Skeletons in the Basement

Over the past 20 years, I’ve done a pretty good job of keeping my belongings to a minimum. I’ve been limited by small apartments and by not having a spare parental garage or childhood room to store yearbooks, old costumes, pictures, etc. In these 20 years, I’ve moved 10 times. 10 complete disruptions. 10 sets of 100 reps of “do I really need this…?”

As much as I have pared down, I still have SO MUCH. Nearly every day, I battle the density of my closet to find clothes. And just last week, I bought something new only to find the exact item buried in storage.

This was my bottom.

I’m uncomfortable being lost in belongings. So I’m starting a new project. “Project 0”. Or maybe “Shame Storage” or…ok the name isn’t important. Here it is:

My basement storage unit is FULL. It’s impossible to get in it without having to unpack and repack. So I’m sharing my storage shame with the hope that it will be both a weight lifted from my shoulders and an exercise in accountability. Behold…

It could be worse. But why am I keeping items that have spent uninterrupted years in plastic tubs in this dungeon?

Do you have this issue? Want to tackle it together?

Step 1: What’s with the boxes?
On the right hand side, I find cardboard boxes from oversized purchases. Because when I move, won’t I reuse these boxes? NO. In fact, I forgot I had them. I remove these first and haul them down the alley to the recycling dumpster (it’s a purge AND A WORKOUT). With these items gone, I find Halloween decorations that belong in the garage (yes, my garage is a separate issue and I’ll deal with that later).

Step 2: Ebay that shit
I find water globes- the kind you put in plants. I used these when they were new and “revolutionary”. But these things are a pain to clean- a bigger pain than say, JUST WATERING THE PLANTS. I take a photo with my phone and list them on Ebay. In the end, it might only be $5 but it’s still money I wouldn’t have had by just hoarding them. And even better, someone in the world will be excited to receive them. It will give me more space. More success. More control. Less shame. Baby steps.

I’ll be posting updates as I go. If you see anything you’re dying to have or just might like to own (with the exception of my cheerleading uniform) it’s yours.