What to do with stuff

We had an interesting program at Lakeside this morning on "Organizing 101: Simplify our Stuff" by Chris Perrow. One member of the audience commented that the people who needed to be there, weren't. "No one wants our stuff," was a common complaint.

For old family photos, scanning was the suggestion. One woman used the app Photomyne and found it very useful. Some suggested saving just a serving piece of two of that china you inherited but don't use. Lots of suggestions for various donation sites and sales. My suggestion is that if you like the china use it and don’t be afraid to put it in the dishwasher (although not the microwave since most have silver or gold trim).

For 34 years we lived in a house with no basement and no attic. Now we have both, and have more "stuff." Definitely a first world problem. Since I have a number of blogs I can write about things I donate or give away, and still retain the memory.  Doesn’t always solve the problem, but at least I know I’m not alone.  A number of people mentioned the emotional attachment to their stuff.