It may sound weird, but I get the same thrill from new purchases as I do from getting rid of old things. Really, I promise. There is something really freeing about passing on things that no longer have a place in my life to someone who needs them. That whole circle of life thing.
On top of that, another one of my intentions for 2009 is to have only really nice stuff. Since I cannot afford lots of really nice things, I can get rid of one item each week, and by the end of the year I will have 50 less items. Thereby increasing the fraction of “nice” things by decreasing the “not nice things.” Addition by subtraction.
Now about the title… this whole concept is kind of like washing your face. In order to keep skin looking fresh doctors recommend exfoliating to diminish dead skin cells and reveal a fresh layer of skin. I think the same goes for my stuff.
So this week’s exfoliation is actually two big boxes of pillows, blankets, clothes (pictured), shoes, bras, and caramel apple suckers.
Ah. I feel better already.
January 23rd, 2009 at 1:20 pm
you’re dumping the caramel apple suckers?!? after all the effort we put in to find them!?!?
January 26th, 2009 at 7:53 am
I was a huge packrat before moving into my shoebox here in the city. I had even kept sweaters I had recieved as gifts several years before moving to AZ that still had the tags on them. Now I completely understand. It feels great to ditch the clutter, free up new space, and improve the nice-stuff/lousy-stuff ratio.
March 30th, 2010 at 11:47 am
I completely get your concept! I purge all the time myself!