Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Thanks Mike, good suggestion for donations in by December 31st, another motivator to get rid of stuff...we are moving to Denver next summer and the freecycle is a super idea!!
I'm a freecyler too. WE have a huge group here on the Space Coast in Florida... actually, there are TWO groups. I've given away so much stuff in preparing my house for sale... and I think I can do more !!! We still need to get the stuff out of the attic!
We have our problems like many other groups where people don't show up when they are supposed to but other than that's it's a pretty good group. I have certain people that always want my stuff... I guess I have good junk !!
I used Freecycle in England, it's a great way to get rid of crap you don't want/need anymore. I cleared out the clutter with it, and also got a free dishwasher and a big bag of doorknobs (don't ask).
I've never heard of freecycle. I'll look into it though. I just donated a full truck load of furniture and odds and ends/clothing to a charity today. I always try to donate as much as I can. I don't like to throw away something that someone else could use.
Okay folks, moving season 2011 is almost here. If you're thinking of moving this year, there is a lot of info here.
__________________
- Please follow our TOS.
- Any Questions about City-Data? See the FAQ list.
- Want some detailed instructions on using the site? See The Guide for plain english explanation.
- Realtors are welcome here but do see our Realtor Advice to avoid infractions.
- Thank you and enjoy City-Data.
Hoping to move this summer, been cleaning out the house and getting ready since last fall. Lived in this house for 12 years, and have accumulated quite a lot of things. Best to not try to do everything at once or last minute. We skipped doing a yard sale, but donated and freecycled items, plus sold some stuff on Ebay. Once you start you can't stop!
De-cluttering is harder than it first appears. Many items have emotional ties and it becomes draining to sort through them.
I spent all day Saturday going through one box, all of it stuff from my childhood, my early marriage years, etc. You don't just say oh, toss it. Each item stirs up memories. I finally realized I simply can't lug everything I've ever owned with me, so I came up with this idea---take a picture of it.
I've been slowly making a memory album of certain objects. Take some pictures of the object, then write the story attached to the object, place in an album. then discard the object however you think is appropriate. If you think the item has value you could try selling it, otherwise donate to goodwill. I like to think that now someone else can enjoy it, while I'm keeping the memories. The memories are no longer a part of the item, the memories now have been transferred to the album.
We moved last summer, I started sorting stuff months prior to that. I had 2 garage sales, several Salvation Army pickups, numerous donations to Goodwill, several heavy trash pickups, and we still had more than we could handle. Our new house is simply stuffed to the gills with stuff, after we got rid of all that. Where would we be if we didn't get rid of stuff?
I vowed never to live so stuffed again. What if a person needed to move suddenly, due to health, job, family, etc? Your choices would be severely limited by all the stuff.
Its like someone else here said, clean out your clutter and you clean out your soul.
Thank you Mike, nice post. I'm a lifelong mover, and it's still a challenge to downsize my accumulated stuff. I grew up with older adults around me who had that depression-era attitude that you never throw anything away. Never heard of "freecycle.org." but will check it out. I met a woman in NY who had a successful business helping widow/widowers (of which I'm one) remove a lifetime of buildup stuff.
That "depression" mentality really irritates me.
My grandparents and parents were victims of the Depression, and I could understand their mentality at the time. but time moves forward! The Depression was followed by the shortages of WWII, so people either didn't have the money or stuff just wasn't available. But this is now, this isn't the Depression.
If anyone has ever had the misery of going through an elderly person's belongings, it can be enough to have a nervous breakdown. Sure, all that stuff had significance and value at one time, but just to store it forever doesn't make sense. People didn't move around as much during the Depression, usually there was some place to store stuff without paying for it.
But nowdays, you need to factor in the cost of storage, moving, etc It can actually cost you more money to keep something than to get rid of it! I've had to clear out 3 relatives stuff, you can't believe how daunting the task is. At least think of those who come after you! I really think places like 800-got-junk provide a much needed service. For one flat fee they make the stuff disappear, which beats spending weeks sorting, hauling, storing, not to mention the emotional process of trying to second-guess someone else's life. For my part, I don't want to have a pile of junk be my legacy!
Realize very little is irreplacable. Our last move, I got rid of a steam cleaner I could have used. Well, there's always Walmart! Things that you can't replace, like Grandma's wedding album, of course deserve their own special handling. But in general, when in doubt, throw it out, trust me, you life will go on!
Okay folks, moving season 2011 is almost here. If you're thinking of moving this year, there is a lot of info here.
Thanks, Mike! What a find freecycle was for us. We have been trying for a month to donate a beautiful natural futon mattress but none of the charitable associations would take it.
I saw this thread 2 days ago, joined freecycle yesterday, posted the futon & someone came to haul it away today. Freecycle is a great way to keep things out of the landfills.
Hip hip hurray!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Speaking of FreeCycle
