Attic Decluttering Update #1
Our attic ceiling is just high enough in the middle that I can stand up. If I'm not walking from window to window, I have to duck. So I'm happy to report that I only hit my head once and it didn't hurt that bad. I've hit my head so hard up there before that I had to sit down.
Mostly kitchen stuff, except that box that says "stuffed animals," which I'm not ready to deal with yet.
For my first pass, I focused on organizing Eric's stuff, including a bunch of empty bottles for brewing and his childhood stuff, and the kitchen things. Eric was nice and helped me haul a lot of stuff down, too.
An incomplete list of what we removed: a wheat grass juicer I bought but never used, a bunch of empty boxes from things we bought in the past, a box of hangers that had been up there since we moved into the house nine years ago, two decorative bowls we've never used, an entire set of dishes we hadn't used, two old throw pillows, a box of my old shoes, some old t-shirts of Eric's (Grateful Dead tie-dye, anyone?).
Then I swept the floor and stairs, which made a big difference. We hadn't swept up there since we got a new roof a couple years ago, so along with lots of dirt, there were roofing nails on the floor.
I made the end I didn't clean a little worse by piling everything that looked like luggage in one spot, but I'll go through that next.
Donation pile
So far, I'd say it's going well. We found a couple things we can sell, like the juicer, gave the plates to a friend, and took a bunch of boxes to the recycling dumpster. We also have a small pile of things to donate. Actually, it looks big, but it contains a box of hangers, which just don't pack well.
This hasn't turned out to be nearly as difficult as I thought it might be. I'm not making the really tough decisions, such as what to do with Eric's childhood stuff, or even being very choosy on what stays or goes. A lot came down, but they were all obvious choices. Hopefully the ease will continue.
Do you have any storage spaces you ignore, but keep adding to? Have you attempted to clean or declutter there? How'd your experiences with that go?
Week 37: Household - Attic Decluttering