Week Twenty-Four, Items 185-192

Quiz game

If I remember correctly, this little electronic device mostly has language quiz games. It also has calculator and currency conversion functions, apparently. I didn't even know I still had this—it's been years since I last used it. When I came across it, it took me a few minutes to even remember what it was. Precisely the sort of thing that can go.

Key 3

This is my husband's old key to a place I used to live. I'm sure there are creative upcyclers out there who can turn boring old keys into cool new things, but I just am not one of those people.

Blue performance shirt

This shirt is made of a lightweight, wicking material. It is meant to be ideal for camping, hiking, etc. The concept is great, but this shirt doesn't fit me well. The sleeves are too short for it to be long-sleeved, and too loose to wear underneath something that has long sleeves (they get bunched up, which I can't stand). They're also too loose to stay up on their own when pushed up.


Gray Bermuda shorts

I'm not really a shorts person; I prefer skirts and dresses. (Somewhere, 9-year-old me cannot believe this.) These fit well and look nice, but I just never wear them. I'm sure someone else could get good use out of them, though, especially now that the weather is warm. I think they'd even be office-appropriate for a Casual Friday.


Red punch bowl

We used to use this to serve punch at our intentionally-tacky holiday parties, but I don't think we've actually used it the past couple of years. So it's just been taking up storage space in our kitchen. I'm going to donate this—someone just might want a sparkly red punch bowl for their 4th of July celebration.

Heat pack boxes 1 and 2

Someone gave us these big boxes of heat packs (I can only assume they came from Costco). It was a nice gesture, but we don't use these. We have an electric heat pad that we use instead. We try to avoid buying and using things that are designed to be thrown away, and that's exactly what these are.

Replay

The premise of this book is interesting: A middle-aged man dies in 1988 and wakes up as his teenage self in 1963, with his memories and knowledge from adulthood intact. When he reaches 1988, it happens again. And again. The idea of living one's life over and over is intriguing, but this book is not. Despite having the knowledge of an adult, the main character spends his time acting like a selfish, hedonistic teenager. He spends centuries living and still manages to avoid any kind of growth. In addition, the dialogue is trite and laughable, and Ken Grimwood's treatment of women is shallow and insulting. This book seemed like nothing more than Grimwood living out personal fantasies through his main character (similar to how I imagine Dan Brown really wishes he were Robert Langdon).


Progress: 192 items out of 400 = 48% done.

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.

Week Nineteen, Items 146-155

Ribbons 3-7

We had a bag of odds and ends sitting around, and I finally went through it. It included this little stash of ribbons, tinsel and tulle. There are some people who are really crafty, or really into upcycling, who could probably use these ribbons in some way or even transform them into something cool. But I just am not one of those people.

Gift bag

I've mentioned before that I like gift bags because they are convenient and reusable. But this one is small and sheer, so it seems like it would work better as storage for some little items than as gift wrap. But we've got plenty of storage options already, so we don't need this.

Green spiral

Another entry from the assorted odds and ends. The only use I can think of for this is demonstrating the concept of a phone cord to kids who, growing up in a wireless world, might not have seen one before. Perhaps someone has another idea? Anyway, it can go.


Travel toothpaste

Yet another item that was just sitting around, not being used (actually, I got rid of an identical tube of toothpaste back in Week Two. This isn't the same one, I promise!). While we aren't into the dirty hippie zone just yet, we do use a natural brand of toothpaste rather than this one. So this can go to someone who is less particular.

Travel case

At my last dentist appointment, my dentist gave me a new toothbrush and a couple kinds of floss in this little pouch. I will definitely use the floss and the toothbrush, but I already have enough travel cases. So I don't need to keep this one.

Plaid shirt

This shirt of my husband's is too big for him now. He has said that, when he was younger and still living at home with his parents, his dad would swipe this shirt from him and wear it a lot. Now that it no longer fits my husband, he is planning to see whether his dad will want it.

Progress: 155 out of 400 items = 38.75% done.

Week Eighteen, Items 139-145

Sonicare DVD

So, apparently our toothbrush came with an educational DVD. I can't decide whether that's a sign that a) the toothbrush is too complicated or b) the company simply has little faith in its customers. Either way, we don't need this. We've each been able to use the toothbrush without watching this DVD. I'm going to go ahead and say we should get gold stars for that.


Playing cards

This sheet is supposed to be cut up and used as a deck of cards. That would be great, but we already have a few decks of cards. We don't need to go through the effort of cutting these up because we don't need another deck. Someone else could use them, though.

Headbands 2 and 3

I've already donated one headband like this (way back in Week One). I was surprised to come across two more in a travel bag the other day. These two, just like the first one, are too big for me. So they need to go to someone else.

Puzzle ring

Definitely one of those single-use items we're trying to cut back on. I only have four rings I ever wear (my engagement ring, my wedding ring, a ring that belonged to my grandpa and a ring that belonged to my cousin), and this is not one of them.


Puzzle die

Another single-use item. This particular little puzzle seems like it would be frustrating in large part because of its small size. I don't think trying to manipulate a puzzle the size of a standard die seems like much fun. Perhaps there's a surgeon out there who would love this, though.


Warsteiner hat

Warsteiner's slogan is "A queen among beers." Still, as nice as the crown in their logo is, my husband hasn't worn this hat. There's a German pub we love and go to regularly, and I think he's holding out to drink enough beers there to earn one of their hats instead. (They give out hats, shirts, steins, etc. at various milestone liters of beer.)

Progress: 145 out of 400 items = 36.25% done.