Oh I feel your pain! DH is a computer guy and he has TONS of stuff, like more than you could ever imagine I swear. When we were moving him out of his house we spent several weekends cataloging and storing things in bins. We have more plastic containers of wire than I care to admit. It was good though - it's all contained. My one tip is to get zip ties to corral the cords. It made storage a lot simpler. Good luck!

Well, I started today. I set my kitchen timer for 1 hour and started pulling out bins and looking through them. I already have a pile of stuff to throw away. And I found a lot of old paint colors that I know I will never use, so that's going to have to be disposed of properly. I guess I need the neighbor kid to help me get the stuff out of the basement already! I did find a couple of old cell phones to donate to charities, to there's a plus.

I wonder how many other people have 30 year old sleeping bags in the basement. They can't be healthy.

I have a 43 year old sleeping bag in my basement. DH got it when he was in the Air Force in 1966. It's rolled up in a dry spot, in a corner of the closet. My daughter used it this summer when she went camping in Michigan. It gets aired out in the sun and re-rolled about once a year. Is it healthy? No, but DH gets some kind of comfort from knowing it's "there".

MY 30 year-old sleeping bags are upstairs...

If the paint is still usable as paint (as opposed to crusted at the bottom of the can) you could try craigslist free before taking it to recycling. Or there may be some other paint exchange service that precedes the disposal route.

Record players and some other old stereo components are enjoying a bit of a revival. Old electronics may be a bit tougher to find a taker; may have to dispose - through proper channels of course.

And while it's unpopular on this forum to say so, I think sometimes you just have to forgive yourself for wanting to keep something, like cords "just in case." I always find I cling all the more to stuff that someone (DH, decluttering gurus) are trying to pry out of my hands. I figure it's my stuff, I have my reasons for having gotten it, and I'm not going to induce a bunch of anxiety in myself by getting rid of it before I'm sure I'm not going to need it. And when I stop trying to please others and just focus on my needs, I can actually get rid of the stuff I am ready to release into the wild more easily.

That said, sounds like you're ready to get rid of a lot, so enjoy the open space!

KarinL

Yesterday I spent 45 minutes on my project since I have plans for the weekend. Things are moving a lot faster than the first day. But, the first day was moving everything to a central location and start pulling out obvious trash.

Yesterday's task yielded less trash and more decision making. I have a feeling I'll be finished before the end of the year, easily!

DH has tons of this stuff, mostly shoved into the attic and garage. He still has the first Apple computer ever made - the boxy one with the tiny little screen. Good luck! Maybe we'll get inspired and organize his electronics one day...

In our attic we have a complete computer, an old one, including a Hewlett Packard printer, all in pieces. We have two old game sets-Tetris and "Pong". anybody remember that? I keep telling DH, lets get rid of some of the stuff in the attic, but, no, he won't.

Yeah, does he really think he'll ever play pong again? Especially since you can play it online (well I found a one player version). :D

Here is a link that might be useful: pong online

as you know being a computer programmer outdated electronics will not rise again..so recycle them..get them out of your house.

keep only the things that you know what they might be used for..such as that cord..and put them in a tote..and mark it..

get rid of all the rest of the stuff..(you know those manuals are outdated girl !)

It's so exciting to see all this space in my basement!!!

Congratulations on your decluttering project!