Maddiemom, I hear you...I am trying to try as well!

Over the weekend I got 2 boxes full and out to the car to go to Goodwill. Pitiful, but a start. I also cleared out most of the unwanted holiday gifts and actually had a nice grab bag for my coworkers (6-alarm chili mix anyone?!). I am going to make myself go through one more box and then get to Goodwill. This box belongs in the 'what have you not tossed and should' category, because it is a bunch of old holiday gear in red/green that I'll never use. BUT it includes a couple of candles, of Santa and Mrs. Claus, that supposedly belonged to my family when we were all very little. The candles have most of the faces gone (from little kids nibbling evidently), I'm not all that sure they really were around when I was a kid and I'll never ever use them. But I can't seem to let go and get rid of the things. Arrgghh.

Ahem. Anyway I am promising myself I'll do that and start culling my closet this afternoon. Baby steps, baby steps. Wish me luck.

Ann

PS OTH is haunting me again, in a good way. I'm feeling very guilty at not reporting more progress :).

My son-in-law loves a series of Time Life books that we have. DH has finally agreed to give them to him. That will open up 1/2 shelf. Now we just have to ship it which might be a bit expensive.

Trust me -- tiny cat paws can really be a marvellous start -- and can really do some damage to piles of ANY things -- including books.

C'MON -- LET'S DO THE HAPPY DANCE -- every step counts!!!

Woo hooo - I so agree: EVERY STEP COUNTS! Today I told (not asked) oldest DS to clear out the bottom shelf in his closet. Amazingly, he came up with a PILE of clothes he no longer wears. They are now in the Goodwill pile. I did the same with DD the other day - I told her to toss whatever clothes she didn't like, and she did. I never have to worry about middle DS - he inherited his grandfather's organizational gene (that his son, my DH, missed) and automatically tosses stuff he no longer uses WITHOUT BEING ASKED.

Baby steps, baby steps. They do lead to PROGRESS!

Sheryl

Good for you!! Getting rid of books is hard. But most of us reach a saturation point, and if you're going to bring in the new, it has to be out with (some of) the old. Have you checked the prices of some of your books on eBay? I've sold quite a few that way. Got a lot more for them than I would have at the used book store. It takes up more of your time, though.

Susan

Someone on one of the forums (maybe even this one) said, when asked for ideas for children's gifts, "a child can never have too many books."

I hooted!

And that was about 175 books ago. Our old elementary school moved from one location to another and closed its library for lack of space. They gave the books away to the kids, and my two brought home several.

I feel sometimes that I am about the only one willing to give away books. I don't have that big a percentage of the bookshelf space, and I'm constantly tossing stuff.

DH does, too, he tells me, and I guess he's right--it's just that he's still adding more books all the time--more, it seems than he tosses.

and if you ask my kids, they won't let you throw out ANYTHING!

Their school does not have a library?????????? oh my lord that is so sad! I mean many of us live in book stores but what for the kids who's only exposure to books is the school library! how sad!

I will say I got a bit under $100 in credit for our books and we took 36 in all and brought home 5 so that was as pretty fair deal in my book. It leaves a great deal of credit on which to buy more books. It's a great treat for the kids and does not impact my pocketbook!

As my kids age we are able to get rid of quite a few books that way... I have kept two books for each child in their memory boxes but the rest... they are outta here! Of course since the DH is a shrink we have tons of those sorts of books.. zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.. but when we finish his library we can move those in there. But I have to admit it's sort of fun to have all his books on sex on the shelves..it gives people a real start when they are reading through the shelves!

Maddiemom

My "library" room became the nursery when our first son was born. I LOVE books, and love to read, but only keep reference books now (plus my son's books--not that many since he does NOT like to read, and the little kid books are mostly gone).

We used to go to the library book sale on bag day. The kids and I could fill grocery bags full of books for $5 a bag. Most were donated back eventually.

Ann--Good luck with that closet!

I went to an elementary school which did not have a library. We didn't have much of anything if I remember correctly. I loved going to our small town library (which still didn't have much) and when my jr. hi. had a library I was in there daily.

I consider books consumable items. Very few will I read a book more than once, so I keep very few and there is a constant changeover of reading material (fiction type).

DH has an office full of his work books and I have small collections on quilt history, gardening, etc.

I've had a hard time getting rid of the Bearenstein Bear books. The youngest is only 5 and isn't ready yet, so there is a good sized pile I'm not ready to pass on. Otherwise, I don't even do the trade anymore. Just take my deduction and donate.

This is an easy area for me to purge most of the time.

Gloria

Now we just have to ship it which might be a bit expensive.

The Post Office has a Media Mail rate which is fairly low (also fairly slow, but that should not matter much). That might help out.

I guilted myself (thinking 'how the heck can I show my virtual face on OTH if I don't accomplish something :)into going through my closet for a first pass, and now have an additional bag of clothes. I need to do it again, there are a few things I already see I missed!

But I have a big motivational push coming-we are getting a new (smaller)bed in my daughter's room, and my sister is buying the bedding (head/footboard and frame, mattress and box springs) that is in there now. Plus since it's my sister I will give her all the linens so those won't be cluttering up the house.

The old stuff will go to her this Saturday, the new bed comes Monday. So...I *must* get in there tomorrow and strip the bed, as well as clear out under the bed and around the room so we have space to maneuver things. Can't wait! The bed in that room has been the bottom domino: it is so large and overwhelming that not only does it suck up most of the available floor space, but since furniture can't be rearranged and no more can fit we have been totally discouraged from decluttering in there. Once that monster bed is outtathere, I think it will be the spark to get the room in shape. For example, I will be able to pull out an old bookshelf that is stashed in the closet so we can put books away that are literally piled on the floor after we sort through and get rid of some. Want to hear a devil's deal: the family down the street owns a local bookstore. So last time the mom cleared HER daughter's room (a year older than mine) she brought me a huge bag of galley proof/editor's copies/preview editions of kid lit they had from the store. She told me that my daughter could have them *but* not to give them away or toss them...now what the heck am I supposed to do?! Keep the books forever??? I can't donate them, I'm not keeping them and I know she doesn't want em again, so I guess I'll secretly throw them out and not look back.

And speaking of books, I will have to cull the underbed storage box crammed with old kiddie books that I've been unable to bear discarding (I did toss a couple hundred but the remaining hundred or so are all ones my children loved).

Anyway, progress is on teeny tiny cat paws but it is happening around my house. Thanks for all the encouragement!

Ann

Ann, call your neighbor up and ask her what you are suppose to do with the books now that you are finished.

I realize that the editor's copies aren't meant to be passed around, but there are so many places which can use kid's books that it would be a total shame just to toss them. The school where I teach is always scrounging for books.

Gloria

Ann,

Just drop them on her front door in a box with a small gift of thanks ( quick bread?) and a note thanking her for the loan of the books.. yack on about how much you enjoyed them but that you wanted to make sure that you got them back to HER since you know that SHE would know the proper thing to due with such copies.

Maddiemom

you toss them, you toss them! I suppose you could help the publisher out by ripping them in half down the spine, etc., so they aren't appealing or something, and people won't take them out of the trash instead of buying the book.....

Just throw 'em. Lord only knows what she thinks you're supposed to do with them. You're supposed to throw them out.

Though I like Maddiemom's idea from a snarky point of view--that's nervy, giving you something and telling you "don't give away, don't toss"--what's left, eat them?

You all are the best! To be honest, even the effort of corraling all the books, heck CALLING my neighbor to ask what to do...is all more than I want to deal with. Although I have to admit quiltglo's point is well taken. There are so many kids in our community who have so little. Actually I am trying to reach a local after school tutoring center to ask if they want a box of discarded textbooks (for practice) and a batch of school uniform skirts my daughter has outgrown. Maybe I'll add the books and be done with worrying about it.

But...drumroll please: this morning I sorted through a couple of drawers (didn't get back to my closet yet but I will), culled out the really disintegrated holiday candles including the might-have-been-mine which were disintegrated and were discarded, then loaded the SUV and took 4 boxes and 2 large bags of stuff to Goodwill :). I feel better already. We have a 3-day weekend coming as my workplace is closed for MLK Day. My husband and son will move the old bed out tonight, then I have till Monday to work on the room before the new one comes. So I am going to work on really making some progress.

Thanks as always for the gentle and good humored virtual nudges!

Ann

If they don't have "real" covers, toss them. If they do, pass them on, and don't think about it again.

We've been trying to pack stuff up to move it out of the apartment (bcs the folks next door who are selling finally called, and we may be doing the whole buying-selling thing). I now have way more boxes making messes than I have stuff.

But...I got DH to help me cull the spare pillows, and we eliminated two (we kept 4, bcs we need 3 spares, but 4 take the same space).

The next thing is the piles in the DR and on my dresser. The DR piles will be mostly mending...

And while I was looking at that space, I pulled down all my straw hats and discovered they are bent and smashed, so they're going to the day-care center.

And I have to re-locate the rain ponchos--they are up there, but we would never look for them there!

That's 1/2 a shelf, empty!