Weaning my baby from nursing; weaning myself from Babycenter.com

Hey there, everyone.

I have decided to become a minimalist. To me, this means:

• I only keep what I need, no duplicates
• I keep floors and surfaces clear of clutter and dishes
• I do not buy anything that is not necessary

I have already started with my kitchen cabinets. I am going to toss a bunch of kitchen knives that I never use. That is about as far as I've gotten. I don't have a whole ton of junk because I already was somewhat a minimalist, but I'm just wanting to crack down on it a little more. Having 4 closets full of junk is not my cup of tea. It bothers me just knowing that stuff is there... just sitting there... doing nothing but taking up space.

Why do I keep junk?

• I think I might need it someday
• Someone gave it to me
• I've had it for a long time

That's about it.

I might need it someday
This is a BIG one. What if I need those 10 little candle holders someday. If I throw away the ones I have, I might have to buy more and that is a waste of money. I CANNOT waste money! Yes, I really do have a bunch of little candle holders under my kitchen sink that I cannot bring myself to get rid of... I also have clothes I haven't worn in over a year that I cannot get rid of because I might want to wear them someday. I have to find a way to realize that I will NOT use these things in the future. They are just taking up valuable space in my home. Cluttering up my style! Crowding and wrinkling the things I do love to wear.

Someone gave it to me
Oh the gifts! How can I get rid of something someone GAVE to ME??? Someone cared about me enough to give me something. How could I just get rid of it? But, if someone really loves me, they will be happy with whatever I want to do with the gift, right? They wouldn't want me to keep it if I don't want it, would they? Plus, they are probably never going to find out anyway. I am still clinging to many useless things, just because they were given to me.

I've had it for a long time
This one gets me a lot. What about all those birthday cards I have kept (or my mother kept for me) since I was born? I need to keep those forever, right? What about the comics that I kept from 1996? How can I throw those away now? What about the t-shirt I got when I was 12? It still fits. For some reason I believe that the longer I've had something, the more valuable it is to me, making it much harder to get rid of. Many of these things are also gifts -making them even harder to part with. Yes, there are things that are old and are gifts that I would NEVER get rid of. For example, the quilts my grandma gave to me. I LOVE the quilts! I cherish them AND I use them. I guess I'm not a "keep collectibles pristine in a box" kind of person. If I can't get it out of the box, it's of no use to me. I've tried collecting things before and it's never worked out for me. I collect boxes. Boxes are very useful to me. I can keep all my junk in them!!!