Week Twenty-Three, Items 178-184

Paper dining goods

These are leftovers from various things we've hosted. But we have plenty of regular dishes and cloth napkins, so we don't need to keep the paper versions. They've just been taking up space in our house, but I'm sure someone else could use them. I'm just going to count the whole lot as one item. 

Miller coaster

We have a variety of coasters from breweries we love. We also have this one. We like to drink good beer, so I don't know how this one wound up in our collection. It's something we can easily let go.

Bead strands 1 and 2

At my sister-in-law's bachelorette party, we all wore strands of beads in her wedding colors. Because so few occasions in life call for wearing strands of shiny beads, I won't use these again. But I'm sure somebody could. 

Plaid vest

My husband wore this to a party where the theme was basically to wear as many prints or patterns as possible. He got this plaid vest at a thrift store as a way to add an extra print. I actually like vests on men, but this one is cut strangely. It comes so far in at the shoulders that it's reminiscent of a halter top. So, back to the thrift store it goes.

Plaid shirt

This is one of those items that just doesn't make the cut of clothes I'll be keeping. It fits, and I love the colors, but I rarely wear shirts with collars. And I hardly ever wore this. I know someone else would get much more use out of it.

Ironing starch

The people who sold this house left behind various cleaning supplies in a hall closet. We've since used most of those up, but not this. As I've mentioned before, I don't iron. And my husband has never used this. So we don't need to keep it around.

Progress: 184 items out of 400 = 46% done.

Week Twenty-Two, Items 171-177

Reservoir Dogs

I don't watch violent movies. I think violence for the sake of violence is a cheap gimmick, and I don't like it. I'm not grossed out by blood and guts (I actually had a great time watching a medical procedure on my arm just the other day), I just don't want to spend my time watching depictions of violence and gore. There's one person who, whenever this comes up, says "but it's fake!" as though I don't already know that. Obviously, I do. But life is too short to fit in all the things I want to see, read and do. So why waste time on something I don't find worthwhile? Anyway, all of that is to say that this movie of my husband's can go. He never even opened it, and I've never seen it and don't want to.


Rounders

I don't have nearly as much to say about this one. It just falls into the category of movies that we have, but don't really feel the need to own anymore. I can't even remember how many years it's been since I saw this movie.


Jane Eyre

And this falls into the category of books we don't feel the need to own. The first time I tried to read this book, I only got through a few pages before I got bored and set it aside. I revisited it later, though, because I can't stand to start a book and not finish it. While I'm sure the Brontë sisters were lovely people, I haven't liked any of their books.


Sense and Sensibility

I like Jane Austen even less than I like Emily and Charlotte Brontë. I feel like Jane Austen reduces women to people obsessed with marriage, and—no offense to my husband intended—there's just so much more to life than that. I don't think her books are romantic, I think they're sad. I think this was a hand-me-down book, and I will hand it off again.


Card game rule book

This book was published in 1992, and I can see how it would've been a useful thing to have around then. But now, with Internet access as widespread as it is, it seems silly to have this. It's just taking up space; we've never used it. It definitely can go.


Blue shirt

This, apparently, is one of those shirts that looks way better on a person than it does just sitting on its own. Anyway, I like this shirt. I just feel like I've veered too far into grown-up territory to wear a shirt as slinky as this one looks when it's on. (Yes, I know I sound old.)


Shiny flag handkerchief

This is another thing we picked up at a thrift store for one of us to wear to the previously mentioned Hick Party. We have a bunch of stuff around the house that we've worn to various theme parties, and we don't need to keep all of it. So that's another area where we can pare down.


Progress: 177 items out of 400 = 44.25% done.

Week Twenty-One, Items 163-170

Yellow shirt

I almost really like this shirt, but there are two problems. One is that the sleeves are awkward—neither baggy nor slim-fitting. They are just kind of in-between, and make my arms look big (they're not). Also, while I love the color, it looks horrible on me. I tried this on one more time to compare it to a favorite, somewhat similar shirt (bright color, details at the neckline, elbow-length sleeves). I really am paring my wardrobe down significantly; if something's not one of my favorites, it's going to go. Anyway, the difference between how I look in my favorite shade of blue and this shade of yellow (which I like!) was kind of a shock. I looked perfectly normal in the bright blue, but once I put this shirt on, I looked like I had the flu. I'll stick with clothes that don't make me look flabby or ill, thanks.

Wazzu Pez dispenser

I'm a huge Cougar football fan, but I won't be any less of one without this Pez dispenser. Also, Sour Patch Watermelons aside, I'm not really big on candy, anyway. I've heard a few promising things in interviews with head coach Paul Wulff lately, and can look forward to the upcoming season without having to hang onto this. Go Cougs!

Travel case

Yet another travel case. The nice thing about this one is the long, skinny shape, which would be perfect for holding makeup brushes. But I already have one that's the right shape and size to do that, so I don't need this one.

Shower head

The shower head that was in the bathroom when we moved in was not great. We took it off and tried to fix it up a bit, but it didn't get much better. So we replaced it with a newer, more environmentally-friendly one. This one has been kicking around on the shelves above the washer and dryer since then. It can go.

Computer CD

This came in some magazine my husband was reading. It's been sitting in our bedroom, next to his magazine stack, for a while now. It definitely fits into the category of odds and ends I've mentioned. I finally asked him whether he ever planned on using it, or whether we could get rid of it. Well, you see it here—that tells you what the answer was.

Mat board

Another small, somewhat random, potentially-useful-but-not-to-us item. This piece of mat board is of higher quality than what typically comes with picture frames, but it wasn't what I was looking for. I swapped it out for a piece that went with the piece I was framing. This has just been sitting in my office ever since. I haven't found another use for it yet, so I doubt I ever will. It can go.

Blue curtains

We bought these when we moved into this house, intending to hang them in my office. But we're closing in on three years here, and have never used these. They're a pretty color, but they're sheer. We decided to go with insulated curtains instead. The windows in our house are pretty big; insulated curtains have been great for regulating the temperature and reducing our energy use.

Cheesy book

I distinctly remember reading this book while sitting in the living room of my parents' old house. That was years ago. I didn't like this book then, so I have no idea why I still have it. I liked Tuesdays with Morrie quite a bit, but this reminded me of a lowbrow Lifetime movie. I know lots of people love this book, though, so I am sure it will find a good home.

Progress: 170 items out of 400 = 42.5% done.

Week Twenty, Items 156-162

Silly sunglasses

I'm not quite sure where my husband got these sunglasses, but he's had them for years. The neon pink cord woven through them has faded, though, and for that reason (okay, and host of others), I think it's time these can go.

Rainbow socks

My husband was a Reading Rainbow for Halloween year before last (I thought that was pretty clever), and these were part of his costume. Since then, they have just been sitting around. Neither of us is going to wear these, so we can get rid of them.

Puzzle book

This little book of brain teasers and puzzles is one of those single-use items we are working on reducing, so we can get rid of this. Besides, when we want to give our brains a little workout, we turn to Sporcle (fair warning: it's addicting).


Car light bulbs

These two light bulbs go to our old car. Somehow, they got put in with the stuff for the car emergency kit. I guess it wasn't that unreasonable a place for them to end up, but they certainly don't belong there. And, in fact, they don't belong in our house. We just don't have a use for these now.

Garbage disposal cleaners

Our sink doesn't have a garbage disposal, so I'm not sure how we ended up with these. Maybe we had them at the condo we rented before we bought this house? Regardless, we can't use them, so they can go.

Maroon shirt

This sweater was a hand-me-down. I have a shirt that's similar in several ways—color, sleeve length, buttons down the front—that fits me better. It seems odd to have two shirts that are so similar, so I will keep the one that fits me better.

Gray cardigan

I have a few gray cardigans, and this is my least favorite of the bunch. It has just one button and is somewhat boxy, and I tend to wear shirts that fit fairly closely. I bought this in an effort to get myself to branch out a little, but I just ended up not wearing it very often. It might be boring, but I just need to stick to what I know I like.


Progress: 162 items out of 400 = 40.5% done.