Saturday, April 18, 2009

i'm NOT a pack rat--i'm a COLLECTOR!

so today . . . is saturday--my most difficult day to blog.

you would think it would be easy. i don't have to work, so i have time to go do something fun which should give me something interesting to blog about. and maybe someday that will be true. but right now, when i am working all week and feel like everything about my life (except my ipod :) ) is disorganized, saturday is the day i use to try to keep from getting further behind. right now, i am just sort of trying to keep my head above water until summer.

when summer comes, i am cleaning out cupboards and closets and the garage and getting rid of stuff. we have accumulated an LOT during the course of our lives, and it has finally reached the point where it is making me crazy!!

i blame my parents.

i come from a long line of pack rats--on my dad's side. we can't seem to help it. i look at an empty box, especially if it is strong and has a lid, and i don't see trash--i see a potential container for something. i buy scrapbooking paper whenever it is on sale, even though i probably already own more than i will ever use--considering i haven't actually done any scrapbooking in the last three years! i have hundreds of books, because (if you read my blog yesterday you will know) i love books! i'll bet i have 15-20 coats--and i live in southern california! i have fabric i will never stitch, cross stitch patterns i will never follow, and picture frames purchased on sale that i don't have room to display but that i like too much to give away! and still i prowl around target looking for cool picture frames. i probably have five working cell phones that i no longer use, but i keep them because you never know when i might need a temporary replacement--even though i have insurance on my current phone! and all these things that i will never use take up space and clutter up my mind . . .

it isn't entirely my dad's fault, though. my mother is a world class collector! i mean, she is amazing! if she chooses to collect something, she will eventually have it all. and she has an amazing knack for finding the missing pieces. over the years, she has collected lots of things--dishes, dolls, gone with the wind memorbilia, mary englebreit collectibles, christmas ornaments . . . but to me, her most famous and impressive collecting feat was the 101 dalmatians toys from the mcdonald's happy meals. when they first came out--about 15 years ago--you could buy the whole set for about $100--but not my mom! she found a poster that showed pictures of the collection of toys and proceeded to scout out yard sales and good will stores and swap meets until she found all 101 toys!! it took several months (and probably ended up costing more than $100) but i remember when she found the last few--it was so exciting!

when you are a collector, your collection brings you joy, but many times the fun comes from the hunt! and when you find that last missing piece to the collection, then it is over . . . and it is kind of sad. i love the hunt! it is fun to scour yard sales, scrounge through the good will, and seek out new thrift stores looking for treasure. and so my collections grow--glassware, jewelry, christmas ornaments, antique rhinestones . . .

anyway, the result of all this pack-ratting and collecting is lots of stuff. everywhere.

i have a hard time getting rid of the things i already have (see paragraph #5) partly because i enjoy them, and partly because of the memories they hold. i have a lot of books about princess diana and the royal family--books i will probably never read, but my mom and i kind of collected them together, so it is hard for me to let them go. and yearbooks--i have yearbooks from when i was in jr. high school! do i ever look at them? no. does anyone else? no. then why are they taking up valuable space? because maybe someday i might want them for something . . ? and i haven't actually sewn fabric together to make anything in probably 15 years--yet i have drawers full of fabric . . .

a few years ago my mom gave me the best gift, and she doesn't even know it. she started getting rid of her stuff. as i remember it, the mary englebreit things were among the first to go. she had dishes and dolls and all things mary englebreit. the colors were bright and the designs were cheerful and the stuff was cute. and she was getting rid of it! i had been with her when she had bought some of it, and i remembered how much she liked it and how excited she got when she found a particularly elusive piece ON SALE! but she had enjoyed it for several years, and she was getting tired of the "clutter" as she said (although i thought it was all very artfully displayed.) she kept a few of her favorite pieces, but most of them found new homes. and that was just the beginning . . .

somehow seeing her do that gave me permission to do it too. not that i NEED her permission. but watching her go through that process and the freedom she seemed to feel as she started to clear things out, made me think, "ok, i can do this." so i have been working on it. i have a LONG way to go, and i need to get a lot more ruthless. but i know that i am going to feel so much better when i am done.

so here's what i think--jewelry is forever, electronics keep me entertained, and photos remind me of all the fun i would otherwise forget. other than that, the rest of the stuff can go. well, except for my skechers. and some of my books. oh, and all my charles wysocki puzzles . . .

uh oh . . . houston, we have a problem . . .

3 comments:

Wendy said...

Once again you need me! I'm a professional organizer! You would just need to be in Oregon when I took over!

Mom said...

You made me laugh all the way through. You need to continue cleaning out because you know what Dad's den and garage look like and you are going to need room for all that stuff!!!!!! hahahah

Remember my stuff is all TREASURE and Dad's seems to be JUNK....

Jewelielyn said...

"said the collector about the pack rat . . ."

and i'm not worried, because i figure don is going to inherit dad's stuff--that leaves ME with the treasure!!!

hehehe . . .