The Saturday Seven - #28

The Just One Thing edition

Yep, that's right. I only got rid of one thing last week. ONE thing. A small bottle of lotion. I tried to give it to a lotion-addicted coworker, but the scent was a bit strong for her, so we passed it on to our Vespers ministry, which is a ministry to the homeless and hungry. Every time they meet, they can sort through clothes, shoes, and personal products and choose what they'd like. I hope one of them can use some strong-scented lotion.

Otherwise, I gave away nothing. I've been sick, with what turns out to be bronchitis and sinusitis. In addition to feeling like total crap, I have been completely out of energy. And not doing a lot of the things I want and need to be doing - like getting rid of Seven Things. I've started an antibiotic now, so I hope soon I'll be back to normal.

Total this week: 1.
Total so far: 231.

The Saturday Seven - #27

the few days late, few dollars short edition

My excuse for not getting rid of 7 things would be that I'm sick, but the fact of the matter is that I didn't actually start getting sick until Saturday afternoon. Theoretically, I should've already been done with last week's Seven Things by then. Of course, I'd been tending to two sick boys for a few days by then. Not to mention making stuff.

At any rate, I came up short this time. I did get a little more inventive, though, with how to give things away. First there was this:


In celebration of my one year blogiversary, I had a random drawing (of the names of people who left comments on my knitting blog) to give away one skein of Malabrigo. I bought this yarn last fall, then used a different yarn for the project, and wasn't going to use this one in the foreseeable future. So I gave it away.

Then on Tuesday, I made my first ever craigslist sale. Several years ago we bought some speaker mounts for our surround sound speakers, but we never used them. We had long ago lost the receipt (though the tag was still on them - $45). Sold them to a college student for $30. I know I lost money, but it felt really good to not only get rid of something but actually get some cash for it (since most of the stuff I've been getting rid of I'm just donating or giving away).

The coolest thing I got rid of this week was a hat that belonged to My Old Man. What was cool about it was that a homeless guy who sleeps at our church asked me for a stocking cap because it was getting so cold. I knit a watchcap for My Old Man last winter, so I knew he had a spare hat (the one he used before I knit him one). I really wanted to knit a cap for the guy at church but I knew that he needed one right away, not whenever I could get one knit. So I went home and got My Old Man's old cap - a nice, thick doubleknit one - and gave it to the guy at church. He was very appreciative, and has been wearing it ever since. It is really nice to give something to someone that you know really needs it.

So that was all for last week. Three things. But it felt like more than that - yarn (which I can't usually bear to part with), something I actually got money for (that had been taking up closet space for 5 years), and something someone in need could really use.

I've been thinking a lot lately about how giving things away is one important step for me in my struggle with stuff, but it definitely cannot be the only thing I'm doing. I'm mulling over what else I need to be doing. More on that later.

Total this past week: 3 things gone.
Total so far: 230.

The Saturday Seven - #26

The Actually on Saturday version.

This week, I got rid of another small lot of baby clothes, from the boys' late babyhood. I'm sending all of these to My Old Man's daughter, for her 6 month-old son J. As usual, many nostalgic and wistful feelings going on....

The goods:

• souvenir tee from Jekyll Island (the boys' first trip to the beach; My Old Man's daughter was also with us, which is why I thought she might want the tee for her son)
  
• baseball All-Stars jersey and short set
• denim shortalls w/ yellow tee and yellow striped button-down shirt
  
• fleece slippers (never worn)
• bunny sleeper
• navy fleece romper (a baby gift from SIL)
• ubiquitous red waffle-weave top (ubiquitous because they're wearing these in half the pictures I took over a period of months; a friend got these at the GAP outlet for like 50 cents each, and I *loved* them; they ended up stretching out some and so the boys were able to wear them a second season)
• bunny jacket
• Easter hat
• Easter bib
• pirate teddy bear baseball cap
• 2 baby toothbrushes

The really cool forward progress I made this week was to spend about 2 hours yesterday afternoon sorting through several boxes of the boys' clothes that had been sitting at the top of the stairs (which is actually in our bedroom, since the whole second floor is one big room) for several months. I got a labeller and some new clear containers and sorted through stuff to sell (divided into fall/winter and spring/summer), stuff to give away, and stuff for them to wear again next spring/summer. Moved it all down to the basement, where I have stacked it neatly. There's more to go through in our attic, but WOW what a huge psychological burden has been lifted, simply not to have that stuff sitting (piled four feet high) at the top of the stairs.

Total stuff gone: 13. Total so far: 227.

The Saturday Seven - #25

Late. Again.

I thought in the new year I would try to do better with keeping up with this blog. But in the first week, I already got behind. Ah, well.

I'm looking forward to getting rid of more stuff this year, and maybe even getting the chaos of my house simplified, at least a little bit. The first thing I got rid of for this Saturday Seven had a huge impact on my psyche.

this rocking chair
(not pictured in its usual location)

This thing has been sitting unused in our master bedroom for, I don't know, two or three years now. I had a vision of cottage chic loveliness when I first painted it white and brought it in from the garage. But it turns out I'm not really a wooden rocking chair person, unless I'm on a porch. I bought this for the front porch of my house in Georgia, about eight years ago. Used it on that porch till I moved up here a couple of years later, then stored it for a couple of years, then painted it and moved it into our bedroom.

You know, it is really psychologically burdensome to have something big in your space that you just don't use. It is so in the way. It wasn't even in an appropriate place in our bedroom, because - get this - there are two other chairs also in that space, also unused (except by the cat). I unloaded this on freecycle - out of my house within two hours of my posting it. I've said it before and I'll say it again - Freecycle ROCKS! And I can't tell you what a relief it is not to have this thing to trip over when I get up in the morning.

I also got rid of:
- a brand-new soap dispenser that builds into a kitchen sink - we had to replace our faucet last week, and it came with this dispenser, but we don't have a hole in our sink for such - freecycled this one too
- a beanie baby monkey - donated to the church rummage sale, which is also where I got it a couple of years ago
- a small picture frame - rummage sale
- three hardcover books - a John Sandford, a Patricia Cornwell,and a health and nutrition one - also to the rummage sale. I used to have high hopes of selling these because they were hardcover and in excellent condition. But a trip to a local used bookstore quickly disabused me of that notion.

Many months ago, I mentioned that I had found some stuff at my parents' house to give to Goodwill. I never got it there, so I never updated my sidebar total with those seven things. Well, my dad told me over the holidays that he finally dropped them off for me. So here are my totals:
this past week: 7 things gone
total so far: 214

I am at the halfway point of the project now (as of January 7). It is about as hard for me as I expected it would be, but I'm really glad for the challenge and the motivation. It helps a lot to have these weekly sort of "confessionals" about my struggle with stuff. Thank you, dear reader, for being a part of the journey with me!