Thirty More Days, Thirty Fewer Things

Last month Mrs. Done by 40 and I realized we had way too many things in the house, and decided to come up with a plan to reduce.  We settled on a plan to get rid of thirty things every thirty days, because it seemed more appealing than trying to do one huge purge.  And lately I'm trying to think about my behavior largely as a string of habits, rather than a bunch of individual actions that were each intentionally decided upon.  So by regularly looking through our possessions, I am trying to form a new habit of taking inventory of the things we have, rediscover the best ones, and then donate or sell the ones we don't use.  I walk out to the garage every few days to open a box and take stock.  Slowly but surely, we're making progress.

Last month, finding thirty things was a breeze and this month was no different.  I barely have to take a step before stubbing my toe on something we haven't used in a year or more.  Here is the list of things we no longer own. (Just about everything was donated to our local thrift store.)

• (1) Bathmat
• (1) Bathrobe
• (1) Hoodie
• (1) Hiking backpack (gifted to my little sister in CA for use on a future family multi-day hiking trip)
• (1) Large saucepan with lid
• (1) Ice tea/water jug with spigot
• (1) Big non-stick pan
• (1) Small non-stick pan
• (1) Deep pan with lid
• (1) remote that doesn't seem to actually fit any device we own
• (1) DirecTV receiver & (1) remote (When we got a new one they said not to send it back, so we're trying to sell it on Craigslist now).
• (1) bamboo planter 
• (1) HBO Sports VHS of the Thrilla in Manila
• (4) kitchen utensils
• (5) plant pots 
• (6) books 
• (1) 1996 Jeep Cherokee

My wife's Jeep was the biggest item and the hardest to part with, as it has some sentimental value and even a name: Shanaynay. She was Mrs. Done by 40's first car, purchased with her own money back in high school. It was the car she learned to drive stick on.  When we drove away from our wedding, it was in Shanaynay, the quirky sky blue Cherokee, cans-a-rattling behind us.  She's been a fun & reliable, if somewhat finicky, vehicle over the past decade.

Over the past year, the girl who rents our spare room has also been renting our spare car, since we already have too many vehicles and when we do drive a car, it is our Matrix ("Skoda").  Our renter recently asked if we'd be willing to sell Shanaynay to her and after some long talks, we agreed.  It was a hard decision but it was the right decision.

It's bittersweet to let her go, but the logical side of us know it's just a car.  We feel a little better since we're giving her to a friend who doesn't have a vehicle, and someone we know who will take good care of her. So it's time to say so long, Shanaynay.  Long may you run.

*Photo of clutter is from puuikibeach at Flickr Creative Commons.