What would I take if my house were on fire? I'd grab my dog, of course, and my "go bag," which contains the practical things that would be hardest to replace - documents such as my birth certificate along with a portable hard drive backup of all my music, photos, etc. If zombies were on the way, I'd get my go bag, throw in my purse, and the dog and I would be outta here.
(Maybe now you're wondering if I have a bunker in the back yard or five years worth of canned beans in the basement. Nah, I'm not a survivalist. I don't really expect zombies to attack me. (To any zombies reading this: I'm certain my neighbors' brains are MUCH tastier than mine!) But it doesn't hurt to be prepared in case I need to evacuate because of a natural gas leak or somesuch.)
How can I have a house full of stuff but no prized possessions? I simply don't get attached to things. It's not a choice, it's just my nature. In fact, I have trouble getting attached even when I want to.
How much stuff is too much? The answer varies by person. Some people are most comfortable in a Spartan environment.
Some people love to surround themselves with treasures.
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So if there's no specific threshold, when does "stuff" turn into "clutter"? In my opinion, stuff becomes clutter when it becomes a burden; when it negatively impacts your life. When you constantly waste time searching for things, when you spend your holiday worrying that someone will break in and steal your stuff, when you avoid having friends over because you're embarrassed by your house... you have clutter.
I look forward to seeing other people's prized possessions and reading the stories behind them. :-) Thanks for the challenging yet fun assignment, Le Professeur Gothique!
Doooode I lurv your car! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! It's super fun to drive. The bats add an extra layer of awesome. ;)
DeleteI'd make some sort of suggestive comment about being in that sort of Spartan environment, but I'm terrible at that sort of thing. Have them all washed and brought to my >cluttered< little tent.
ReplyDeleteHa ha! I'll put them through the buff-o-matic and send them right over. Adding Spartans to a treasure-filled room must balance things out, right?
DeleteI think it's a great idea to have an "to go" bag. I have a lot of prized possessions but in a catastrophe I could leave them behind at once. The only thing that really matters are the living family members.
ReplyDeleteI got in the go bag habit when I lived in Washington, DC shortly after the 2001 terrorist attacks. Everyone was edgy and building evacuations weren't uncommon. I didn't want to end up stranded outside without my ID, subway pass, etc.
Delete:) I wouldn't do very well in a Spartan environment. Everything I have has some sort of meaning to it -- someone special gave it to me/us, I had it since I was a kid, etc. I feel frantic when I first move into a place because my stuff isn't out and placed perfectly. I love waking up in the morning and seeing all my stuff ... it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy. Don't get me wrong: I do purge when something isn't useful or when I've grown out of it. I just went through a purge about a year ago. I got rid of a lot of stuff that carried some negative emotions, past memories that I would rather forget.
ReplyDeleteI definitely need a "to go" bag! Good suggestion ... time to organize it with Ed. Thanks! And thanks for participating.
It's interesting... when I tell people that I want to be a professional organizer, many of them picture me as the Stuff Police, marching into their house and throwing away all their beloved stuff. They think I won't be happy until I've Spartanized and sanitized. ;) But that's not what it's about. The goal is to find the right amount of stuff and the right level of organization that makes that person comfortable. I believe you have done a great job of that. :)
DeleteWow... ok, so I am a Super-Spartan LOL. I go for a few large ornaments, no small nic nacs at all.
ReplyDeleteI purge every few months... I don't get attached to anything, if a fire broke out, as long as I had my cat Pebbles, I'd be fine.
My friends often say that if I got burgled, the thief would leave me something instead!
It suits me, it's easy to clean, coz I am a bit of a clean-freek, and organizer too...
BUT... at holiday times, especially Halloween and Christmas I do go mad, my place is filled to the brim, nothing is left undecorated with bats, pumpkins, tinsel, lights etc etc.
My most prized possesion is my Mothers ring, which was a 21st birthday present to her. It is silver and black onyx with a figure of a "greek type" woman and child in white relief, very delicate. She wore it everyday since her 21st and never took it off... since she died, I have never taken the ring off. :)
The thief leaving you something... I like that. :) I would probably have a few more decorative items if there were no dust. I don't like dusting (or undusting, as I say) lots of little knickknacks.
DeleteSounds like a very special ring. :)
im somewhere in between *lol* i get bored by stuff easily though and then exchange :-P
ReplyDeleteand the idea of such a bag is great!
Switching things out is good. Keeps it interesting. I've been known to move my furniture around just for a change.
DeleteOh, man... my grandmother just died and I'm actually homeless right now, but I am presently in her old house helping to sort things out... I (and other family members) are having to turn down all kinds of prized items of grandma's that we'd love to keep, but which nobody has room for. Weirdly even the Goodwill is turning away stuff of hers we try to give them (I guess it doesn't sell for enough to be worth the trouble.)
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