I must have done this when the kids passed babyhood - I remember jettisoning all the breast pump parts, baby clothes and piles of plastic crap; clearing the attic of all their toddler toys and putting them on the street for passers-by to take (and infuriatingly someone insisting on putting them all in my recycle bin - which I would remove them from, only to have them inexplicably dumped back in). I have to admit that was a much taller task - the kids don’t have many toys left, now, since the VRs and IPads took over a few years ago. But I’m cleaning more than just their stuff. It’s a general going-over of just about every part of the house, some of which have been neglected for over a decade.
A couple of weeks ago I cleaned out all my drawers and closet, tackled both bathrooms (throwing away two garbage bags of expired unused COVID tests, baby medicines, and discarded hair products), organized and scrubbed kitchen drawers and pantry, and started on the office. This week I’ve done a little of everything - weeded out kids’ craft supplies, cleaned out the insanely packed and disorganized hallway closet, cleared out my vintage closet, and started on the office and attic. Mostly what’s happened is I’ve just pulled things out of drawers and closets and left them hanging around the living room to force me to deal with it all. I’ve done tons of goodwill donations (clothes), but the more unique things I’ve been trying to give away on my BuyNothing group, with mixed results (it’s shocking how many people never show up to collect their items). I’m not even bothering trying to sell anything. Nothing is worth any money - if it were, I’d probably be keeping it.
I currently have two giant boxes of board games down on the street that nobody has touched. I put them in the trunk of my car overnight so the runoff from the sprinklers doesn’t ruin them.
It’s amazing how much work managing stuff is. I’d like to blame the other three people in this house - and for sure, many of the newer items belong to them - but it doesn’t change the fact that I lived here alone for eleven years before Bobby showed up, followed by his brother and father, and I’m the carrier of three generations of stuff, none of which I can feasibly get rid of because it’s all so old and who am I to throw these things in a Los Angeles trash can apropos of nothing after they’ve survived countless moves for a hundred years or more? So I kick that can down the road, move the oldest boxes up to the attic to make room for things I actually need to access occasionally, like wrapping paper and chargers and curlers.
Today I took a 20 lb box of sensitive paperwork to the shredder - I believe that finally leaves me with only one box of tax stuff, and once enough time passes that I can shred that, too, the era of keeping boxes of receipts is officially over; everything is online now and I’ve gone paperless with all my accounts, so no more boxes of paper sitting around as a bulwark against the tax audit that never comes.
I have some musical instruments to donate, and probably some more books. I have a couple of decades of e-waste to dump at the appropriate facility - several generations of Rokus and routers and burglar alarm batteries and cords. I also have about 30 full to nearly dry cans of paint littering the back yard that I also want to send to said facility the next time I’m available between 9 AM - 3 PM on a Saturday (probably not until mid-January).
I no longer need the kids’ Easter baskets or the giant container of plastic eggs we used to use for Easter egg hunts; we’re pretty much always on some sort of spring break trip on Easter now, and in fact only even notice it’s Easter because In-N-Out is closed. I’ve decided we’re not wrapping presents this year since I discovered we have about 50 Christmas gift bags in a plastic tub. I also have several boxes of party supplies to gift out. I should be able to clear about half the attic with just those things gone alone.
I’ve officially packed away all my skiing gear and will be gifting my scuba stuff that I used once before quitting. I also made some vintage suitcases into my dance costume holders - all the costumes from all my dance contests and routines will go there, if anyone ever cares to look for them. Those things don’t need to hang in my closet - I’ll never wear them again.
I’m feeling ruthless and determined, and that’s the best way to tackle these difficult and emotional projects. You have to be in the mindset I’m in now - the kids are growing up, they’re not little anymore, so it’s time to rid ourselves of childish things. It’s time to make the house functional for who we are today - a family of four with a teenager and a near teenager. I want to go into 2026 fresh and new. This was a horrendous year - on par with 2020, if not worse, and we need things to be revitalized.
Still lots to do, and I doubt I’ll get it all done in just a few days, especially with Christmas week barreling down on us which involves me gone for three days to Death Valley Junction with a friend, then off to the cabin for a weekend, then home for one day before we take off to Florida for a week. Everything will have to get put on hold. But I feel good about how much I’ve gotten done already.
The boys have one more day of school. Bobby is begging to not have to go tomorrow. He and his girlfriend broke up. Once again, I found out because of his bracelet, or lack thereof. I noticed he wasn’t wearing it and he admitted they’d broken up. He said it was mutual - that she said he doesn’t talk enough, and he was annoyed that she was good friends with some MAGA kid at school everyone hates. My impression of the whole relationship was that he was just along for the ride - she approached him, after all; I don’t think he was ever that into it, and it showed. I don’t think they really had anything in common, and she just liked the idea of having a boyfriend. They’re only 13 - none of these things are wrong - I’m just glad it ended without hurt feelings. It will be weird when one of these kids really gets their heart broken. Not looking forward to that at all.
Will Trump be dead the next time I write here?? I feel like this could happen at any moment. Honestly, lately I’m actually wishing he won’t die right away - I’d so much rather he live long enough to see consequences for his multitudinous crimes.
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