Cleaning out my closet...

"Bottom line is, if you do not use it or need it, it's clutter, and it needs to go."
Charisse Ward

In preparation for the biggest move of my life I have been sorting through everything that I have collected these last 10 or so years! Through this ginormous task of going through EVERYTHING: throwing old stuff I don't even know why I STILL have (dating back to 2003), keeping things I know I will need and then looking at something for more than 5 minutes thinking to myself, "I could use this for A, B or C" or "Do I REALLY need this, or am I just having a hard time parting with it." I seriously feel like I am borderline hoarder... Thankfully Dustin was there to push me through the process and say, "Babe, we really don't need that." It so much easier throwing out someone else's junk!

Now, throughout the process of all this sorting, packing and donating to Goodwill has brought me the realization that when we move I WILL NOT keep as much stuff as I did this time. I vow to be more organized and throw the stuff away when I get it. Don't keep stuff for a rainy day. Some of the stuff I have kept is downright preposterous! I am still shaking my head at some of the stuff I found! Just to name a few things: Games with essential parts missing, clothes from middle and high school that I know I will never wear again, several books, purses full of crap, shells from the beach, etc. However, I did find loads of change to add to my change jar.

We thought we were going to try and have a yard sale.... that is a no go! We have WAY TOO much stuff. We made several piles "to sell" but then when we got done we didn't have anywhere to put that pile but the garage, but the garage needed to be sorted too! Sigh. So in the end, we bagged it all up. I will take the 4 bags to Goodwill tomorrow before work. We will Craigslist and yard sale the big furniture items and if we get no hits on them then we will Goodwill those too!

I know, no one said moving would be easy but damn... this process has been enduring, something like an epic journey. First we had to pick a date to move! That one wasn't too bad. We did it so I could get a few more paychecks out of the Kangaroo. We decided on July 7th or 8th if we need to push it back a little. We know Sally the Saturn is NOT going to make the trek to Florida so luckily my mom is letting us have her car and we are selling mine. Nope, not that easy! When we go to look for the title to my car- it is no where to be found! So then I have to go through the process of obtaining a NEW title. Little did I know it was going to take an ACT OF FREAKING CONGRESS! Everyone tells me to to go to the DMV, I go there and after an hour wait they say I am in the wrong place and send me to the License Plate Agency! UGH! I go to the licence plate agency and wait in line for approximately 30 minutes only to get told I have to have proof that the lien was paid off! I go back to State Farm because THAT is where we got my loan through and the agency calls the 800 number for the bank only to tell me that I have to wait 48 hours for them to send the lien out to me. (This could take another FREAKING week for it to come in the mail!) Then take it to the License Plate Agency and request my title which will take another 20-25 FREAKING days!!!! Why is everything a wait? I went to the DMV the same day to change my last name on my License but that was a 20 day wait too! Figured I would save time and money and just wait till we got to Florida. At the time we had 17 days! Here we are 14 days away from moving and I haven't even got the lien in the mail! I was told we could expedite the shipping with a little extra money, so that's ONE positive!

With all the packing and looking around my house I realize that up till now I am a pack-rat just like my mom. As I stated before, I will NOT be like this in my own place. I plan to be clutter free and everything will have its OWN place. This point brings me to the book that Dustin and I have been reading Crossing the Tracks for Love by Ruby Payne. In the book it talks about how people who have lived in poverty have a tendency to collecting things for a time when they might need it. Obviously we do not live in poverty now but at one point she did and it is still with her. Its normal when people switch classes but their mentality stays. Its like when someone loses a bunch of weight but still has the mindset they are bigger than what they are.

Things I learned in the last 30 days:
1. If you have something that you do not want, throw it away. If you wait 10 years to go through stuff then you are in for a rude awakening!! Cleanse yourself of junk and live Clutter Free!
2. You ALWAYS have more stuff than you realize!
3. Goodwill is the best thing! I would hate throwing all these clothes away!
4. Yard sales are smart when you have a few months to do things spread out over time. (Next time we will know!)
5. I hate waiting! Everything in grown up life has a wait on it. (Why is that?)
6. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree!
7. Organization is a subject I would LOVE to be stronger in!