In Other Words With Dave – January 2021

I used to think I needed to save everything. How else would the future exhibits in the Dave Miller Museum get populated. That was years ago. I have since come to realize that in all likelihood there will not be a dedicated space to display all the belongings I collected over the years – all the keepsakes that mean nothing to anyone but me. Yes, I have some hoarder tendencies.  

My wife Alison, is just the opposite. She knows how to travel light. She can let go of things. They say you can’t take it with you, but when we combined households – I did take it with me. And if it didn’t fit in our “new to us” house, I took it to storage. 

I feel like the second wave of paring down is calling me. Some nights I find myself lying awake in bed thinking about the vast amount of stuff above me, literally, in the attic. A 20-year-old mountain bike that I used and abused – but that adventure is over. Time to let it go. A Hello Kitty desk lamp that I’m sure is collectable, if it wasn’t broken. My old trusty Homelite chainsaw that I swear I’m going to get fixed someday – I’ve got to get top dollar for that. Hundreds of items like these literally weigh on the rafters – and me. I need to lighten the load. 

The simple answer? Donate. The great thing about donating is – it’s easy. There’s no taking photos, composing and posting a Facebook or Craigslist ad, fielding inquiries and price haggling from potential buyers. That’s exhausting – with very little pay off. Donating is on my schedule. Just load up the car, drive to one of several local non-profits and unload. It’s a win-win-win. For me, for the organization, and for the bargain hunter that finds that ‘something’ I finally was willing to free from storage purgatory. 

A few places I like to drop-off donations are EARC, The HOPE Center and Salvation Army.