Saver or Throw Awayer | 3.16

[bestcee]

In my house we have three generations. My husband and I were both raised by at least one parent who wouldn't throw stuff out and saved everything. This has led to both of us being more akin to throwing stuff out. This may include rehoming, donating, or simply not buying in the first place. This doesn't include digital clutter necessarily, more just physical. I'm happy to take a photo of something and file that away than keep the physical item.

The older generation in my home can't throw anything out. She will even say she doesn't need/want something anymore, but can't physically get rid of it, she'd rather save it and store it in case someone wants it later. She's gotten a little better at letting something go if she assumes it's going to a good home, but often the things are not things anyone wants anymore - like old books on tape, or scratched records.

The youngest one, I don't know if he's rebelling against his parents, or picking up on his grandmother, but he likes to hold on to stuff. He still has some baby toys that he isn't ready to let go of yet. Although, he's fabulous at getting rid of too small clothes, so he's a selective saver.

So, where do you fall? Are you a get rid of everything person? Are you a save everything person? Are you somewhere in the middle? What about others you live with (or did live with)?

 

[gonewiththewind]

Are you a get rid of everything person? Are you a save everything person? Are you somewhere in the middle?

I am somewhere in the middle, tending towards saving everything. I only say that because we have had a storage unit while Olivia was back at home, storing her household goods for when she moved out. Jay and I put quite a bit of things in the unit ourselves, ranging from larger Christmas items/boxes to things that belonged to Jay's sister, etc. One thing I do keep quite a bit of is art.

What about others you live with (or did live with)?

I think that of all my family, Daniel is the one that gets rid of things more easily. Olivia is like me and is very sentimental. I remember trying to get rid of a huge Teletubbie pillow/stuffie (LaLa) and Olivia would take it out of the bag and hide it. I even have pictures of her holding it and looking so sad. Now that I remember that time, I don't know why I was insistent that she get rid of it, other than it was large and was, you know, a Teletubbie. LOL

 

[HavaDrPepper]

Since I was the one that had to clean out the basement of all the stuff the older generation kept, I've become a minimalist. During the clean out I took photos of some items when I did the clean out. I scanned some paper items that were falling apart. I did keep a few things. But now everything has a place.

I don't buy things on a whim anymore. I don't want the cousins that have to deal with my estate to have to deal with "junk".

 

[umyesh]

I’m in between. I’m not super sentimental so I can get rid of some things but I tend to hoard things I might use later like fabric and ribbon. I’m good at getting rid of my kids’ stuff though haha

 

[bcgal00]

I used to be a saver. But after this last month of packing up the house to move I think I am cured of that habit. It has been such a big job to sort, purge and get rid of way too much stuff that I don't ever want to do that again. I found that as I purged it got easier and I am now the one telling my husband, no, we are not keeping stuff LOL. It used to be the other way around.

 

[Nemla]

Middle"ish" I used to save most stuff, especially craft stuff, and wool,and clothes ( just in case........of what I don't know ) I also used to associate ornaments, with who ever gave them to me, and could not bear to part with them , for that reason. Now I take a photo before they go, but I still hold on to more than I need.
I am better now as regards craft stuff, but only because I give it away to childrens homes or hospital childrens wards..... then it does not hurt so much lol.
Clothes I have no problem getting rid of.
I would have no problem with furniture either, but my hubby does..... so not much room at this house for new additions.
He also can not bear to part with tools and handyman stuff.....
But we are both better at not hoarding now , than when we were young....
And I do tend to use my Aunts rule of Thumb ; pretend you are moving house once every 2 years or so. Throw any thing you would not want to move.

 

[Memaw2Wm]

Middle of the road ... I tend to hold onto stuff, especially family stuff ... but I am slowly "churning" my bins and getting rid of stuff. My goal is to get my "stuff" down to a single dumpster load at my death, so my son doesn't curse my name when he cleans my house out. I am happiest when I can pass stuff to a "good home."

My daughter and her youngest still live with me, plus I have stuff that belongs to the older two in the house, but most of the stuff??? Yeah, it's mine or stuff of the GK that I've held onto.

My father (93) is this][close to being a hoarder. He can't stand to get rid of ANYTHING. I dread the thought of cleaning out his house after his death ... six bedroom house packed to the gills. And it's not just his stuff, he is still practicing law, so there's a zillion client files that will have to be looked at, original documents pulled and returned to clients, and the rest shredded ... just thinking about it gives me nightmares.

 

[LynnG]

I'm a saver turned thrower-outer. Where possible I digitise stuff. My aim is to get down to owning the bare minimum, because clutter stresses me out and I like the idea at least of being able to pack up and move relatively easily. There are only a few 'sentimental' things I hold onto. I have little sentiment left anymore in any case, other than recording my own and M's history through scrapbooking.

DH is more sentimental, although he also likes the simplicity of living simply and small. However, I believe he has a relative who still has some boxes of our daughters' children's books and toys ;-)

 

[Karen]

I am definitely a keeper and it drives my hubby crazy. My parents can't get rid of things either even if they know they don't want them anymore, so they'll give stuff to me. Sigh. Often I will donate or throw their things away for them, but some of the stuff I hang onto for sentimental reasons and even as I'm keeping stuff... I know I don't really want it, but I can't throw it away. Most of the stuff I'm a keeper of is in my craft room though. I do so many different hobbies and especially know that I'm doing art journaling, I never want to throw stuff away because I just know as soon as I do, I'll want it for a project. It's all very well organized at least.

I do get in clean out modes every couple of years though and will go through the stuff stacked in our various storage areas of the house and I'll do a purge and clean out stuff that I haven't used in a few years. That always feel nice. I was telling Rae that I told my hubby we could never move because I can't even imagine packing up all of our stuff.

 

[bestcee]

Since I was the one that had to clean out the basement of all the stuff the older generation kept, I've become a minimalist. During the clean out I took photos of some items when I did the clean out.

I think this has lead to a lot more of my throwing out. We downsized my mother in law, and wow. The amount of stuff that had collected over 40 years was crazy! So many broken items that just needed to be trashed, and yet - here it was stored. Mold, bugs, and botulism - it was too much!

 

[bestcee]

I’m not super sentimental so I can get rid of some things but I tend to hoard things I might use later like fabric and ribbon.

I saved a lot of random things like that, especially when we homeschooled, but then I realized when moving, that I really didn't need as much as we saved. So, I've started letting that stuff go too.

 

[bestcee]

But after this last month of packing up the house to move I think I am cured of that habit.

Moving is a great cure for stuff! I hope your moving is going great!

 

[bestcee]

And I do tend to use my Aunts rule of Thumb ; pretend you are moving house once every 2 years or so. Throw any thing you would not want to move.

This is so fabulous! I should adapt this rule! Middle is probably more where I am. I am not a minimalist, but I don't like having a ton of excess stuff around.

 

[bestcee]

My goal is to get my "stuff" down to a single dumpster load at my death, so my son doesn't curse my name when he cleans my house out.

That's a beautiful goal! I will say we are down to about a dumpster full when MIL passes. There's some

And it's not just his stuff, he is still practicing law, so there's a zillion client files that will have to be looked at, original documents pulled and returned to clients, and the rest shredded

We have some boxes of mother in law's client stuff that we are storing until the time passes that we can ditch them. Luckily, there are shredded trucks that you can have come to your house to take the files away for you!

 

[bestcee]

However, I believe he has a relative who still has some boxes of our daughters' children's books and toys ;-)

This made me smile! Do you print books of your scrapbook pages? Or do you leave them on the computer?

I am definitely a keeper and it drives my hubby crazy.

My husband was more of a keeper, I moved too much as a child to be much of a keeper. But, after having to downsize parents, he is less of a keeper!

 

[HavaDrPepper]

I think this has lead to a lot more of my throwing out. We downsized my mother in law, and wow. The amount of stuff that had collected over 40 years was crazy! So many broken items that just needed to be trashed, and yet - here it was stored. Mold, bugs, and botulism - it was too much!

My parents built this house in 1964 and had a storage area down there. It eventually became the "junk room". After Mom died and Dad moved to NC, I used to just throw things I didn't know what to do with in the other areas of the basement (so yeah, I contributed). I had done some cleaning out at various times over the years but not really that much. I started the big cleanout in spring 2016 and it took until fall of 2018 before I had it empty. I found an old suitcase type of container that had been sitting on a shelf since 1964. I cried when I opened it because of what was in it. Love letters from Mom to Dad just 2 months before their wedding and lots more photos/memorabilia from his Navy days. He was already deceased so I couldn't even ask him about the people in the photos. I ended up only keeping those that I knew were of him. When I told Martha about it, she said Dad had probably forgotten about it. Out of sight, out of mind.

 

[dawnmarch]

I'm a reformed saver. I'm not so much sentimental but used to like to keep things "just in case." But, after living in AZ -- the state with no basements and 160 degree attics (if you even have an attic at all) -- I have become a throw awayer. I started with the Flylady years ago and my kids and I would do her "flings" where we would go around the house finding things to get rid of. More recently, I've konmari'd my clothing drawers and thought about what brings me joy. I think, really, that I've just gotten more comfortable that I don't need a lot of "things" and I prefer the mental calm of having an uncluttered environment.

 

[bestcee]

I think, really, that I've just gotten more comfortable that I don't need a lot of "things" and I prefer the mental calm of having an uncluttered environment.

I love this statement. It's beautiful!

 

[LeeAndra]

My ex was definitely a hoarder. When we moved cross-country in 2015, he still had Columbia House circa 2000 catalog pages in a filing cabinet. That cross-country move (times two) helped things "magically disappear".

Him holding onto everything made me even more likely to get rid of things, and I'm still that way now. I'm very selective about the tchotchkes I bring into the house, and I decorate very sparingly for the seasons. My family loooooooves to pass things they don't like anymore down but I'm more likely to chuck whatever it is into the trash or recycling on the way into the house vs. bringing it in to actually use it.

My kids are more hold on vs. throw away but it depends on the item.

My boyfriend is the saver to my spender and the keeper to my thrower-awayer. When we end up living together, we'll have to decide which types of things we keep and which I can throw away.

 

[LynnG]

This made me smile! Do you print books of your scrapbook pages? Or do you leave them on the computer?


My husband was more of a keeper, I moved too much as a child to be much of a keeper. But, after having to downsize parents, he is less of a keeper!

I do print. I figure that one day in the the hopefully distant future, my girls will be grateful to only get a few shelves of photobooks and a couple of vintage suitcases of memorabilia/old photos.