the oldest computer in the house? Family members may not participate.
Any and all advice welcome! Do you and your partner struggle with different "stuff" personalities? What about greatest loves collections and serious hobbies?
i'm the hoarder in our house. but my husband has learned that being supportive works soo much better. and actually supportive, not a bad pretend. if he starts on, do you REALLY need this, i just dig my heals in and am determined NEVER to get rid of it. whereas if he asks at the right time, or even better, lets ME come to that decision, then we may get rid of it.
ReplyDeleteWell this is a good time to get rid of things for me - we have just moved and are going through boxes. Some are, i have had this stuff for years and have never used it, so let's give it away :)
good luck with your endevours, Jess. it seems you have already reached the compromise of tidiness in some spaces and others where you (he) is allowed to store stuff. i also like how you acknowledge his interests lead to his job :)
My husband read the "Clear your clutter with Feng Shui" after me and got excited about decluttering as well! My goal is to rid our 600 square foot apartment of all excess stuff, so that the three of us can live comfortably and have a feeling of spaciousness! That may sound like an impossibility.. but really I can already tell it's totally doable :) Our forced attic cleaning just this past week (roof renovation starts on tuesday when they rip off the whole roof!!!!!) was lots of work but so worth it.
ReplyDeleteI have still some stuff to get rid of.. my husband may think I'm a bit over enthusiastic, but if it means we don't have to move to a bigger place yet then he lets me do it :D Also it's been great making some money on stuff I never use for once, instead of spending it on stuff I never use :D
Still, I feel you.. My husband is a programmer and we have computer stuff and robot building stuff etc. too. But he's really good at tossing stuff that really serves no purpose anymore. So what he feel he needs, he can keep :D I don't know anything about that stuff anyway.
I can think of a much better use for that sauna
ReplyDelete@becky - moving is SUCH a great time to declutter. We did quite a bit of it then. I also must admit that often, something breaks and he can rifle through stuff and find something to fix it right then and there. I'm not sure whether these successful Justin Cases are worth the piles... :-)
ReplyDelete@cat - we have had three sizeable houses in a row and the stuff expands to fit it. My husband really wants to build onto the house and I see we could do it but I think we could also manage well by decluttering, and how much easier would that be?
@bridget - if we ever clear the sauna (and it is better than it was) than we'll have to fire it up. Especially if it's before the end of winter...brrrrrrrrrrrr!