Forum challenge: Lets play the minimalists' game

[Kipling]

21- cardboard box used to pack amplifier for dispatch, 7 sheets of bubble wrap and 1 large piece of cardboard used to wrap amplifier, 1 empty sellotape dispenser ditto, a roofing repair leaflet, a kitchen showroom booklet, 7 more paint samples, a packet of very elderly post it notes, an expired highlighter pen.

[Kipling]

Trying to get a little ahead of schedule while the bank holiday weekend means that workload is lighter - took the opportunity to seek out the electrical recycling centre near where we live and drop off two huge boxes of electrical goods (that we have been accumulating for years) for recycling:

22 - 1 pair speakers, 1 pair speaker cables, 3 monitor stands, 3 monitors, 5 monitor cables, 6 power cords, 1 pair of earphones, 2 digital interconnects

23 - 1 television aerial cord, 4 power cables, 1 Tom Tom navigational device for a car we sold a year ago, 1 mosquito zapper, 1 mechanical timer, 1 WiFi dongle (last used in 2019), 5 random cables (all recycled) ...

edited to add - yet another pack of expired post-it notes ... 8 to go...

edited again to add - 1 wooden wine box, 2 broken glasses, 1 broken wine decanter (binned) 3 random cardboard boxes (recycled)... 2 to go...

edited again to add - detritus remaining from tooth whitening kit after process completed, 1 elderly safety razor.

[Stasher]

For Week 20 on May 19 - May 25 the following following 20 items were collected
2 - garden hand tools (curbside free)
1 - 5 gallon water cooler (curbside free)
1 - caulking tube gun (curbside free)
1 - outdoor extension cord (curbside free)
1 - broken metal wall cabinet (metal recycling depot store)
1 - garden hose water nozzle (curbside free)
1 - set of truck mud flaps (curbside free)
1 - metal rusted cookie storage tin (metal recycling depot)
3 - rusted old hand tools (metal recycling depot)
2 - cat harnesses (gave away)
1 - crew sweater (consignment sold)
2 - pillow sham covers (thrift store)
2 - ballpoint pens (thrift store)
1 - bike lock (thrift store)

Thanks goodness this week I decided to tackle completely cleaning and organizing our small metal back yard shed, reaching these large weekly numbers now is more challenging. It was becoming a bit unkept and because its the old beat up decades old shed in the yard it becomes a bit of a catch all for garden tools and other yard crap. I still have my main tool shed to go through which will help me get rid of a lot more little items I've been hoarding lol

[bos]

1 - Set of chinesium charcoal sticks
3 - old oil painting I made
2 - alloy keys
1 - bag of old candy
1 - headphone (up for sale)

I am no longer participating. I have checked all the cabinets and haven't been able to find 20 items, which is actually a positive thing
I could purge items from DW, but that's no fun and might lead to me being thrown out of apartment

[WingsOnFire]

From last week's declutters I sold the Moka Express for 30e.

Week 20

2 Hair clips (sold, as these are collectible. Don't know exactly what it is in euros and after the selling fees.. will see later when the money is in my account)
1 Shirt
1 (Another) baseball cap
4 Bits of jewelry
1 Fabric marker
1 Failed sewing project
1 Pin holder (made by DD when she was 7 or 8 so I was hesitant, but I have one I prefer to actually use and I’d like to consolidate all sewing related things into one box instead of two..)
1 Expired tinted moisturiser with SPF
2 Pants
1 Spice mix that has coriander in it, need I say more
1 Wrapping paper (used up)
1 Book (gifted)
1 Weird doo-dad (trying to sell)
1 Card (These are my own and I still have a stack left.. should I even count one of them as one item, I'm not sure!)
1 Reusable bag

Total items decluttered 354 / 1378

[jacob]

Season 2: Week 3

1 pair of holy socks (bought in 2008)
2 supposedly refillable BIC lighters that would not take a charge

[Stasher]

It is surprising how much stuff finds its way into the corners of your house, sheds, yard and so on. This has been a great exercise on going through the accumulation of things that we build up without realizing. Also had my daughter visit and she went through a few things she left behind when she moved out a few years back. Since my last big purge years ago, I managed to get rid of a few items that I didn't get rid of at that time that had the nostalgia or emotion attached to them. In the end it is just an object and the memories should be sufficient rather than something that gets forgotten or put on a shelf or in a box. Next week is going to be tough as I am officially down to zero items with no surplus carrying forward to the following weeks challenge items.

Anyhow, scrambled around to find one last item to make this weeks Minimalist Game Quota

For Week 21 on May 26 - June 01 the following following 21 items were collected
1 - manual push mower (curbside free)
1 - storage tote (gave to daughter)
2 - rubbermaid storage tubs (curbside free)
2 - pizza spatula (thrift store)
2 - 3lb dumbells (thrift store)
1 - kids camp chair (gave to friend)
5 - miscellaneous wall decor art pieces (thrift store)
2 - keychains (thrift store)
2 - end table ornaments (thrift store)
1 - fabric facemask (thrift store)
1 - box asstd nail polish (thrift store)
1 - cardboard shelf organizer box (thrift store)
1 - usb charger (thrift store)

[loutfard]

I'm slowly making my way through the house with two boxes. Box one is for things to try and sell. Box two is for things to give away. We'll probably make a permanent spot in our house for these two boxes. Other than sell and give away boxes, recycling and bin are two more destinations for the things I'm rummaging through. These already have their own fixed spots in the house.

Current contents of the sell box:
- two camera tripods with cover
- a barbecue set
- a pile of skateboard bearings.

Current contents of the giveaway box:
- a milk recipient in the shape of a cow
- a water bottle
- a software defined radio usb stick
- a few bicycle elastics with heads
- a few bags of bicycle elastic heads
- a rather long piece of bicycle elastic

[WingsOnFire]

WEEK 21

1 Mason jar
1 Plate -because I accidentally broke it
7 Dry or leaking markers
2 Pieces of jewelry
4 Packs of snap buttons
1 Pack remnant of invisible elastic
3 Snap closure thingys
2 Sets of safety eyes (for toys )

Total items decluttered 375 / 1378

[Saltation]

Week 32
3 pairs childrens shoes
1 article of clothing
3 “L” bracket shelving kits
1 rib rack for grill
1 rotisserie kit for grill
1 meat press
1 chicken stand for grilling
1 block of 4 knives (set)
3 individual knives
2 containers of creatine
1 damaged ikea table
2 oven thermometers
1 whisky glass
10 cigars
1 cloth bag

Week 33
1 cigar box
13 pieces of drinkware
3 pieces of clothing
1 trampoline mat
1 damaged toy
1 crappy tapemeasure
3 plastic planters (rough shape)
50 pieces of toys (1 item)
9 childrens books

[Kipling]

Trying to get further ahead as have a holiday coming up, but not as far as Saltation who is storming it!

Week 24 - 9 more elderly safety razors, 2 tubes of hand cream I'm mildly allergic to, 1 tub of hand cream ditto, 1 tube body lotion ditto, 1 bottle body wash ditto, 1 part used tube of toothpaste I don't like the taste of, 1 bottle of hand wash I've had since 2006, 1 razor handle, 1 hand gel left over from covid times, 1 random bit of cardboard, 1 years-old testing kit, 1 pair tweezers that don't work, 2 various beauty products that I cannot remember ever buying, 1 expired sinusitis spray.

Cleaning out the bathroom cabinet is a rich source of throwaways.

[pteah]

Starting today. One book placed in nearby "Little Free Library" box.

[grundomatic]

I seriously need to do this. Despite heading out of town for several weeks over the course of the summer, I'll try to catch up. I'm considering trying to do it daily while home until I catch up to the current week. Catch up done today:

Week 1: Broken pair of sandals thrown away
Week 2: 2 Jumbo Pokemon cards priced and put at antique mall*
Week 3: 1 old sock thrown away, 2 pictures to thrift store
Week 4: 4 Pokemon tins/boxes priced and put at antique mall*
Week 5: 1 bag of pillows and 1 bag of bags to thrift store, 1 set signs to antique mall, 2 cords to thrift store

*4 of the 6 pokemon items sold instantly to an employee

[grundomatic]

Catch up week/day 6:
Busted dictionary recycled
Pen set, metal art, book set, and 2 toys to the thrift store (helps that I'm going there anyhow)

[ertyu]

beyond aesthetics, is there a point to minimizing posessions if it won't reduce COL

[Mousse]

As someone who is not participating in the challenge but should, I'd say one thing it does is to increase your options. You can easily move somewhere smaller if you don't have as much stuff, and lower your CoL that way. It's easier to even consider moving at all because there's less friction, which is good in general, and also potentially for larger emergencies like if there's a problem in the country. Maybe if you temporarily need extra income, you can more easily rent out your bedroom and move into the living room. Not possible if both rooms are already filled to the brim.

I think visual clutter also affects some/many people mentally. Thinking "I need to do something about that..." every time you walk past a Corner Of Shame where you've been shoving stuff that you don't quite know what to do with, but, "it could be useful someday!"

[Saltation]

beyond aesthetics, is there a point to minimizing posessions if it won't reduce COL

Our family has been working diligently toward this challenge and while it has not reduced our cost of living it has increased our quality of life. We have sold /discarded items (whisky and cigars) that were not good for our health while also not purchasing any of the mentioned items. We have sold items for cash. Our children have significantly downsized the items in their rooms resulting in faster cleanup times. We have discarded furniture that was in very poor condition and that improved the livability of our home. We found several material accumulation problems in the home. We have wrapped up a few projects. On the whole quality is improving and maintenance times are decreasing. Aesthetically: our home is more pleasant.

[Kipling]

Similarly to Mousse's second point, for me it's mainly an emotional thing. Clutter makes me unhappy because it takes up clock speed - it's a sort of neural noise, I feel weighed down by it. And, I get a buzz from getting rid of things, it is freeing, each thing that goes is one less bond. So, push-pull.

Plus the gratifying intellectual challenge of optimising which is why we are all here, on this site, in a sense.

I am a lifelong believer in William Morris's famous saying, 'Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.'

[Stasher]

beyond aesthetics, is there a point to minimizing posessions if it won't reduce COL

It could make a difference in COL by encouraging someone to take a closer look at their spending habits even further. What I think the biggest thing this exercise for me does in addition to the others comments is that it really sheds a light on inconspicuous consumption. It creeps up on you and so often we don't realize how it adds up. For me I get the same feelings as Kipling has written.

[Saltation]

What I think the biggest thing this exercise for me does in addition to the others comments is that it really sheds a light on inconspicuous consumption. It creeps up on you and so often we don't realize how it adds up.

Many of the objects that we have rid our home of (I would estimate greater than 80%) have been freebee handouts or items provided to us by others. We were becoming the inconspicuous landfill. I'm grateful for some of the items that our family has received as they were useful but many of them were just the product of family members having the love language of giving. While we care for our family often times just getting together can become stressful because their giving nature ends up with our home acquiring additional items upon every interaction.

The decluttering as I mentioned does have aesthetic benefits and the low level stress of having to manage all the items we have removed has positive impacts.