Good Bye Old Pilot Training Room
You could bet we’d be having a little party over here if it weren’t for one problem. I’m beat!
On Saturday morning (which you may have spotted on Facebook), I walked into this:
Everything needed to go. I just didn’t know where.
Anyone else having flashbacks to The Decluttering Project you and I all did last year?
I loved unearthing old photos like these ones. (The newspaper article listed all their names; I blurred it for privacy.) Those pictures went into the keep pile.
Or look at this old photo from Oshkosh – the world’s biggest aviation gathering.
Martin totally caught me drooling over all the stories. Into the keep pile. A typewriter. A couple clipboards. A Made in USA stapler. Whoosh! We’ll keep those.
When everything was all said and done, the keep pile wasn’t all that big:
Oh! But the donation pile for the library was huge. When I called the librarian about all the aviation materials I wanted to give her, I’m pretty sure she got a little teary. America’s rural libraries are in desperate need of materials (more on that here).
Now if there are any budding pilots, mechanics, or kids who want to learn about planes in our county (or any neighboring rural county through local exchanges), our library’s got ‘em covered.
A little Martin 20 years younger would have fainted.
I have a feeling we’re going to be best buds with the recycling center and thrift shop.
Unfortunately, I haven’t buddied up to them enough to convince them to come pick up any of our goods. In fact, that’s probably the worst thing about rural life. We don’t even have a garbage man. Eww, right? We have to haul trash about 10 or 15 miles to a bunch of dumpsters.
But enough trash talk. Want to see what’s left?
I still had a few things left to deal with when I went back to finish the job on Tuesday morning. (Remember – I started on a Saturday. Sundays are always work free, then Monday was all about Gadanke. So boom – there I was back in the training room on Tuesday like nothing had ever happened.) And in fact, nothing had happened. The room was exactly as I left it. Except for a little more dust.
It finally happened… POOF. This:
Became THIS:
One room down. ONE ROOM DOWN! Yeahhhh.
All this decluttering has got me wondering… what’s the hardest room or hardest thing for you to declutter? Is it papers like me? The bedroom? Garage? Wait – don’t tell me. It’s your stash of hundreds of dusty aviation books, too, isn’t it? I knew it.
July 13th, 2011 at 7:22 am
The hardest room for me to declutter is my bedroom. The main rooms downstairs are the ones everyone sees so there is motivation to keep them nice and the kids have to work on their rooms with me, but my room is the place to stick odds and ends when company is coming and then shut the door. Things pile up in there and somehow the priority to clean/declutter it doesn’t seem as high as other rooms.
July 13th, 2011 at 7:59 am
There is someone in my family (cough*dad*cough) that does have a problem keeping every issue of every aviation magazine they subscribe to. To be fair, this individual works in a related field. However, this person’s spouse is also at her wit’s end with the sheer quantity of subscriptions. When I last asked her how many magazines he actually gets each month, she threw her hands in the air, glared at the ceiling and said, “Don’t even get me started about that!” There may be an intervention coming…
July 13th, 2011 at 8:05 am
Cathryn, if/when that intervention time comes, see if local boys clubs (like the scouts) could use old magazines. Boys might like reading them, cutting out pictures, doing art projects, etc.
My rule around here… if the magazine issue predates my own flying, it’s gotta go.
Good luck. ;)
July 13th, 2011 at 8:23 am
The hardest room for me to declutter is the office/craft area. I never know what I’ll need later or what is and is not important. This room always gathers old cards, gift wrapping, and even gifts that I don’t know what to do with but feel obligated to keep… in addition to craft supplies, bills, and important documents.
By the way, I love that room – I can already see the potential in there! What is this room going to be once it’s all done?
July 13th, 2011 at 8:34 am
I am amazed at your progress. My decluttering seems to be taking F-O-R-E-V-E-R!! The hardest things for me to declutter are papers and sentimental objects, but I’m working on it. My hubby has a hard time letting go of clothing and gifts, even if he never wears/uses them. He has a printer/copier combo that he received for Christmas, oh 5 years ago?, that is still in the original box. I almost have him convince to let it go. I wonder if he’d notice if it just disappeared one day?
July 13th, 2011 at 4:14 pm
For me, decluttering becomes difficult if I’ve been working on any one project or room for too much time. Shorter consecutive clean-outs leave me less time for imagining the unlikely potential futures for items. Sentimental objects, like the once-played-with-stuffed-animal that’s not good enough for the thrift store, are the hardest for me to part with since I dislike contributing to a landfill to clear out some space in my home. I try to remind myself of this whenever I shop: Don’t buy what you don’t want to keep (or clean).
Thanks for reminding me I’m due for another donation drop-off at the library and the thrift store!
July 13th, 2011 at 4:44 pm
I wish I could come and help! I loooove to toss stuff out. I don’t have that much of a hard time parting with things. Sometimes I have problems letting go of clothes, so my solution is to go through my closet on a frequent basis. That way, if I cannot let go of something one time, I work up to letting it go the next. Good luck – I cannot wait to see how things come together.
July 13th, 2011 at 6:18 pm
Our family’s home office is by far the hardest room for us to keep organized, even though I am constantly recycling papers and trying to declutter.
July 13th, 2011 at 10:14 pm
I have been cleaning out our house since my mother died. She was such a packrat! But, as I clear out closets, two attic spaces and a huge doll collection I find there is one thing I can’t let go. My daughter’s baby clothes. I . just. cannot. So I tell myself I’ve gone from 40 bins of stuff to three and I deserve a prize! lol
July 15th, 2011 at 12:43 pm
Wow thats some serious decluttering. For me my craft room is the hardest to declutter! so much (pretty pretty) stuff :)
Btw that shelf your giving away looks so awesome! Bit of spraypaint and bobs your uncle. God i wish i lived closer and id take it of ya (not really feasible for ireland though)
July 17th, 2011 at 3:13 pm
Love those old photos! I have a soft spot for old photographs – I collect some every time we go to a flea market! No idea what to do with them yet though…
We’re in the midst of VERY light decluttering, and our building is hosting a yard sale next weekend! Fingers crossed we can make a few bucks :)