We close on our new condo in exactly one month! But that means that we also have to move in one month. This is my ninth move in ten years (some local moves, some between states, and once internationally). I've only learned three things.
Pack one box each day in the month before you move.
Declutter as you go.
Focus on getting rid of large items.
Number your boxes and keep a brief list of what's in each box.
I'm still new to the idea of minimalism and I don't have time with my full-time job to fully de-clutter in the next month. This means that a lot of junk is still going to go with us. We have a lot of stuff to pack and move. I'd like to take a friend's sardonic suggestion to just burn it all but I don't think our neighbors would appreciate the bonfire!
That's why it's so important to pack one box a day when you move. Quite simply, it keeps you from going insane.
Moving does have one advantage: it forces you to take a look at everything you own TWICE. You have to pack everything and unpack everything so why not take the chance to rid yourself of anything that's not worth the work of packing?
Numbering boxes and keeping a short list of the contents will make life easier when you get to your destination. But don't waste time making a detailed list. "Kitchen stuff" or "bedsheets and towels" is enough to describe an entire box. You don't need to or have time to list out the 35 kitchen gadgets that went in the box.
Putting a priority on getting rid of the big stuff saves you time, money and space. You may not have time to go through every tiny trinket as you pack but you can take a piece of furniture you don't use to the thrift shop in a hurry. But your large items will be the hardest and most expensive to move. Make your furniture earn its keep!
Today we're getting rid of four large objects. Decluttered items 39, 40, 41, and 42 are an office chair, a DVD player, a CRT television and a TV stand.
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The Reckoning!
Cost: All free! I found the chair in our apartment building's "free stuff" area in the basement a couple years back. The TV and stand once belonged to Josh's mom. The DVD player was a second-hand gift from a friend.
Why I decided to get rid of them: We have duplicates of all of these. Plus the TV has a huge green spot, and we want to become a one-TV houeshold (we're keeping the game consoles and DTV tuner though).
Fate: The chair went back into the "free" area in our apartment building. TV went to Best Buy for recycling and the DVD player and TV stand went to our favorite thrift shop.
Money lost on junk: Again, nothing this time. Total this year: $203.
You had to really do what I've tried to do as a mental exercise: "I have to move, what should I get rid of, what's important enough to keep?"
ReplyDeleteI tend to go a couple of steps further: suppose the next living space is an AirStream? More severely, (given my age: 60+), what do I want my kids to have to sort through when I leave this world.... The answer to both is "Not Much!"
"what do I want my kids to have to sort through when I leave this world...." What great motivation to declutter! When my aunt and uncle moved out of my deceased great-grandmother's home they had to have a huge yard sale to try to get rid of her stuff. It was such a pain. I don't want someone to have to do that for me. Thanks for the suggestion, I may turn it into a post!
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