Spindles full of DVDs surround my monitor. To the left of me is a stack of CDs waiting to be ripped to MP3; to the right are ones that have already been ripped. Various electronics lie scattered around my work area: a Palm Treo cell phone I haven’t used in two years, a stray pair of RCA cables, a couple of broken arcade buttons, a power supply that goes to something or other, dozens of random wires and wire connectors, and the mp3 player I used to use before the mp3 player I used before the one I use now. The pile of crap looms high these days. I feel less like I’m sitting at a desk and more like I’m enveloped in a cockpit.
Walking into my office is more like navigating a maze. There’s the big shipping box from NewEgg; I haven’t tossed it out yet because it would make a good trash box. Below my feet is a computer that would be good for “something”. I don’t know what that something is yet, but when I figure it out, I have a computer ready for it. On the futon behind me are plastic tubs full of stuff set aside to be sorted some other day: VHS tapes that I’ll convert to DVD someday (but probably never watch), books I haven’t read and probably never will, and cables that go to things.
The coup de gras is the small cardboard box full of little rubber monsters sitting before my keyboard. The monsters were made by Diener and were given away in the early 1980s in Happy Meals. There were eight different monsters, each of which were made in five different colors, for a grand total of 40 unique figures. I just spent $50 on eBay getting all 40. There’s a wolf-man, a bat-man, even a “Creature from the Black Lagoon”-man. Also in the box is an orange alien with a giant brain. He’s from Diener’s line of UFOs and aliens. There’s 40 of those too. I bought those last year.
For years and years I collected stuff. Neat stuff. On the shelf next to me is a hollow Coke can that doubles as a money safe, a drink cooler with an image of the “Virgin Mary Grilled Cheese Sandwich” on it, and a “drivemocion”, an electronic sign you hang in your car’s rear window that displays one of five different emotions to people behind you, depending on the button you press. I have neat stuff … but I have run out of places to put it.
My office is full, the garage is full, the upstairs room is full, the outside arcade is full. If my life were a Dr. Seuss book, my piles of treasure would reach far into the sky, twisting and turning and towering far above anything else.
I am a museum curator without a museum.
I don’t have a good answer for those of you wondering “why doesn’t he just throw it all away?” I, for whatever reason, cannot deal with the regret — the fear of discarding something and regretting the decision later. The irony is, much of the stuff I save, I never use. I still have half a dozen old CRT computer monitors sitting out in the garage. I like to think I’ll use them someday, but the reality is if I were to build a system tomorrow I’d go buy a flat screen LCD monitor for it. I have miles of network cable, stacks of old computer cards and mountains of old parts, none of which have any practical value anymore.
And yet, they’re still there.
Mason has started showing an interest in having friends from school and (right now) daycare come over to visit, and later this evening one of them is. That means, essentially, the day is shot. Other than a brief lunch outing, we’ll be spending much of today like we do whenever we’re expecting company. Laundry and clutter will be shuffled to parts of the house people (hopefully) won’t see. Closet doors will bulge while protecting their secrets.
This time, for some reason, seems a little different. Susan is actually going through Mason’s room and getting rid of things: old toys, broken toys, unused furniture, etc. In a way I’m jealous. I wish I were seven-years-old and could just let stuff go like that. I can’t do it now — hell, I couldn’t do it when I was seven. I still have things from when I was seven!
Susan is on a mission this time though, starting with Mason’s room and working her way through the house. In a way, I’m scared as to what will happen when she gets to my stuff.
In a way, I’m looking forward to it.
i feel your pain, i’m doing the same at present
i would take photos but i would be classified as a hazardous zone books piled 20 high, thundercats and robotech mecha
small rfid bunny rabbits
the list is continuous
must.. fix.. working.. area..
Rent cheap building away from home for cheap >> put your stuff in it >> call it a hackerspace >> other folks put their stuff in it >> since it’s in Oklahoma you could call it SOpht (sooner l0pht, hagugugugugh)
I keed, but…if you could start it with zero dollars, get a dues-paying system going that actually keeps it going, you could almost just let it run itself and pop in from time to time to check on your things.
It could conceivably be formed as a nonprofit educational organization for THE KIDS.
Great Blog Rob!
I can relate. And whats sad is I don’t have any kids to blame-just me! Last Summer-Fall I did take the liberty of backing up nearly all cd’s purchased since 1994 to itunes(which has yet to be transferred to ipod. I’ll put that on my things to do list) and selling them to places like FYE and CD Warehouse. 90% of my dvd’s met the same fate and only kept the ones i truly appreciate. Sometimes I wonder if there are enough hours in a day-week-month to invest in the internet, watch overpriced cable tv, play xbox, or watch dvd’s. I will say I have pretty much stopped contributing money to Best Buy’s dvd and electronic economy so there is hope for me yet!
@PJ: I considered the “SOpht” idea … just getting a warehouse (with heat and air of course), having a cable modem installed with wireless and let people rent space. The problem is, the first time someone launched a “hack attack” from there, that would be the end of that I’m afraid. It sounds fun though. I’d have to find a place that, if everyone else bailed, I could still afford rent on.
@Travis: If I lived by myself, I’d probably have two areas: the “clean” area that guests to see, and the back room where I could tend to my own hoarding devices …
If you find the secret to being able to let things go, please let me know! I have the same problems.
Hey Rob, there is this new show on A&E called Obsessed. During the show there is always advertisement for institutions to help with problems like yours!!! Let me know if you want me to get you a phone number…..either that or you can list stuff back on ebay next week and get 5 free listings a month. Maybe get a little college fund going for the kids…….JK, good luck!
@Felix: You are not helping! I had to find a special place for Optimus Prime!!
@Tamara: Don’t worry, Susan threatens to call Clean Sweep on me from time to time. All I ask is that she gives me a week’s notice so I can get a storage unit before they come …
LOL I can totally relate!
I leave not too far from a large port and I’m thinking about shipping containers one for all the computer stuff and one for everything else LOL.
Now were did my wireless mouse get off to…….
LOL I can totally relate!
I live not too far from a large port and I’m thinking about shipping containers one for all the computer stuff and one for everything else LOL.
Now were did my wireless mouse get off to…….
(darn spell check changing my words again LOL)
Yeah, I think this is something every couple and/or family must have to deal with. Here at the 2Dolphins Resort & Spa, we do our fair share of shuffling piles of clutter around, from one room to another. As you can imagine, when our guest room became a toddler’s bedroom, storage became all the more problematic!
And with our very modest-sized home that features very small closets, there’s only so much you can do. So I’ve gotten pretty brutal about what stuff to keep – if we haven’t used it in 6 months, it’s suspect. A year or two? Prolly gonna be relegated to the Goodwill drop-off pile. I’m very averse to piles of stuff lying around, though, so I usually go ballistic about every 2-3 weeks and sweep through the entire house, tackling piles and stacks and stuff just lying around.
We have 6-7 Rubbermaid 18-gallon storage containers that we use to rotate out the clothes in our closets – we essentially only have 2 seasons here in arid West Texas – Summer and not. So, our long-sleeved and heavier-weight clothes that were handy for late Fall, Winter (ha!), and early Spring are now neatly stored to make room for shorts, t-shirts, and the various other Summer-appropriate wear.
My wife has mentioned the same rule (“if you haven’t touched it in a year, get rid of it”). I’m not saying it’s a bad rule, I just don’t see how people do it! I mean, next to me is a speaker switch box. It’s kind of unique in the fact that you can mix and match inputs and outputs (3×3). I used it back when I was feeding my PC into my home theater set up, and unhooked it when I started streaming my video through the PS3. They don’t sell these anymore, and if I ever need one again, I would kick myself knowing that “I used to have one and I got rid of it.” I probably won’t use it in the next six months or possibly even six years, but if I do need it some day, I’ve got one.
Yeah, I’m a little unstable.
If nothing else, this post makes me feel better knowing that others have similar problems.
Susan should sentence you to watching Clean Sweep, Obsessed, Neat, Organization, and any other cleaning show she can find for about 72 hours. Then while you’re motivated, jump in and throw some stuff out! Of course, the only thing that seems to do for me is to prove that there are a lot worse people than me out there, so I must be doing all right! Seriously when you start getting rid of stuff it brings a lot of satisfaction and freedom. Start with little stuff; baby steps! That’s what I’m doing tomorrow. Also, frequent trips to Goodwill so you can’t change your mind and put it all back on the shelves in the process. Good luck!
I love clean sweep. The show’s theory of making three piles is wonderful: Pile one: keep it. Pile two: trash – it’s unusable. Pile three: usable stuff you don’t want, try to sell it or send it to charity. I use the same exact theories, except I don’t even bother with making choices on pile three – it all goes to charity. I don’t have time or energy for a garage sale.
The bad part about clean sweep is watching Rob while he watches the show. He fidgets, complains, and usually breaks out in a sweat before he declares that the show is ‘cancerous’ or whatever term he’s using at the time. All before leaving the room or changing the channel. He absolutely detests the show.
I’m a firm believer in recycling. Today, for example, I took 9 full sized lawn bags, two boxes, a large paper grocery bag, and two backpacks full of stuffed animals, clothes, baby toys, toddler toys, and ‘silt’ (more on that later) to the Goodwill. I have already filled two more lawn bags and put them in the back of the trunk for round 2. Set out a large desk and some multi colored storage bins for big trash day a couple of days early, but within the timeframe allowed so we don’t get a fine for junking up the neighborhood. Rob’s already helped a lady load the desk up for her own house. I bet the bins get picked up before the Trash Man cometh. Tomorrow, we set out the washing machine that I recently replaced. Hopefully a junk dealer will come and get it.
2 things:
silt=small toys, trash and toy parts that sink to the bottom of toy bins and rubbermaid totes. I go through all the silt twice: once to weed out the trash and determine what must be kept, and then place it in a pile; a second time to ensure I haven’t gotten any Star Wars parts in the piles to go out before putting it in the black bags for Goodwill.
I try to use black trash bags for the big stuff that goes to Goodwill, unless it’s stuff I’ve been keeping in a long-term charity pile and everyone has no problem with the items being thrown out of the house. The theory behind the black bags is that once you can’t see the stuff heading out the door, you’ll quit pining over it.
I always have a charity pile going in the house. That way, when we come across clothes that are unusable for us, I can pull them out of our laundry debacle right away in a vain attempt to make our laundry situation better.
Rob, now I see why your friends bond so quickly. You’ve all got some of the same issues and justifications for keeping stuff. It works though.
One other thing…I noticed today that everyone in the family cringed when I’d come heading towards their rooms with a black trash bag in hand…Muah hahhahahahaha!!!
Actually I find cleaning becomes addictive in itself – once I finally make the choice to get rid of things, it becomes an exercise in “well just how little could I get away with?” Makes a lot of empty space that I later attempt to fill with more junk!