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{ Spring Cleaning Comes Early }
A good friend emailed to ask:
So if I were to take a page from the book,
HOW TO REDUCE YOUR STUFF BY 50%, by McNair,
What would it be? My wife and I are looking at all the useless stuff we never use but can't get rid of. What was your process?
Trash? Good Will? Ebay?
Here's my reply. (Only for this who have more stuff than they need):
McGuidelines for sorting and purging (books, CD's, DVD's, LP's, magazines, et al) that I used before my recent (1.2.9) move to Colorado Springs:
Can I remember the last time I played, read, or referenced this? If it is more than a year (or I can't recall), bye-bye.
Two views of the "art" area in my loft. This about half my books, before the big sort-n-purge. (Click pix to enlarge.)
BIG RULE: Does having this make me happy? Some items I keep cause they have sentimental value, nostalgia, etc. If I might want it “down the road”, can I access this online and not need it on hand?
First I got rid of books I barely read, will surely never touch again, were gifts from the author (not a close friend), or were purchased during a period of (for example) research on creativity in the workplace. Lots of those were duds and not worth the “used book” price I paid.
LP - got rid of a few hundred, kept about 50. I play maybe an LP a handful of times a year.
CD - what I like and want to listen to at home are two very different lists—the "at home" is quite a bit shorter. Lots of stuff I downloaded to my MacBook (for personal use), then sold the CD’s.
VHS - I kept a few rarities that I have taped over the years and are not on DVD, especially TV shows.
DVD - is it a real favorite that I'd like to be able to grab and watch NOW, rather than waiting for Netflix in a few days. (Some DVD’s are rare finds Netflix doesn’t carry.)
Magazines - Most everything went, including every issue of WIRED since the premiere issue (which I kept.) Also gone: years of Fast Company, American Theatre, and tons of graphic design mags (which I gave to the library at College of Art.) I retained a few recent and favorite issues of each. I got rid of only duplicate copies of MAD, kept every issue of The Wittenburg Door. (I have a complete set of “The Door” from June 1971 and duplicates of the issues I art directed.)
Clothing - Does it fit? Do I love it? ("Like" is not enough.) Also, do I wear it at least once in a three month period? (Seasonal clothes like warm coats, sweaters, etc. were reduced, as well. I tossed out (trash) lots of socks, underwear, and thrashed t-shirts. All other clothing was dropped off at the Salvation Army. Lots of it.
CD's, LP's, DVD's, VHS tapes: first big haul was taken to a big store in Berkeley that gives good prices on used media. I didn't get as much as I hoped, but it was better than keeping it all. Used bookstores are picky. You take in three boxes, they buy 3, 7, or 13 books (if you're lucky.)
This season of purging I was fortunate to have a new shop, one mile away, in the great little town of Alameda, CA—the Blue Rectangle—so named for the glowing console TV (vintage 1950's) in their front widow playing old, black and white TV shows. It really is blue-ish.
They have a huge online site—HERE—primarily about used books and textbooks
They deal in ONLY used materials: VHS, CD's, DVD's, LP's and now, vintage clothing. Their policy is everything you bring in, they buy. The offer is always a cash or trade offer. One recent two box assortment netted me an $18 cash/ $36 trade offer.
Previously, I took books to Berkley’s three great bookstores, two blocks apart. Whatever was left after making the rounds, I place on the street with "FREE BOOKS, Help Yourself" writ large on the box flap. Often I'd watch for a few minutes. One guy pick up the entire box and marched immediately into one of the shops I'd already visited.
eBay: Could I make more money on eBay, probably. But I am not now, nor have I ever been and eBay seller. I need no new hobbies. If I lived in the same town as my friend Heidi (an eBay goddess) I'd turn the goods over to her and split the profits.
I had decided that I wanted to significantly downsize my stuff. I was willing to give it all away, rather than hold it for a "best offer" . . . someday.
Other stuff—art supplies, note cards and envelopes, a large aluminum pot full of felt pens (still usable), a few old chairs, canvas tote bags (from scores of conferences), and a menagerie of "props" that spice up and season my bookshelves and desktops—I put them in the hallway of the 1917 cotton mill I’ve lived in for the past 3 years. A simple email in the intra-net of my building alerted neighbors in the other 73 lofts. 90% of what I put in the hall disappeared in a day or twosome in a few minutes! This included a good bit of furniture—knowing I would not be moving into another 1600 sq. ft. loft.
Had I remained in the Cotton Mill Studios, this down sizing was long over due. I finally got rid of the elephant who had been sitting on my chest. (At the very least, I got a much smaller elephant.)
I have already opened three boxes that made the trip in my now deceased Land Rover. I am going to purge about 40% of their contents: more blank sketch pads and art materials which I cannot live long enough to use.
I suggest you do at least two or three rounds or sort (deciding) and purge (getting rid of) your stuff. Go through everything!
One more key roadblock for which I developed a detour to my propensity to stop, read, thumb-through, or examine almost every item. Decide instantly: keep or toss. When you come to an item you are not sure of and want to sit and examine, DON'T. Create a small maybe pile or box to examine later. By the time I got back to the "maybe" box, most of those were no longer a "maybe.”
By the time I came to the second and third round of purging, I was ruthless. "Why are you keeping (name of dumb movie)?"
I know there is more to purge, and I will. It is refreshing, renewing, and required for growth of my soul.
Let me know how it goes for you. We all have more than enough.
McNair
