Bee~ Journal of then...

[Beekissed]

Okay, this is gonna sound something awful but I'm going to do a little eliminating this coming month and I will actually throw some useful things in the trash.

I have got to make room in my storage shed for some of my mother's tools and stuff, so my hoarded "things I may need in the future" stuff is going to have to go.

Among the items:

Box springs: a queen and two twins
Bicycles: A ten speed and a small mountain bike
Chicken wire: Rolls upon rolls of 1 ft. to 2 ft. wide strips of wire (I'm actually saving a roll or two of this for future "emergencies".)

A patio table: I have no patio and its small and round....I have absolutely no use for it.

A rusty metal barrel: It is totally enclosed, so I can't even use it to store feed or anything else.

An igloo brand dog house: The fasteners are broken on one side but it would still be a great dog house. I even used it as a broody nest but it was just way too big and bulky.

A huge pile of assorted metal, wire, fencing scraps, along with two defunct and ancient chainsaws, a completely junked table and chairs~circa 1970's, other assorted bulky junk left behind by the previous tenant. Actually most of this stuff was left behind by the previous tenant.

I don't feel bad about trashing some of the more useful items, as it is well known that the trash guys "redistribute" the wealth to family and friends. I just know that I don't want to move it all out to my front yard and put a free sign on it and then it sits for several days junking up the place. None of it is in nice condition except the boxsprings.

I am putting up two levels of shelving in my building that will be 2 ft. wide each and 8 ft. long. The bottom shelf will be just high enough off the floor to fit plastic storage totes under. Folks, I am getting organized and efficient if it kills me! :/

I'm taking my grow lights and mounting them above the work bench and in the rafters for additional lighting and will be using the green house I build this fall to start my seedlings in. I will be using all the dumpster glass I've been saving to construct the greenhouse, so at least I will be recycling something in my building!

Anyone else doing any "fall" cleaning? I feel the need to declutter my life right now and will enjoy making room for a new member of my little family. A fresh start for everyone, huh?

 

[Henrietta23]

I get like that in the fall too. We'll be spending more time indoors and I want it comfortable and uncluttered. Last year we had a tag sale on the Friday after Thanksgiving. We posted signs at Walmart to catch all the Black Friday shoppers. We got rid of a bunch of junk and made enough money to buy DS's Christmas presents, animal feed and groceries! We're thinking of doing it again this year. It was cold but people kept showing up.
Hey, FF, my pug's mother's name was Cassiopeia!

 

[Blackbird]

Your practically breaking the law!


I hope someone can find some use for it.

 

[Farmfresh]

You have any swap meets near you? Or maybe you could set up a BIG sign and have a garage sale!

Next week is carnival time in my town. Why oh why do towns have those stupid carnivals.

The stupid rides are within 5 blocks of my house. People are walking up and down in front of the house till all hours of the night and about half of them are drunk or just stupid. How to deal with this kind of foolishness? Every Labor Day weekend we have a big YARD sale!

I figure I have to be out on the porch watching all of the people anyway so I don't get my yard trashed or things stolen - might as well make a buck!

We make our best profits every year in the middle of the night ... after the beer garden closes! We add to the light pollution by lighting up the whole yard with drop lights and the sale goes ON. We have had a thing priced for $1.00 a drunk looked at the item and the price tag ... then asked my husband if he would take $5.00 for it! Stuff like that happens quite often. We try to be honest, but when dealing with that breed of folks it is awfully hard.

This year I am cleaning out some glassware I never use and my sister is bringing LOTS of things to sell including a computer desk and some other furniture. Good luck on your clean outs everybody!!

 

[Farmfresh]

.
Hey, FF, my pug's mother's name was Cassiopeia!

Too cool!

My hubby picked this dog out of a rescue litter when she was still pretty tiny. She is half purebred German Shepherd and half AKC Siberian Husky. He was still recuperating from having his knee rebuilt when we got her. Since she is mostly black with a little silver and tan trim, he named her for the constellation which was in legend named after an African queen! He totally spoiled her as a pup letting her sleep with him on his stomach while he slept on the couch all day with his leg propped up. She is a total snuggle bunny 70 pound lap dog now! ... at least with her friends, she is FIERCE with strangers!

 

[keljonma]

Box springs: a queen and two twins
Bicycles: A ten speed and a small mountain bike

Can you donate them to a church, Bee? Or the Salvation Army?Many of the churches around here are always looking for beds and parts of beds for homeless shelters, fire victims, etc.

Our local police dept used to take donated used bikes and fix them up for less fortunate children at Christmas. Its been a while since I've had any bikes around that weren't being used, so I don't know if they still do that.

Chicken wire: Rolls upon rolls of 1 ft. to 2 ft. wide strips of wire (I'm actually saving a roll or two of this for future "emergencies".)

A patio table: I have no patio and its small and round....I have absolutely no use for it.

Chicken wire?! I think I know I few people here that would love to have it.

Can you repurpose the table? Think of it as not a table...what can it be? At one time, I thought I'd take our small metal & glass-topped patio table apart and use the pieces in the hen house; the glass for window, the metal for hangers. I once thought the metal frame would make a great planter. Now that we have a smaller porch, I am glad I left it as a table!

A rusty metal barrel: It is totally enclosed, so I can't even use it to store feed or anything else.

An igloo brand dog house: The fasteners are broken on one side but it would still be a great dog house. I even used it as a broody nest but it was just way too big and bulky.

A huge pile of assorted metal, wire, fencing scraps, along with two defunct and ancient chainsaws, a completely junked table and chairs~circa 1970's, other assorted bulky junk left behind by the previous tenant. Actually most of this stuff was left behind by the previous tenant.

I don't feel bad about trashing some of the more useful items, as it is well known that the trash guys "redistribute" the wealth to family and friends. I just know that I don't want to move it all out to my front yard and put a free sign on it and then it sits for several days junking up the place. None of it is in nice condition except the boxsprings.

I am putting up two levels of shelving in my building that will be 2 ft. wide each and 8 ft. long. The bottom shelf will be just high enough off the floor to fit plastic storage totes under. Folks, I am getting organized and efficient if it kills me! :/

I'm taking my grow lights and mounting them above the work bench and in the rafters for additional lighting and will be using the green house I build this fall to start my seedlings in. I will be using all the dumpster glass I've been saving to construct the greenhouse, so at least I will be recycling something in my building!

Anyone else doing any "fall" cleaning? I feel the need to declutter my life right now and will enjoy making room for a new member of my little family. A fresh start for everyone, huh?

We had a lot of old stuff left from a number of previous owners when we bought the farm. The barn and the attic of the garage were filled with stuff! What we couldn't use, we sold on Craigslist, gave some of it to friends and donated to local charities. Since we've recently moved, most of our stuff is still in storage. We are cleaning that out a little at a time.

I really like the way the new set up sounds and the greenhouse. Please post pictures when you are able.

Getting organized is such a blessing and a curse. It is a lot of work! But it is such a great feeling to be organized! Good luck!


edited for typos

 

[Dace]

I completely understand. I am a keeper of things but everyone once in a while I have to purge. Is there a freecycle group near you? That would be a quick way to get rid of stuff.



I have a feeling that you and the sweet little ol' bat are going to make a great team!

 

[lorihadams]

One of the reasons we moved to our current home is cause you could see stars. It is so dark out here, it's wonderful! The kids want to camp out but the weather has just been too iffy with the rain.

We just purged some stuff out of our house too. I wish I could get rid of some more. Goodwill loves us! The last time we went they gave us coupons for 20% off any purchase at goodwill cause we have donated so much in the last month!

 

[Beekissed]

The closest Good Will or anything like it is 50 miles away. None of the local churches collect things like this and I don't have time to wait until someone decides they would like some free stuff on Craigslist....of which we do not have a local one! The closest Freecycle is two counties away...approx. 50 miles. Its very small and not much used and people won't drive over here to get anything.

Boonies.....think BFE, folks!

I know, BB...it does seem like a crime but time is of the essence!

The chicken wire is in long strips about a 1.5 ft. wide....not much anyone can do with that except patch into framed cages of some sort. I would love to save it all.....I bought the durn stuff with my hard earned money and it wasn't cheap! (I'm marking it up to a huge mistake caused by some kind of cerebral infarct of some kind..... )

I'm going to put an ad in my local classifieds for folks to come and get this stuff if they need it but if the bulk trash day comes first, it may have to just go with the flow...of garbage.

I can't really repurpose anything else from all this stuff....I have repurposed stuff everywhere and I have no more room. I am trying to downsize to fit in stuff from someone who has 75 years of stuff! She is also trying to downsize but she has better stuff....so she can sell hers! Lucky ol' Bat!

My attic is full of Son #2's stuff from his room, my bedroom has me and my stuff, the other bedroom has two big boys and all THEIR stuff (seems they have more stuff than anyone I've ever seen...pure junk!) And Bat's stuff will go in her little ol' room that was Son #2's room.

The garage will be full of firewood, as it leans and is not safe for storage of anything like a car....

The building will have all of the stuff that won't fit in the house or cellar, all of Mom's wonderful tools, a tiller and maybe my lawn mower. The dog barn is full of hay and...well....the dogs' stuff. The chickens have a little room under the roosts but they would take great glee in depositing poop all over my stuff if I dared to place it in their digs. The outhouse is full of tools and....well.....other stuff.

The cellar is stuffed to the brim with canning jars, tins of wheat, paint cans and canned goods.

It seems I've run out of room.....hence the crime of actually tossing useable items to the wind.

How in the world does one accumulate so much stuff in so little time???

 

[Farmfresh]

The garage will be full of firewood, as it leans and is not safe for storage of anything like a car....

I do understand sometimes it has just got to GO!

About the garage, when we moved into our old house our garage was leaning at about a 70 degree angle. It is a two car garage with a party wall down the middle. We actually own half of a garage and my neighbor owns the other half!!!
Since this was the case we figured it would just have to fall down, because no one would help pay for it to be rebuilt.

WRONG. My neighbor down the block is an engineer and he told us all it needed was some new bracing in the back. SO .. we hooked a log chain on the garage to a truck and gave a gentle pull to straighten. Then with about four 12 foot long 2 x 6's the braces were hammered into place. It has been standing straight and full of my cars for the last 20 years! All for the cost of a few nails an four long boards!