Stuff

I'm surrounded by stuff. 

I started packing today. Frank and I found a beautiful little home about 30 minutes from where we are now and bought it. Our closing date is upon us, and since I'm on Spring Break I thought I would start to put some things in boxes. 

About 3.5 hours ago, I thought we had things. What I now realize is that we have stuff. Lots and lots of stuff. And I'm not too happy about it. 

I eagerly awaited the day Frank, Little Miss Magic and I would move out of this condo. For the last 2 years (to the day) the walls have been crowding around us. Last summer we knocked out the wall in our kitchen and that opened things up big time (and I'm forever grateful to Frank for his finally agreeing to do it), however two bedrooms and a living room can only hold so much stuff. Especially when the living room also serves as a dining room, office, and stuff-gather-er. I know I shouldn't complain, people live in a lot smaller spaces with more than one child, but for us, the time has come to spread our stuff. 

But back to the stuff (because I'm currently looking at it over the top of my computer). I decided I would start with the 'little things' - mainly the bookshelves, the ottoman that serves as a storage box, and a shelf in the hall closet. 

For starters, I have a ton of books. Frank has a ton of books. Too many books. So many, that I'm ready to dump them all in a recycle bin and then buy a Kindle so that if we ever move again I don't have to waste use all my boxes that I scavenged from work with books. This is what is wrong with me - as I'm yelling at myself for buying all these books and keeping all these books, I'm still putting them in the boxes to be moved. Why? 

And let me tell you about CDs. And VHS tapes. And DVDs. There are way too many in my life. In anyone's life, really. We all have iPods, Netflix and OnDemand, so why is there still even a market for CDs and DVDs? Weird, right? I was in the right mind by the time I opened the ottoman that stores all of the aforementioned items, so I did a quick Google search for where I can recycle the CDs. A great little organization called www.discsfordogs.org. However, I just couldn't bring myself to get rid of all the Julia Roberts' movies on VHS that I collected in college. Stop the insanity! 


Who knows what kind of mood I'll be in tomorrow, but the packing must continue. This is the only steady, free time that I'll have to really pack and think and organize. I just have to get rid of some stuff first.