Spring Cleaning (of Sorts)

When I moved in with Christopher just over a year ago, most of my belongings went directly into the basement, which was finished, but not furnished. About 75% of that went into making the place look like lived in (and... well... kind of like my old apartment). The other 25% stayed in boxes stacked near the IKEA desk we bought and put together. 

This week I've been working on dealing with that other 25%. 

You see, unfortunately, I tend to be a keeper of things for no obvious reason. I fully admit that I've never really known how long to hold on to things that seem to be "official" documents (such as insurance paperwork or bank statements). And I know that I'm overly sentimental about other paper goods (Christmas cards and show programs and the like). And from my days teaching, I knew that I had a bunch of my old "texts" -- which include everything from comic strips to more traditional literary scraps. 

What I didn't realize was how much of any of that was in the boxes. Or, more importantly, how much of it wasn't in the boxes (resulting in a bunch of half-filled boxes taking up twice as much space as necessary). I emptied 5 or 6 large cardboard boxes today, filled 2 new "file boxes"  with the "keep" pile, and took out 2 huge trash bags to the garbage bin. Even so, I've cautioned Christopher that I'm not done, so he shouldn't expect to see a big change the next time he goes downstairs. 

Of course, there were surprises, too. I came across Christmas cards and photos and birthday cards. I found my old "emergency sewing kit" and my stapler and a couple of watches (which had been missing since the move). And in the middle of it all I unearthed newspaper clippings ranging from silly to sobering (and a blend of the two in one obituary -- which sounds kind of callous, but would make sense to anyone who knew the guy). 

I've been putting off this task for so long that I almost can't believe I got so much done, while still taking the time to ponder what I was pawing through. There's a ton of work yet to be done (like trying to put things into actual scrapbooks), but at least the initial sorting is over and I can breathe a little easier. 

And, about half-way through my day today, I think I may have realized -- as I do every year -- why spring cleaning feels so good: It's satisfying to know that the past is being put where it belongs, making room for the future.