As a result, instead of sorting and THEN moving, I moved first and THEN sorted (or at least was faced with the task of sorting). In my fantasy world, I was going to do all of that sorting during the month of May, just as I fantasized I would have done before my originally planned moving date changed. In reality, I have been living in a tiny home filled with boxes for the last month and the most I have managed to do is to sort some boxes back into a "not urgent, sort later" pile at the back of the house.
Here is a look at the progression of the sorting/organizing process so far.
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| Immediately after moving in. There were still many things in my car. |
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| A couple of weeks later. Getting there... (There were still some things in my car.) |
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| Today. Damn, it looks worse than it did a couple of weeks ago. I assure you, it is NOT worse. I have taken several carloads to be donated. There are, however, still a few things in my car. Sigh. |
At 232 square feet, Wholehearted House fills up quickly. Before I fully moved in, I had some "stuff rehearsals" – I brought some things up, like household linens, filled the available shelf space and then took the excess back to my rental house to put in piles for the sale I had at the end of April.
Many other things have gone into the burn pile to be used to get my fires started over the next few months.
I have a long way yet to go to acheive the right fit, the right possessions to space ratio.
I'm sure there will be further posts about the process of decumulation, but already I have found and noticed some weird and wonderful things. Here are some highlights:
Odd and inexplicable finds:
#1: several loose pages torn from an encyclopedia running from Smyth through Social Anthropology to Soap. Weird. ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA how they came into my possession. VERDICT: burn.#2: All of the records from the pension plan I left (and converted into an LRIF) in 2002. VERDICT: burn.
#3: The triple A battery converters for my battery recharger – in a completely different place in my loft. Now that I have found them, I have no idea which box the battery charger is in. VERDICT: be patient and eventually, the battery charger will resurface.
Lovely finds:
#1: the photo I purchased from my friend Michelle as a fundraiser for That's Womens Work Art Network (now Women's Art Network or WANT) the week before I left Toronto three years ago. Having never fully settled in to my rented house, it remained packed in a box until this move. VERDICT: Looking forward to putting it in my tiny home!!!
#2: my awesome swing-away can opener. I searched and searched for it when my housemate's can opener broke about a year ago but couldn't find it. Apparently, it is still at the bottom of a box because once again, I can't find it.
#3: Many photos and pieces of original art that I had forgotten I owned. It's going to look like Sardy's in here when I get them all hung up. (That will be another post, for sure).
Most surprising thing:
I really don't mind living in 232 square feet crammed full of boxes. I am super-comfortable in my teeny tiny house.Least surprising thing:
I refused to bring new tea into my life for over 6 months before moving (apart from a couple of small gifts of tea). I consumed as much tea as possible on a daily basis (I usually average 4-6 big cups a day). And I had to move four grocery bags FULL of tea up to my Tiny House.Things I absolutely couldn't part with, even though I have no room for them and don't need/use them:
- My avocado-coloured Sunbeam MixMaster – I LOVE that thing
- Three boxes of cookie cutters
- My uncle's hockey bag in which I moved all of my things to university 25 years ago (this is still full of miscellaneous stuff, so I guess it's not fair to say that I'm not using it, but I don't see a future use for it. I'm simply attached).
I have an empty faux copper box with a jewelled top. One day, long ago, my mom and a friend were young, newly minted nurses gazing longingly at things they could not buy in the window of Mills Brothers Store on Spring Garden Road. Mr. Mills happened by, noticed them, and invited them in. After a pleasant chat he gave each of them one of the copper boxes from the display window. The box was lovely then, I'm sure, and has held many treasures. Now it's decrepit. And empty. But I can't part with it.
ReplyDeleteOh <3! Thank you for sharing that beautiful story, Diane. How lovely!!! Yes, keep that box!
DeleteWell that Panther for sure. And my computers, at the very least the MacBook, without them no work, no work = no money which means no gooshy fuds for said Panther. I am culling down my clothes, and *gasp* my shoes, although several false starts have happened. Which ended in me realizing I did not have the inner strength to tackle the selection process just yet. I have all these lovely clothes business stuff from my days in the city which simply do not fit into my south shore life. So they are going to consignment store along with the shoes when I get a "roundtuit" the proceeds will go to SHAID.
ReplyDeleteMust keeps, other than s few select pairs of shoes and computers AND Panther, umm Kitchen Aid, kettle for tea, assorted and sundry kitchen gadgets. Although I could technically live with out them if I absolutely HAD to. Statues of the Buddha, I have several, and although I do appreciate them I could study and practice the Dharma without them. Hmm.. so .. Panther and Macbook are the must keep. Everything else is expendable. :)
I feel similarly about my House Tiger and MacBook – and my guitar as my CORE possessions. Yet I am surprised by the many other things that tug at me and resist departure...
Delete