Learning to understand myself
Of all the skills and patterns I learned from my mother, perhaps the one I've taken most to heart is her talent for hoarding!
I was tidying up at the weekend and had to laugh at myself. I really can't throw stuff away! And I think things are getting obsessive as I even have favourite carrier bags (graded on name of shop, different parts of the world they're from, texture and size! - Obviously paper bags with strings beat all carrier bags, but all are safely stored at my house)
I'm trying to make myself throw stuff away before I drown under a sea of paper. I'm one of those people who won't open bills if I can't pay them, and as some freelance cheques have taken months to come through, the pile of bills is slightly alarming! I did manage to go through it all this weekend, and it's not quite as scary as I was imagining, but it will mean a bit of a rethink regarding my budget this month!
So after the carrier bags, here are my favourite things to hoard
Tupperware - all shapes and sizes and destined to live in the freezer*
*Food in tupperware - I reckon I've enough in the freezer to keep me going till Christmas. Must stop buying food and/or tupperware!
Jars - empty glass jars cannot (for some reason I'm not entirely sure about) be thrown away. They're not as good as tupperware for storing stuff, but it's probably related!
Clothes - obviously!
Trinkets - I live by the sea, and have ready access to the penny-drop machines at the arcades. These now dispense trinkets as well as coppers. Visitors and I make regular trips, but my friends always seem to leave their stash of key rings and dinosaur models with me. The trinkets have their own drawer in my dresser
Business cards - can't remember who the people are, but I may need to contact them!
Candles - electricity supply can be perilous
Toiletries - why stop at one bottle of shampoo when you can have seven! And as for soaps - you can never be too clean!
Books - I only seldom re-read books, but they are taking over my house!
Notelets - I don't write letters or notes, but one day I may!
Old Christmas cards - I've no idea why, but someone went to the trouble of writing and sending them to me, so it seems rude to throw them away!
Useful things - now this covers a multitude of sins - safety pins, keys (with no locks or any idea of what door they open), random bits of plastic from packaging, bubblewrap, sticky tape, odd hair grips, boxes of matches from restaurants (to light the candles obviously!), birthday cake candles, etc etc.
Now, I know some of these things must go, but which ones....
Am going to buy some new bin bags and try to declutter!
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