To have and to hold on to

I don't move that often. At least not as a grown up.

I lived with my parents in our first house for the first sixteen years of my life, the we moved to a bigger, better place.  Two years later there was college,  and my mom mostly kept my stuff  (what little there was of it), in the garage.  For the next 10 years I moved a bunch, but then everything I owned fit into my Ford Pinto (no laughing).   When my ex and I moved in together before we married, we started acquiring grown-up stuff.  Our first house was small, and we lived there for 4 years, acquiring more stuff, as well as a lovely, gorgeous baby girl.  So, after four years, we moved to a bigger place, a block away, where we lived for the next 20 years, acquiring a whole lot more stuff.  The move from that house was the worst; marriage ending, selling house to run away from home,  getting rid of a lot of stuff without thinking about it, just to be gone.  After 14 months of living on the Peninsula, I had to come home; nine years in the next apartment, and then two years in my current duplex.  All the time, even while getting rid of some stuff, acquiring more, different stuff that fit into the new places better than the old stuff.  And yet, I still have boxes, unpacked from the previous move, that I was going to get to, one of these days; but you know how that goes, there's just never the time to do that ugly stuff

So now, I'm moving into a bigger, but much nicer place.  I want it to be perfect.  I want to walk in the front door to the fabulous Sunset Magazine house of my dreams.  The only problem with that scenario is my stuff.

Books:  I love books and I hate to throw them out.  Well I never throw them out, I donate or give them away.  But a full bookcase, to me, isn't so much a part of the home's ambiance, as it is the essential decor of my mind. The new place has three bedrooms, and one of them I wanted to be the office/den.  Lots of book cases, nice desk, one comfy chair.  I was hoping to buy one of those Bookcase/Wallbeds, but, alas, with the downsizing of the length of the house,  most of that coming from the "den", no room.  So, maybe, instead, I'll go to IKEA, buy enough assemble-yourself (ugh) bookcases to line one wall, and go from there.

Yarn/fiber:  For those of you, dear readers,  that are not fiberistas, you may either choose ignore this paragraph, or read, but it may confuse.  Those that are, however, will completely understand.  The third bedroom is to be my craft room.  My old bookcases and wire cubes will be employed along one wall to display my stash (not the plant kind, but the yarn and unspun fiber kind) and craft books,  all my knitting and spinning tools will be stored neatly in the closet and I will purchase this hidden desk beds to act as work table, as well as a spare bedroom.  I will use the hutch on the desk to store sewing machine and other fabric items, and the room will be a refuge of crafting and inspiration.  Ok, that's the plan, but I really REALLY have to downsize my yarn/fiber/craft book stash, and that's so very hard to do.  My friend Linda helped me two years ago, but unbeknownst to me, the stash grew and multiplied.

Furniture:  I've got some ok stuff in that department, however, the one thing I've had for 35 years, whose time has come to leave me, is my dining room set (6 chairs, 1 table with leaf that seats 8, buffet and hutch (which store my good dinner service).  It's solid oak, but dated, in a clean-cut-oak-70s style.  It's just too big for the new dining space.  For the one or two times a year I need to seat 8-12, well, we'll just have to figure something else out.  I need to get a new (or previously-owned) dining set that fits.  I won't need a buffet and breakfront, as those are being built-in to the new place.  I have my mom's old sofa which matches the two antique chairs.  but it's really not comfortable.  I'd love to be able to sell it, and get a nice love seat/sofa/sleeper for the living room. The only coffee table I have is actually Sarah's, so I need to find one for me.  Bedroom is fine, no changes there.

Kitchen: The worst room in the house to pack up, and sort through.  Fiddle-de-dee, I'll worry about that tomorrow.

One of the benefits of living alone, is that you can do things on your own timeline, and you don't have to compromise on getting rid of things.  One of the drawbacks of living alone is there is nobody to nag you to get going, and force you to throw crap out.

I've got a six week time frame, I should be ok, if I can do a little bit every day.   I'm thinking about getting one of those Pods or PakRat moving/storage containers.  Maybe, if it's parked in the driveway, I will be motivated to fill it up everyday, with something.  Also, the Home Consignment store in Corte Madera is a great place to recycle your stuff, and find somebody else s stuff that they don't want that might fit.  Also, our knitting group has been loosely discussing a yard sale; maybe I'll be organized enough by mid October to (a) host it because I've got a ton of room (b) have enough stuff to sell.

Mr. Thoreau, I'll try and quote you every day I go through this:  "Our life is frittered away by detail (and I'll add for my own benefit "stuff").  Simplify!  Simplify!