Things you can''t throw out.

[charbie]

Date: 1/10/2010 10:54:29 AM
Author: elrohwen
Books. I love books! I even have some of my old college textbooks and I can''t even think of getting rid of them, though the chances that I''ll need a book on Physical Chemistry are slim to none.

Same here. I even have notes taken in some of my classes. Not sure what in the world I EVER wil do with them, but luckily we have a huge wall of bookshelves in my basement.

 

[whitby_2773]

food.

i've sponsored so many kids overseas that i have a real problem throwing away food. if it's still fresh enough to eat, even if it's something i really dislike, i'll try to find *something* to do with it.

this can be a good thing, tho. i think everyone has a half used jar of capers in their fridge, and it was this that led to coming up with a very nice steamed asparagus with havarti and caper sauce recipe - simply to use up the remains of a jar left over from some fish dinner i'd bought them for previously.

do not ask me, however, what i will do with the 2 spoonfuls of quince paste in the jar currently in the back of my fridge which REFUSES to develop - even the slightest hint! - of mould.

Asparagus with Havarti and Caper Sauce

24 spears of asparagus

1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup havarti cheese, grated
1 tablespoon chopped chives
pepper

warm the cream and slowly add the cheese till it melts and has developed a sauce consistency. add ground pepper to taste and the chopped capers. stir.

steam the asparagus and spoon a little sauce over half a dozen spears on each plate. serve hot. serves 4.


Recipe for Leftover Quince Paste.

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(that'd be a big zero...)

 

[whitby_2773]

d''oh! that shoulda read - 1 tablespoon of chopped capers, not chives. saw it too late to edit.

you get the drift tho....

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Pricescope is it for me. I just can''t throw it away!

 

[Shoopy]

I get rid of everything (whether it be donated or thrown away).

I do this because my FI keeps everything. He has magazines in his closet from 1992, a collection of tapes, old cards that people have sent to him over the years. It''s ridiculous, especially when you''re low on space.

 

[Liane]

Date: 1/11/2010 11:00:26 AM
Author: whitby_2773
Recipe for Leftover Quince Paste.

--------------------

(that'd be a big zero...)

Hmm... is quince paste like guava paste? If so, you can use it to make some delicious desserts. Slice it very thinly and serve with cheese, or melt it and add lime/lemon juice to make a sauce for ice creams or a fruit glaze. I also use the lime-juice-and-guava-blend as an add-in for guava lime cheesecakes, and make it into mousse as a filling for lemon or vanilla cupcakes.

You can use it as a cocktail mixer, too.

(Edited to add: and for most of those uses, you only need a couple of tablespoons of the paste, although for cheesecakes you'd need more like 2/3 cup of it.)

 

[CNOS128]

I have trouble getting rid of pretty much everything (which, I''ve been told, is another manifestation of OCD). It is a lot easier for me to part with things when I give them away to people who need them. When DH and I moved in together, one of the hardest adjustments for me was eliminating things we had in duplicate, and the things that wouldn''t fit in our apartment (we must have made 10 trips to Goodwill). And now that those things are gone, I don''t miss them.

 

[Girlrocks]

Date: 1/10/2010 1:44:20 PM
Author: MC

Date: 1/10/2010 9:28:04 AM
Author: soocool
I cannot throw out:

My baby shoes
DD''s baby shoes, a few of her baby outfits, her books when she was 0-6 years old, some of her special toys
DD''s baby teeth (yep I saved them. Any ideas on what I can do with them?)
Frye boots from the 1970s/1980s

I also have all my kids'' baby teeth. At first I was good about organizing and labeling them (first tooth from kid #1, etc.) but then slacked off and the teeth are scattered everywhere and I have no idea who''s is who''s. They gross me out to look at, yet I cannot part with them.

What to do with the ones you have, Soocool - maybe make a teeth necklace. lol!!!

This made me laugh out loud MC...I have 2 baggies with my oldest daughters teeth in them. They are gross. I have no idea what the heck to do with them either! But I can''t throw them out!

 

[Girlrocks]

In addition to my kids'' gross baby teeth, I can''t throw out any notes that they have written/drawn for me. i keep EVERY scrap of paper, note, card, etc. I have a huge box full and I have a file in my file cabinet and when it gets full I dump them in the box. I write the date and child''s name on the back.

I was looking through the box the other day at some of the very first notes my oldest daughters wrote me, they are so sweet!

I also have all of their hospital bracelets, first locks of hair, outfits they each wore home from the hospital, first Christmas outfit, etc.

I have a t-shirt from my first overnight camp that I went to in 6th grade. I have my retainer (Yuck!) I also have a scrap from my blankie that I was obsessed with as a child. Also, a stuffed elephant that my dad gave me when I was born in the hospital.

I have a hard time throwing things out. When I was a child it was horrible. For example, I didn''t get a lot of junk food when I was a kid, so once when I was about 7 my friend''s mom took us to McDonald''s...it was my first time going there, and I was in LOVE! I saved the french fry box because it smelled sooooo good, hid it in my toy box. About 2 weeks later, our house became infested with ANTS making a lovely army-like march to my toy box!

My family still to this day likes to remind me on special occasions in front of many people about how I saved a french fry box.

One of my daughters is the EXACT same way that I was so I am trying to work through it with her but she wants to save everything...photos in magazines that are cute, junk mail, tags from cloths she really likes, chapstick tubes that are empty because they smell good...I think we have issues in my family!

 

[étoile]

Date: 1/10/2010 1:42:52 PM
Author: MC
I keep all my old camisoles that are falling apart and or shrunk up and that no longer fit. I have one that''s around seven years old, definetely doesn''t fit and yet it''s sitting stacked up with clothes that I also never wear.

Books are one thing I do get rid of. Started when a friend came over wanting to discuss a book on my book case because it was one of her favorites. Well, of course I had hated the book and had already forgotten most of the story and it was challenging trying to think up small bits that didn''t bug me. Also, I had a billion old Anne Rice books and was given a gift of a few that I didn''t have. The friend assumed I still liked those tales. It was shortly after that then that we were moving and DH and I picked out all the books we no longer felt represented our personality and sold them to a used book store. We still have SO many books. Eye brows go up when guests come over and see piles of novels and non-fiction piled up everywhere.

Me too! I have cami''s that are all nubby (like old sweaters) and I keep them because they are soooo soft and I figure nobody can really see it, right?

I used to keep books forever but I learned that they are awful to move with so I tend to purge them before I amass too many now.
Things from my Mom are really special to me. I don''t get to see her often so I keep out the little things she''s given me over the years.

 

[PilsnPinkysMom]

Books. Even if I never, ever, ever plan to read them again.

Cards/notes. I have two shoeboxes filled with letters and cards from college, sent by friends and family. I save birthday cards, Christmas cards, Valentine''s Day cards, and now I have a bunch of wedding cards.

I think that eventually I''ll cave & pitch the cards (unless they have an actual note written inside), but save the letters.

Journals. I''ve kept journals since I was about 7. The early ones are embarrassing/silly/pathetic, but I absolutely, positively cannot throw them out. By the time I leave this world I will have SO MANY filled journals- perhaps I will torch them all

The mere thought of someone reading them makes my heart race. Especially if the readers are my future children! Even so, they''re filled with so, so many memories that I can''t bring myself to throw out the old ones.

 

[HVVS]

Letters and cards that family members have sent me. Someday those people will be gone, or are already gone. It's nice to have memories you can re-read.

Books, especially textbooks: Yes, keep those. Schools are increasingly switching to e-books. Great, for a corrently enrolled student. But if you need to brush up on skills or review to take a test for eligibility for more training or to get certification, you need a real book. Also, you can drag those textbooks along on business or other trips and use downtime to study. There's a lot to be said for something that doesn't require a computer.

Anything that's not junk and I think somebody else can use, I try to sell it or re-home it. I get really annoyed at some of the good stuff that people just dump at the curb to be rained and snowed on and ruined. I've even retrieved stuff out of trash piles and refurbished it. Salvation Army and Habitat for Humanity and other agencies that help people start over after they've lost everything in a house fire can use all kinds it items. Old computers might be find for grade school or jr. high kids. Or computer beginners of any age.

 

[butterfly 17]

I have all my college textbooks and papers. I usually reference my books here and there, so it''s good to have. I also have all my papers that I wrote.

I have all of my girls first dresses and halloween outfits. All their first shoes and clothes and I kept the first blankets they had in the hospital as well.
I also have of course, some my son''s stuff, like some of his toys, his last blanket when he was in the hospital and an outfit or two. I have them in the attic and just take the box with me wherever we move to. I would never ever throw that out or get rid of it as it has too much sentimental value.
In my wallet I keep on of his toys, a tiny tiny black sports car that he got as a gift and loved to play with and just carry that in there and when I switch out wallets, I put it in the new one.

I also like to keep receipts/bank slips, etc. but I really need to get rid of some of them. I have records from 1993! LOl

 

[Erin]

Date: 1/10/2010 11:01:08 PM
Author: 4ever
Shoes. I have several pairs of beautiful, almost new condition, leather dress shoes which I saved up and paid alot for as a teenager. I remember how much I saved to spoil myself with these beautiful shoes and how happy I was when I had an occasion to wear them and it seams so wasteful to get rid of them.

What? Did you say size 9?

Clothes. I''ve had three garage sales trying to pass on my beautiful clothes. Finally I took them to goodwill. No way could I throw them away. They would be so nice for someone else.

 

[Prana]

I used to have a problem getting rid of certain clothes. Solution: I made a huge quilt out of all my old tshirts, some old dance company uniforms and the like. Now I have a huge quilt full of all my old clothes, and it''s something that I really enjoy looking at.

I also have a problem throwing away anything from my childhood years, and anything given to me by my grandparents, no matter what it is.

 

[vespergirl]

I used to be a packrat, but about 10 years ago I decided to totally change my lifestyle, and now I probably give/throw too much stuff away. I just hate clutter now.

The one thing that I''m REALLY sentimental about are my son''s arts & crafts projects. Every time he brings something home from school I save it, and we have one room that''s become overrun with scribbled drawings. I know that at the end of the year I''ll need to edit the collection & only keep a few choice things, but how can one not get sentimental over a handprint turkey Thanksgiving card that says, "I am thankful for my mommy!"

 

[upgrade]

TJ: Just wantet to say welcome back Whitby! Are you staying? I missed you.

 

[wyndham]

Date: 1/11/2010 9:31:44 AM
Author: pennquaker09

I can't think of anything else, but generally, I purge. I refuse to end up on Clean House or Hoarders.

Hahaha, this is my mantra, too!! Anytime I think about keeping something that doesn't really need to be kept, I ask myself if I want to be one of the poor subjects of Clean House one day. That thought alone is enough to make me drive huge bags of items to Goodwill right away!!

 

[sunnyd]

I have every card I''ve gotten, from the baby shower thrown for my mom to now. There might be chunks missing from 7-11, but otherwise, they''re all in a box. Don''t ask me why I kept them, I haven''t looked at them in years!

 

[yssie]

I can't throw away books either, no matter how dreadful or dreadfully beaten up.


Old photos. Even new photos - I take twenty on my digital camera and upload them, and I can't decide whether I like the 45-degree tilt or the 47-degree tilt so I just keep both, and now I have a 500gb external devoted solely to pictures.


Receipts. I save them obsessively. I sort them by quarter of year, and the most recent years' are sorted by month.


Clothes - especially skirts and dresses. I have stuff saved from middle school.. if I can fit into it, I keep it "just in case". The strange part is that I've actually reused a fair amount of it over the years - granted, I like simple lines so they're all very basic and unfussy, but...

I hate clothes shopping, though, and pretty much always have, so my wardrobe is of passable proportions inspite of this habit!


Mugs. I love collecting unique mugs and tea trios, and I just can't part with them even when they get chipped - unless they're outright unusable. And then they often get glued back together and earn a spot on the top shelf.


Food. If parts can be salvaged, I will. FI despises this particular tendency, but tossing a whole block of cheddar because the edges are green is wasteful and expensive!


Things I can throw away easily: shoes, useless or replaced electronics, scratched flatware.

 

[Haven]

You don''t have to throw away your old books! Your local library will probably take them, and if they don''t, and you don''t have any used bookstores around, try the local schools. And you can always give them to Goodwill or Salvation Army for resale.

I''ve sold seven bankers boxes worth of books to my local used bookstore this past week. They paid me $78 dollars for them, which isn''t bad considering I would have just donated them otherwise.

 

[Tuckins1]

Date: 1/11/2010 10:28:50 AM
Author: charbie

Date: 1/10/2010 10:54:29 AM

Author: elrohwen

Books. I love books! I even have some of my old college textbooks and I can''t even think of getting rid of them, though the chances that I''ll need a book on Physical Chemistry are slim to none.

Same here. I even have notes taken in some of my classes. Not sure what in the world I EVER wil do with them, but luckily we have a huge wall of bookshelves in my basement.

Me too! (With the notes, i mean) I have boxes of notebooks from school, that I have never re-opened since the last day of class! Who knows when you might need to look up some random piece of information.

 

[4ever]

Date: 1/11/2010 3:28:34 PM
Author: Starset Princess

Date: 1/10/2010 11:01:08 PM
Author: 4ever
Shoes. I have several pairs of beautiful, almost new condition, leather dress shoes which I saved up and paid alot for as a teenager. I remember how much I saved to spoil myself with these beautiful shoes and how happy I was when I had an occasion to wear them and it seams so wasteful to get rid of them.

What? Did you say size 9?

Clothes. I''ve had three garage sales trying to pass on my beautiful clothes. Finally I took them to goodwill. No way could I throw them away. They would be so nice for someone else.

Hehe, they''re around a 9 1/2. I''d let you have them but you''d have to come and get them

 

[OUpearlgirl]

Birthday cards, pictures, random dolls from my childhood..

 

[iheartscience]

Date: 1/11/2010 4:29:35 PM
Author: wyndham

Date: 1/11/2010 9:31:44 AM

Author: pennquaker09

I can''t think of anything else, but generally, I purge. I refuse to end up on Clean House or Hoarders.

Hahaha, this is my mantra, too!! Anytime I think about keeping something that doesn''t really need to be kept, I ask myself if I want to be one of the poor subjects of Clean House one day. That thought alone is enough to make me drive huge bags of items to Goodwill right away!!

Me too! Hoarders really does it for me more than Clean House for some reason. I always tell my husband we have to get rid of stuff after I watch Hoarders. I''m a pack rat at heart but I fight it fairly successfully, especially since we bought our first house. The line that helps me when I get rid of things is "Do I want to keep this for the rest of my life?" Sometimes it really is yes, but most of the time it''s a big fat no!

I mostly have a hard time throwing out/getting rid of clothes and shoes. I usually sell some of it on eBay or at a consignment boutique and then I take the rejects to another consignment shop that isn''t as picky. Then I usually cart the leftovers around for months until I finally take them to a local thrift store to donate! And I keep things for at least a year or two too long before starting the selling/getting rid of process. If I still like the item I always want to keep it even if I NEVER wear it. I''m trying to get better about it, though!

 

[jewelz617]

I can''t throw out my daughter''s infant clothing. Just can''t, it''s too sentimental.

 

[Blair138]

My stuffed animals and toys from childhood, I remember playing with all my mom''s toys when we would go to my grandparent''s house and I hope that my children will get to do the same one day, greeting cards from important birthdays and from people who are no longer living, old school work...I purged A LOT this summer when I moved in with DH and MAN did I have a lot of junk!!!