At home and ready

As I began this process of simplify my life while I was in New Hampshire at the house I grew up in I found it interesting that my determination outweighed my emotions on a lot of items that I got rid of.  Of course there was the occasional warm fuzzy feeling I felt when I read a note from someone in a year book or find a great picture that stirred up old memories. And of course these memories are all great and I could fill a house worth of stuff that would produce these sorts of feelings but I realized those emotions were my past.  The past is great but I am determined to live in the present and plan for the future.  One of the rules I made for myself as I got rid of item after item was  asking myself - What will I do with these items when I die?  Where will they go?   As much as I would appreciate the reflection of the life I have lead I want to focus on the now and my future and where I will go.  With that being said I flew back to Denver eager to get rid of stuff and started creating the list of things on my way home.

I knew I had so many things that I just did not use anymore.  I went from clothes to shoes to books to cooking utensils to even my microwave.  Some items I got rid of not because I did not use them anymore but because I realized I did not want them anymore.  I would rather reheat my food over the stove and not use a microwave to do it.  The microwave was more of a clock in my living space telling me the time rather than something that I used to heat or cook my food in.  Note to self: must get a wall clock to help me keep track of time and be on time- it’s a needed item. 

I did not select all the items over one afternoon but rather as I lived in my space and observed what I used and so I began to form the pile.  Some items I choose just based on the fact that I did not use it, others I realized I just did not need it in my life.  I focused on my goal of simplifying my life, creating a peaceful space and finding clarity and not clutter.  I often asked myself- what does this item provide in my life?  I counted one item in so many different ways, some items were bunched together like all the DVD’s were 1 item but split types of shoes apart, i.e. dress shoes, flip-flops and Birkenstocks were three separate items.  There was no rhyme or reason for how I came up with the guidelines I just did what I felt at the time.  I know many people have asked me about the list and let me know tell you I had to go back and write down almost every item to put this list together.  Hopefully this list will give you a better idea of how you might start your own list of 100+ items to get rid of in your home:

·         Yellow Guess Coat

·         2 pairs of dress shoes

·         2 pairs of old skis

·         TV

·         VCR

·         DVD Player

·         Night Stand

·         Brown pants

·         Polk-a-dot dress

·         Socks

·         Black dress top

·         Pink dress top

·         Polk-a-dot skirt

·         Pumpkin colored capri’s

·         Pair of jeans

·         Microwave

·         3 plastic storage containers- 2 small one large

·         Khaki jacket

·         Cooking pot

·         2 ski vests

·         Tank top

·         T-shirts

·         Glass bowls

·         Champagne flutes

·         Hair straightener

·         2 pairs of flip-flops

·         Birkenstocks

·         Cheese board

·         Bike lock

·         17 DVD’s

·         Flour sifter

·         Crème brulee kit

·         George Foreman

·         Hiking boots

·         Yoga ball

·         Umbrella

·         Straw hat

·         Party favors

·         Sheet music

·         Tennis racket

·         Art supplies

·         Bunny ears

·         Silk material

·         Car sun shield

·         2 sweaters

·         Staple gun

·         Car seat covers

·         Suitcase

·         3 pairs of dress pants

·         Brown skirt

·         Black skirt

·         2 dress tops

·         Nails, screws and other toolbox supplies

·         Pink dress

·         Show glasses

·         Cookie sheet

·         Knee brace

·         Wine charms

·         Waffle ball & bat

·         Candles

·         Travel games

·         Candle holders

·         Dog collar

·         CD’s

·         Silverware set

·         Leotard

·         PJ’s

·         Kitchen containers

·         Books

·         9 picture frams

·         Coffee mugs

·         Necklace

·         Earrings

·         Bracelets

·         Bobble-head doll

·         Pins

·         Picture of Seattle

·         Elmo stocking

·         Dress coat

·         Hawaiian costume

·         70’s costume

·         Coasters

·         Belts

·         Magnets

·         Happy massager

·         Spice grinder

·         Decorative bottle

·         Ballet shoes

·         5 pound weight

·         Scarves

·         Black dress

·         Bike shorts

·         Ski jacket

·         Running tops

·         Flashlight

·         Baking pan

·         Bread pan

·         Apple cutter

·         Rain coat

·         Heating pad

·         Capri yogi pants

·         Fuzz remover

A journey of 100 things- the beginning

I recently read an article in The New York Times- But Will It make You Happy? and I was inspired. The gist of the article talks about consumers wanting more experiences and less materialistic things in their life. Years of research shows that things are short lived in our world of happiness but experiences have a longer shelf life and therefore consumers want that longer shelf life. I grew up in a world of a lot of things. My family loves to collect things and this goes back as far as I can remember starting with my grandmother. That woman had toaster after toaster piled up in places around her house. She was always a neat person but had a lot of stuffed. I assumed it was because she experienced the Great Depression and valued the items she had. There might have been an emotional connection to that experience and therefore she felt secure in keeping what she had or collecting stuff. I never really understood it.


Within a few days of reading an article I get a fortune on a cookie that says -Those things that are most important are not things at all. Is this synchronicity or what? Something is telling me to pay attention here. But back to the article, it begins with a couple that decided to live with a 100 personal items. Now I thought about it and honestly I do not have a lot of stuff compared to others but could I live on 100 personal items. And how do you define an item? I decided that I loved the idea but I would start with getting rid of 100 personal items. I could think of 17 items off the top of my head- 2 pairs of shoes I have never worn, the extra cookie sheet, my croquet hat as I bought a new one anyway, wiffle ball bat, current silverware since I had a new set I bought a few years ago that I never use, TV since I don't honestly use it, my beautiful Guess jacket as it looks great on but I have never worn it, the 3 pair of skis I don't ski on anymore as well as the microwave and a few others.

The adventure began with those items I stored at my parents house. I found notebooks from college classes and my text books- they all went. Eight yearbooks- 4 from high school and 4 from college- I kept only senior years. I kept notes from friends, items given to me from my travels around the world. Do I really need a water bottle from North Dakota and a pin from South Carolina? What was I going to do with all this stuff? They brought back great memories but that left me with hours of living in the past and not being in the present. I was missing out on the life right in front of me. I got rid of almost everything at my parent's house and was left with one container. I was surprised at how good I felt about it. I felt free!

Next stop was my house!