Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with declutter

Anyone had regrets about a massive decluttering of their lives?

studentbaker — Wed, 28 May 2008 13:16:03 -0800

Anyone had regrets about a massive decluttering of their lives? I want to seriously declutter my life in terms of the items I have in storage and those that sit unused around my home.

I have a lot of stuff. Electronics, iPods, comic books, books, DVDs, clothes, doodads, doohickeys, baubles, etc. all of which are unused in storage or just taking up space in my home. I’d like to declutter. I’ve researched it quite a bit and considered it for a while now.

I plan to do this through Goodwill, Freecycle and a good old-fashioned Yard Sale.

I think I’m ready.

However, I want to know from those who have gone through an extreme purging of stuff, do you have regrets? Is there stuff you wish that you would have kept? Did you go through a post decluttering depression? Did you turn around a buy more junk?

Help me stock my medicine cabinet...

somanyamys — Mon, 19 May 2008 12:38:26 -0800

What should a well-stocked medicine cabinet contain? I recently cleaned out my medicine cabinet, and finally threw out years of expired, largely unused junk. The only items that survived the purge were a box of band-aids, a tube of neosporin, and a bottle of Excedrin Migraine. I am starting with a clean slate.

It's just me and my husband, no kids. So what should two reasonably healthy adults really keep on hand in the medicine cabinet?

From what I could tell in my searches, previous AskMe questions were specific to babies and/or were focused on the larger issue of spending leftover FSA funds. Google has turned up very little (mainly survival-oriented first aid lists). That's a start, but I'm looking for something a little more comprehensive than just a first aid kit.

If you can point me to a really good, everyday, household-oriented list that's not focused on small children, I'll take it. Otherwise, I'm looking for specific recommendations for what a well-stocked medicine cabinet should or should not include.

Without some kind of guidance, I'm afraid I'll end up buying one of everything at drugstore.com, and in a couple of years I'll be throwing out another garbage bag full of barely used, expired stuff. Please save me from myself.

Binders and Boxes and Bookshelves, oh my! I've got too much school stuff...

cheeken — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:03:01 -0800

I'm almost done with grad school, and all my academic detritus is taking over my apartment. How much of it do I really need to keep? I've been in graduate school since 2002, getting my doctorate in Marriage and Family Therapy. It's been a great program, and I'm well-equipped to go out into the world and do the stuff of both therapists and academics.

The problem is: What the heck do I do with all this grad-school stuff?

I've done the searches on uncluttering, getting rid of stuff, and living a 'leaner' lifestyle, but I'm not sure that it addresses the heart of my question, since I think that there's always a chance that I'll need this stuff for my career.

I have taken six years of classes (for Masters and Doctorate), and have kept: every textbook; every syllabus, correlated with all my class notes and papers (i.e. each class has a 1/2 inch binder devoted to it with everything from the class I received or completed); almost every recommended textbook, and most printouts that were involved in any research for a class (like lit review stuff).

I now have two huge bookshelves devoted to these textbooks and professional journals, as well as almost a dozen Rubbermaid containers full of my freakin' 1/2 inch class binders.

I'm done with my classes, but am working on my dissertation in a pretty specific area; however, since I'm not sure when I'll be asked to teach a class, or give a presentation, or write an article, I feel like it will always and forever be 'handy' to have these resources at my fingertips.

So: (1) Should I just find a more efficient way to keep all of this stuff?
(2) If you've been through grad school, what did you do with all your stuff? How much of it did you need again?
(3) What should I keep and what should I get rid of?
(4) Other general advice?

Thanks MeFites.

should I just throw out my university course notes?

esolo — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 17:58:50 -0800

should I just throw out my university course notes? (more details below) I am a psychology graduate student in my first year of master's degree. My partner and I recently moved in together into a very small 1-bedroom apartment. The physical space is definitely an issue. Right now I have probably 25-30 3-hole binders full of course notes from my undergraduate degree (and some from high school).

My question is whether I should just take it all and throw it out or keep holding on to it? There is always a chance that I may need some of this one day, but I'm starting to wonder whether all the multiple square feet that this stuff will occupy for years is actually worth it.

I know there were previous questions on how to organize all this information, but it's already pretty organized. I'm just wondering whether I should dump it all? I'm thriving for more or less clutter-free life (e.g. regularly drop off used clothing at value village; listed most of my textbooks for sale on Amazon).

I wonder if this is different, because this is "knowledge". I think I'm attached to these papers because of how much time and money it took to accumulate them all. Realistically, though, I think it would be faster for me to just look up a concept in Google, rather than search for it in my course notes.

(Most of these course notes are in psychology area, but some are also math, history, women's studies, philosophy, ethics, etc.).

What do you think? If you are in a similar situation, please share your experience? Thank you!