Jump to content

Ever clean out decades worth of accumulation , in your home ?


Nomad
 Share

Recommended Posts

After my Dad died and Mom needed care, we had to sell, give away and toss out all their stuff , what a project !

Craigslist sales, estate sale ( we went through over 1,00 price tags on things ) , over 300 things that were classified hazardous waste( paint, stain, lawn and garden care product, cleaners ) then the dumpster .

This was after they " thinned " things out themselves .....

I realized all the " stuff" we accumulate becomes a burden to our children , half the cool stuff we save just gets thrown out or sold for pennies on the dollar.

So my wife , the pack rat has come on board with us cleaning house . We put in new carper upstairs and all the closets and piles of stuff in the corners have been cleaned out ! Now I'm going through all my stuff, Matchbox cars from my youth, all my knives( I have maybe 50 from $50 to $500 ) old guns that just sit in the safe, my LW climber I don't use , all those books I'll never look at again, my old vinel records are going to be sold to a record store Monday , my Old Town Canoe and on and on.

My wife is going through the kitchen cupboards , our kids are 23 and 25( and out of the house ) , we still have a sippy cup in there... It's just her and I , do we really need 8 TV trays ????

Deer heads are staying , but that big pile of antlers I'm not sure of.

Edited by Larry302
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hear ya… My mother passed away a few years ago and the clean out of her house was an ordeal to say the least. The house wasn't cluttered, She kept things neat as a pin, but 50 years of stuff adds up.

I cleaned out my own basement, after living here only 15 years. I filled a big dumpster to the top..That was about 4 years ago and I bet i could easily fill another one right now.. Once you start tossing things, its amazing how you realize how much stuff you rally don't  want/need.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Decades", that ain't nothing compared to what I am dealing with right now.    The roofs are failing on a couple old barns my great-great granddad built, just after the Civil war.   I am literally dealing with "centuries" of stuff.    I am just now taking a break for lunch, about half way thru dismantling one of the old graineries    That old "virgin-timber" lumber does have a lot of character to it at least.  Those old, square, forged iron nails  and hand-hewn beams are pretty cool also.            

Edited by wolc123
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My big purge came after my house in Buffalo was broken into and ransacked/looted after I'd been there for 20 years. That was 10 years ago.

Walking through my belongings strewn ankle deep throughout the house, I decided pretty quickly what really mattered to me and packed a few things that hadn't been stolen. Mostly books. The guy I sold the house to for pennies on the dollar said he would take care of the rest, so I didn't have a big bill for a dumpster.

I try now to deal with potential accumulation before it becomes actual accumulation.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

She said sell it all, by a RV and just travel. I said " well after a year or so we'll have to buy a house somewhere, so put some stuff in storage ."

She said " no live that life forever ."

I said ," you expect me to live in a small metal box with you forever ????"

She flipped me off.

" I rest my case. "

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

She said sell it all, by a RV and just travel. I said " well after a year or so we'll have to buy a house somewhere, so put some stuff in storage ."

She said " no live that life forever ."

I said ," you expect me to live in a small metal box with you forever ????"

She flipped me off.

" I rest my case. "

 

I can think of worse things Larry. The hardest part is usually finding a soul-mate to go along with it. :sorry:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

After my Dad died and Mom needed care, we had to sell, give away and toss out all their stuff , what a project !

Craigslist sales, estate sale ( we went through over 1,00 price tags on things ) , over 300 things that were classified hazardous waste( paint, stain, lawn and garden care product, cleaners ) then the dumpster .

This was after they " thinned " things out themselves .....

I realized all the " stuff" we accumulate becomes a burden to our children , half the cool stuff we save just gets thrown out or sold for pennies on the dollar.

So my wife , the pack rat has come on board with us cleaning house . We put in new carper upstairs and all the closets and piles of stuff in the corners have been cleaned out ! Now I'm going through all my stuff, Matchbox cars from my youth, all my knives( I have maybe 50 from $50 to $500 ) old guns that just sit in the safe, my LW climber I don't use , all those books I'll never look at again, my old vinel records are going to be sold to a record store Monday , my Old Town Canoe and on and on.

My wife is going through the kitchen cupboards , our kids are 23 and 25( and out of the house ) , we still have a sippy cup in there... It's just her and I , do we really need 8 TV trays ????

Deer heads are staying , but that big pile of antlers I'm not sure of.

I'd be interested in some guns

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

During my 30 years in business I did many clean out of homes, usually after the death of the homeowner.  Some pretty bad ones and a few good ones..................all sad deals though as I know we are all just in it for a very short time.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

After my mom passed away back in 07 my oldest sister moved into my mom's old house.She was very close to my mom as we all were but because she was so close she was reluctant to part with any of my mom's or for that part my dad's(who has died 12 years earlier) belongings.The place looked like something that should be on the tv show hoarders.She is just now under a demand of her husband finally starting to go through some stuff

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm gonna' get weird here: The things themselves aren't important. The memories represented by the things are what's important. Especially to the people who will eventually deal with your stuff. Write down those related memories and anecdotes because that's what your loved ones will keep.

Toss the pile of antlers, but spend some time putting into words why you collected them in the first place. Down the road someone will find your little book of memories even though the antlers are gone, and understand why you collected them.

 

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was just think of where all my mounts go when i die, who would want them or have room for thwm

 

 

There are a few places that specialize in just selling mounts especially for collections that are more then N. American game.

 

Standard stuff can often be liquidated through a taxidermist, local guy here often gets calls for standard stuff like deer/moose/bear for interior designers.

 

Won't be even close to mounting costs, but its something.

 

 

After seeing a few posts about this I am in the process of putting a picture and a 3x5 card of the story where all my stuff has come from on the back or bottom of each mount. Hoping someone will maybe have an interest in the mounts someday.

 

But I have no family and my closest relatives are non hunters, pretty sure just looking at all of it would creep them out, so in the end I guess they will end up in a dumpster.

 

I'm OK with that; they are here to remind me of some damn good times spent around the world.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

But all that stuff cost a lot of money, and is still serviceable. Well, maybe with a little fixing it would be serviceable. And maybe I'll use it again someday. I have gone through all the excuses for accumulation and storage. I have 5 string trimmers. 3 functioning riding lawn mowers. How many of those things can 1 person use. 3 chain saws. multiple rakes and hoes and axes and every lawn and garden tool that was ever invented. I seem to have bought 3 or 4 of everything. Can't find it ..... go buy another one. I have compound bows that are so old no one would want them. 

 

I too intend to burden my kids with the disposal of all my "things". At that time they will be old enough to need the exercise and activity.....lol.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I Can't do it, after what we went through with my parents stuff, no way I'd do that I'd do that to my kids . Funny part is we had a company come in that buys everything , leaves the house broom clean. We turned down their offer , then after weeks of sales,people who never showed , sorting,pricing , donating , borrowing tables from friends and family for the estate sale , trips to get rid of hazardous waste, throwing stuff out each week .

We ended up with about the same amount .

Books are going to,the library , records being sold tomorrow , baseball gloves went to a family down the street , some guys at work got some free knives , this just scratches he surface . Animal shelter is getting a pile of old blankets and fleece throws (our kids had stacks of these ).

The antlers i think I'll toss where some of you guys look but can't find any sheds.....

Seeking a balance between a Monk and hoarder , like a well armed Monk with a liquor cabinet and big screen .

Philoshop , you have very good advice. My Mom collected crackle glass and cut glass. She had a "book" with each piece listed , price, date and so on . The glass is gone , but the book stays.

Edited by Larry302
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I Can't do it, after what we went through with my parents stuff, no way I'd do that I'd do that to my kids . Funny part is we had a company come in that buys everything , leaves the house broom clean. We turned down their offer , then after weeks of sales,people who never showed , sorting,pricing , donating , borrowing tables from friends and family for the estate sale , trips to get rid of hazardous waste, throwing stuff out each week .

We ended up with about the same amount .

Books are going to,the library , records being sold tomorrow , baseball gloves went to a family down the street , some guys at work got some free knives , this just scratches he surface . Animal shelter is getting a pile of old blankets and fleece throws (our kids had stacks of these ).

The antlers i think I'll toss where some of you guys look but can't find any sheds.....

Seeking a balance between a Monk and hoarder , like a well armed Monk with a liquor cabinet and big screen .

Philoshop , you have very good advice. My Mom collected crackle glass and cut glass. She had a "book" with each piece listed , price, date and so on . The glass is gone , but the book stays.

Might consider cutting the antlers into chew toys for the dogs and seeing if the shelters might like them. Might brighten a shelter dogs day

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    No registered users viewing this page.

×
×
  • Create New...