# When do you throw something away?



## Claire (Nov 13, 2012)

I have friends who keep everything.  I mean everything.  I have a sister who admits to being a hoarder.  I, on the other hand, go through my house every year, and toss everything that I know I won't use in the next year.  I guess that makes me a bit anal?  I just do not like a lot of junk surrounding me. Perhaps it is the way I was raised, but then, look at my sister.  

There are a few things I throw away when I haven't used them for a year.  I will say that I have two very expensive skirts I wear to parties and funerals.  I have a fondue pot I haven't used in a few years.  Aside from that, I don't have much that I've owned for more than a couple of years.  

What about you?


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## bakechef (Nov 13, 2012)

I'm like you, I go through the kitchen equipment pantry and weed it out once a year.  Sometimes I've upgraded things that really needed upgrading, or get rid of stuff that I thought I would use, but never did.  Ditto goes for well intentioned gift of cooking tools from my mom, that I really have no use for.

Clothes, being a guy I have it a bit easier in that department.  I buy mostly good quality classic styles that I can wear for years.  When I buy cheaper stuff, I'm lucky to get one season out of it before it starts getting tired.  If I buy something that is kinda trendy, I'll usually only wear that one season.

I don't like clutter.  I don't like having to dig through stuff I don't need to find something that I do.  I don't like having spaces in my house that are filled with stuff not being used.  My partner on the other hand is the opposite, he has one closet full of clothes that he never really wears, but can't let go of.  A closet in the basement with assorted stuff that he feels the same about.  He knows that he has to keep this stuff contained to keep me sane!


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## Andy M. (Nov 13, 2012)

I've been meaning to clean out my closets.  Really, I have.  I have a half dozen business suits and other stuff I will never wear again.  They should go where they can be of use to someone.  I know this and never get around to doing it.


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## Snip 13 (Nov 13, 2012)

I get rid of everything I don't use, I hate clutter. I do keep Kitchen stuff though, I have way more than I need even after giving some away. Some woman have shoes and bags, I love pretty glasses and plates lol!


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## PrincessFiona60 (Nov 13, 2012)

Shrek and I are both bad about holding on to things.  I'm a bit better at getting rid of stuff, mostly clothes.


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## Andy M. (Nov 13, 2012)

As far as non-clothing items, we have some.  A few years ago, we had a clearance.  All the things we had been accumulating in the basement since SO and I consolidated households was laid out for our daughters to browse.  They took some stuff and the rest went to charity.  (My LP  collection and turntable are safely in my younger daughter's possession).

That said, we could probably get rid of more.

Baby steps...


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## PrincessFiona60 (Nov 13, 2012)

Andy M. said:


> As far as non-clothing items, we have some.  A few years ago, we had a clearance.  All the things we had been accumulating in the basement since SO and I consolidated households was laid out for our daughters to browse.  They took some stuff and the rest went to charity.  (My LP  collection and turntable are safely in my younger daughter's possession).
> 
> That said, we could probably get rid of more.
> 
> Baby steps...




We have the plan, we have the materials...we just can't seem to actually start boxing things up.


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## pacanis (Nov 13, 2012)

I keep everything. Anyone want to by some 8-tracks? And the player 
I keep everything because I never know when I might need something. On many occassions I was glad to find that scrap of lumber or piece of metal I probably should have thrown out, but didn't. And an old fry pan worked well for dipping into my well and scooping that dead mouse out before I got a "real" cover for it. You just never know... I might even need that old aquarium gravel someday. Like if someone gets stuck in front of my house 
I'll bet I have 20 phone lines still wrapped up and scattered in various drawers.


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## luvs (Nov 13, 2012)

when the kitchen gets too stuffed, i'm a cleaning lunatic. if stuff in the other rooms gets too old, i'll introduce said item to a garbage can liner. generally keep items i can wear- own a tee-shirt or 2 from when i was 4-6 (i think) & wear them to this day. other items, i'll keep stored away & re-discover them- so, in essence, depends on the item.


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## Andy M. (Nov 13, 2012)

pacanis said:


> I keep everything. Anyone want to by some 8-tracks? And the player
> I keep everything because I never know when I might need something. On many occassions I was glad to find that scrap of lumber or piece of metal I probably should have thrown out, but didn't. And an old fry pan worked well for dipping into my well and scooping that dead mouse out before I got a "real" cover for it. You just never know... I might even need that old aquarium gravel someday. Like if someone gets stuck in front of my house
> I'll bet I have 20 phone lines still wrapped up and scattered in various drawers.



I forgot about that stuff.  I have scraps in my workshop that I don't even remember why I have it.  I have more phone cords, extension cords, computer cords than I can ever use.  I even have some 3.5" floppys that I don't have a drive for.  I have computer software from three computers ago.


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## Steve Kroll (Nov 13, 2012)

I get rid of stuff whenever I move. Last time we moved, we rented a renovation-sized dumpster and started filling it up. However, seeing how the last move occurred almost 15 years ago, the clutter has begun to pile up.

Hmmm. Maybe it's time to move again.


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## Kayelle (Nov 13, 2012)

pacanis said:


> I keep everything. Anyone want to by some 8-tracks? And the player
> I keep everything because I never know when I might need something. On many occassions I was glad to find that scrap of lumber or piece of metal I probably should have thrown out, but didn't. And an old fry pan worked well for dipping into my well and scooping that dead mouse out before I got a "real" cover for it. You just never know... I might even need that old aquarium gravel someday. Like if someone gets stuck in front of my house
> I'll bet I have 20 phone lines still wrapped up and scattered in various drawers.



 Pac!


Like you Andy, when we combined two households with more than 4,000 sq. ft. into 1,400 sq. ft. we got rid of everything we didn't need. We had each lived in our houses for more than 30 years, so it was very painful at the time. That was 5 years ago now and we've started accumulating unnecessary stuff once more.  I'm much better than I was.  For example with our travels we only buy souvenirs that are useful, with the exceptions of all the kitchen magnets from all over the world on the refrigerator. We laugh that when there is no more space left on the fridge door we'll hang up our traveling shoes. 

The one year rule without use wouldn't be long enough Claire, but the five year rule would be a good one here.


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## Merlot (Nov 13, 2012)

I want to get rid of stuff but my husband won't let me.  When we had our child 8 years ago we ended up moving a bunch of glass top furniture out of the living room for safety purposes.  We just dont have room for the amount of furniture we have anymore.  He has loads of clothes, hunting stuff, golf stuff, old boots etc...  

As for my child.....Kids accumulate a lot of stuff and my theory is.. let him be little because he will be grown soon enough.  Now we have legos in every corner, boxes of toys and our hall is his "art wall."  

I do get rid of my own things on a regular basis.  I find great joy in throwing things out, I have no idea why.


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## kadesma (Nov 13, 2012)

Keep it ya just never know when you might use it DH has a garage full of cabnits from the   two pharmacies we sold. The pasture has oodles of hammers,and such he has taken out there and forgotten, Clothes he has his and things that were his twin brothers, Throw it away? not on your life. I do pare my things down I do hang on to my cashmere sweaters, I hoard those babies same with nice wool slacks and blazers. They never go out of style. Kitchen gear I hold on to most thing pots, pans, gadgets not so much some I cannot use anymore garlic press broken arm has never gotten so I can use that thing so I use a malet to crush garlic and a cheffknife to make it tiny enough to incorporate into things. So you see I'm a mess maker at times but you could eat off the kitchen floor and the counters I don't like them cluttered
kades


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## sparrowgrass (Nov 13, 2012)

Some of you people are making me it itch!!  I can toss/donate stuff, no problem at all.  My secretary, on the other hand. . . . keeps everything.  When I came to this office, 12 years ago, we had some knock down drag out battles--she had every piece of paper and equipment that had come into the office for the 20 years she had been working, all piled and stacked.  

Floppy disks--oh, yeah.  Boxes full of them.  Big ones and little ones.  Parts for a mimeograph machine.  25 file cabinets full of old mail.  A mountain of old catalogs entirely covered a whole bookshelf--we didn't find the shelf until we had thrown away a dumpster full of crap.  It has been 8 years or so since we cleaned up, and it is time to do it again.  

I am older now, and not sure I am up to the effort.  Just waiting for her to retire, I guess.  I have never been in her house--I am sure there is just a little path from the bed to the bathroom to the kitchen.


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## CharlieD (Nov 13, 2012)

Not only do I keep everything, I think I have two of everything, if not three. When I cannot find what i need, I just go get new one. I think I have at least a dozzen of tape mesures, utility knives, etc. Last sunday though, my wife bought mme two new shirts, but would not give them to me untill I threw away 6 old ones, that have been seating in the clothet for at least 10 years. I'm terible.


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## pacanis (Nov 13, 2012)

A dozen utility knives? 
I'm missing one of mine. I can only account for four.


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## Dawgluver (Nov 13, 2012)

I have a heck of a time throwing anything out too, as does DH.  We collect wood, barnboard, wood scraps, metal from old electical and plumbing, you name it.  I like to repurpose junk, for example, I made a bird bath from an old satellite dish and its attached post.  DH has a vast collection of tennis shoes.  I do try to go through my closets at least once a year, and got rid of at least 20 pairs of my shoes recently.  I also recycled the vast majority of my collection of cottage cheese containers.

Thankfully we have an unfinished basement and an attached garage, so we're not tripping over too much stuff in the house!


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## babetoo (Nov 13, 2012)

i have been doing a large purge in the last three months or so. i have about a 5 or 6 bag lot for the viet vets left to get rid of.  however today i remember throwing away about five yards of christmas flannel fabric. my daughter sure could use in her pet shop . she puts a scarf on each clean dog when they have finished grooming them. oh well, in any case , long gone.


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## Andy M. (Nov 13, 2012)

My sister's 9-year old granddaughter hoards not only her stuff but others' as well.  When my sister was re-doing the spare bedroom (where granddaughter stays), GD wouldn't let her toss anything.  She wanted to take it home so she could keep it.  She has every toy she ever owned and wont let anyone toss anything.


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## love2"Q" (Nov 13, 2012)

I keep just about anything i can ... And working constuction i come across a good amount of stuff... But i do get rid of clothes and furniture.. but only when i have to..


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## chopper (Nov 13, 2012)

I like stuff. I may need it some day. 
Actually, I clean out my closets once in a blue moon.  I don't have a whole lot of really nice stuff, but I have plenty of pretty good stuff. We drive a car forever before getting rid of it, and we wear our clothes until they fall off of us. If the stuff belongs in the kitchen, it almost never leaves. If the kitchen starts to get crowded, it may go to the basement, but it is hard to send it out the door. I do throw away magazines, but not Hubby. He has magazines from the 70's. I have a Nortic track exercise machine that I only used twice in the last year, but they were two really good workouts!   Why would I get rid of it? We watched a 19 inch TV in our family room until last year when we upgraded to a 37 inch one. We moved the 19 inch to the bedroom and moved the smaller one to the garage. Sometimes moving things around is better than getting rid of things. Hoarder??? No!!  Collector!


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## Dawgluver (Nov 13, 2012)

chopper said:
			
		

> I like stuff. I may need it some day.
> Actually, I clean out my closets once in a blue moon.  I don't have a whole lot of really nice stuff, but I have plenty of pretty good stuff. We drive a car forever before getting rid of it, and we wear our clothes until they fall off of us. If the stuff belongs in the kitchen, it almost never leaves. If the kitchen starts to get crowded, it may go to the basement, but it is hard to send it out the door. I do throw away magazines, but not Hubby. He has magazines from the 70's. I have a Nortic track exercise machine that I only used twice in the last year, but they were two really good workouts!   Why would I get rid of it? We watched a 19 inch TV in our family room until last year when we upgraded to a 37 inch one. We moved the 19 inch to the bedroom and moved the smaller one to the garage. Sometimes moving things around is better than getting rid of things. Hoarder??? No!!  Collector!



I donated my Nordic Track to the local middle school, had replaced it with the recumbant bike years ago. They love it!


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## Snip 13 (Nov 14, 2012)

I was kinda forced to get rid of my things. In the past 2 years we've gone from a double story 5 bedroom home to a 3 bedroom house, to a 3 bedroom townhouse, to a 2 bedroom flat. At least it's not a tin shack yet lol! Half of my belongings broke in the move anyway.


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## radhuni (Nov 15, 2012)

I generally don't throw anything away. The things that grow older become more dearer to me. My DH tells me that I am a miser, but I am not, I feel happy using and caring old things.


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## justplainbill (Nov 16, 2012)

radhuni said:


> I generally don't throw anything away. The things that grow older become more dearer to me. My DH tells me that I am a miser, but I am not, I feel happy using and caring old things.


+1 
Due to such things as increasingly restrictive government regs and cost cutting manufacturing practices, it's not economically feasible do in-kind replacement of many older products; e.g. a Blitz 6.125 gallon pull and pour HDPE gasoline container.


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## Kylie1969 (Nov 16, 2012)

+2

I do like holding onto things I must admit


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## Addie (Nov 16, 2012)

Steve Kroll said:


> I get rid of stuff whenever I move. Last time we moved, we rented a renovation-sized dumpster and started filling it up. However, seeing how the last move occurred almost 15 years ago, the clutter has begun to pile up.
> 
> Hmmm. Maybe it's time to move again.


 
Just don't toss out your wine make stuff.


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## Kylie1969 (Nov 16, 2012)

No, that is certainly stuff to keep


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## Addie (Nov 16, 2012)

I went from a large two bedroom apartment to a very large studio to a smaller studio. So I had no choice but to downsize. But I still have a closet that....

I have two closets. One is a walk-in and the other regular size, I use the walk-in all the time. I even have my tall dresser in there. I keep all my foldables in that. Along with the clothes and other items I use all the time. I use the regular sized one more for storage. In the other closet are clothes that I will probably never wear again. I really need to toss them. We have a drop off box for clothing that goes to women who are trying to get employed and do not have the money to dress appropriately for an interview. Most of the stuff in my closet are just what they are looking for. My clothes from my working days. My taste in clothing runs to somewhat conservative. Safe colors and necklines. If I would be willing to not park my scooter right in front of the door and move it back just a few inches, I might get to cleaning it out and take the stuff to the drop-off. 

I also have a large craft cabinet. I REALLY need to clean that out or get it organized. I am sure there is a school that could use two unopened packages of colored construction paper, tons of unopened paints, brushes, stencils, etc. I need to stay away from the craft store and their sales of stuff I will never use but might. The minute I see it, a thousand ideas run through my head of what I could do with that. And I should buy it right now while it is on sale. And a closeout sale is even better. Right now I have three dozen all white place mats with matching napkins that I am going to paint someday. Also bags of yarn. And on and on ad nauseum.


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## CWS4322 (Nov 16, 2012)

I don't really throw anything away...I give it to others...that's why PF is getting a couple of books (and I'm getting those purple shoes)! I did, however, get rid of an old freezer and washer today--the person who picked them up does kitten rescue and the $ from selling them for scrap will go to help kitties. I got a couple more appliances for him to pick up in the spring--just need to make a trail in the barn to them (the barn is divided in two parts here in the City--so the one side is a bit...ummm..full of stuff).


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## Kylie1969 (Nov 17, 2012)

When I have clean outs I take things to charity shops


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## PrincessFiona60 (Nov 17, 2012)

Unless it's worn out, everything goes to Goodwill or friends.  'Cept books, those go back to the bookstore for credit.  I think we have over $300 in credit at one bookstore.


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## taxlady (Nov 17, 2012)

One of our local charities takes clothes that are no longer wearable and sells it for fibre recycling. I tend to wear my clothes until that's they are worn out. I have a basket overflowing with mending that I should either mend or send off to that charity.


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## Addie (Nov 17, 2012)

I know a kniiter that goes to thrift shops and buy old sweaters. She then unravels them and reuses the yarn for projects she knits. She also buy holey denim items, cuts up the item into large patches and sews them together. When she has about three yards sewn together, she gets out her patterns and cuts out and sews a new item from it. For her nothing goes to waste.


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## Cindercat (Nov 17, 2012)

Addie said:
			
		

> . She also buy holey denim items, cuts up the item into large patches and sews them together..



Cutting up holey jeans?!! People pay $100 for ripped up jeans! Just resell them. :grin:


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## Kylie1969 (Nov 17, 2012)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> Unless it's worn out, everything goes to Goodwill or friends.  'Cept books, those go back to the bookstore for credit.  I think we have over $300 in credit at one bookstore.



Fi, you need to get a Kindle


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## Kylie1969 (Nov 17, 2012)

Cindercat said:


> Cutting up holey jeans?!! People pay $100 for ripped up jeans! Just resell them. :grin:


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## Sasroc (Nov 17, 2012)

_I start "throwing" things away when I find drawers wont open or I just cant find anything. I tend to hoard things a bit too much but then after sometime I do manage to get rid of it either by selling,giving to op-shops or to people I know who may need it. I follow a page on Facebook that like to help the unfortunate here & they are always asking for donations of something. I only just recently gave away a double bed I wasn't needing.



			Unless it's worn out, everything goes to Goodwill or friends. 'Cept books, those go back to the bookstore for credit. I think we have over $300 in credit at one bookstore.
		
Click to expand...

Princess Fiona. I too give my books to the book store and build up my credit so I can buy more books. Its the only way to go for me. I dont have as much credit as you though 

Some books I do post to a friend when I know its something she would like to read._


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## CharlieD (Nov 17, 2012)

Oh, no we do not trow things away either. We call local veteran's store and they come pick up donation. We usually have plenty good stuff to be used. Girls cloth, thank G-d they grow so fast, their stuff is half new. I am spoiled and have tons of shirts and pants that I usually get for birthdays. I am only happy to give it away for a good cause, it is just somebody has to force to look thru the closet.


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## Kylie1969 (Nov 17, 2012)

I think it is great that we all give to charity


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## PrincessFiona60 (Nov 17, 2012)

Kylie1969 said:


> Fi, you need to get a Kindle



I have a Kindle...so does Shrek.  They haven't stopped us from buying Dead Tree Books.  Must...have...books...<gasp!>


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## Kylie1969 (Nov 18, 2012)

I thought I read somewhere that you had a Kindle Fi...dont worry about me, going crazy 

Thats right, I told you about the James Potter novels that were only available on ebook, I recall now


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