Impressionless

What:  Novel.
Origin:  Did we read it for book club?
Usage:  Yeah, I did read it.
How long kept:  No idea.
Why kept:  It was on my bookshelf.   Out of Sight, Out of Mind, in plain sight.
Destination:  Housing Works.

Confession:   At our recent book club holiday party, we were trying to remember what we read this year.   Maybe this was one of the books.   I looked at it, I read the back cover.   I do remember the outlines of the story, and some of the protagonist's personal characteristics.   But the book otherwise made no impression on me.  At all.  

(Unlike The Road, which I think I'm going to read again.)

Paper Profit

Paper Profit
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Wrapping paper.
Origin: I think some glassware I purchased.
How long kept: About 6 months.
Why kept: It Might Be Useful. It's Perfectly Good. And I Might Need It.
Usage: Uh uh.
Destination: Recycling.

Confession:   This was Out of Sight, Out of Mind in my closet with some mailing envelopes and packing materials, up over my head.   It fell off the shelf and onto the floor when I pulled an envelope out to use it yesterday.

Doing A Runner

Doing A Runner
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Dime store table runner.
Origin: I can't actually remember.
How long kept: Ditto. Possibly since the 80s.
Usage: Ditto again. Not in this century, that I remember.
Why kept: What kind of humbug would get rid of any Christmas-themed decor item? I Might Need It! And, Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind in a Storage Box.
Destination: Housing Works, which was riotous with holiday decor today.

Confession: I don't actually think that my Storage Box filled with
ornaments is Evil.  This is an exception to the "Storage Boxes Are Evil" rule.   There are truly some things that are meant to be stored a lot of the time...and as long as I can identify them when I need them, I deem these storage boxes to be Not Evil.

That said, I think that some of the contents of this one can go...maybe it can be consolidated down to a smaller, and even less Evil storage box.

Silly String

Silly String
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: String collection.
Origin: Wacky green thriftiness.
Usage: Never.
How long kept: Various. Some probably dates to the early 90s.
Why kept: It Might Be Useful. Out of Sight, Out of Mind in the
toolbox. (Storage Boxes Are Evil.). Aargh.
Destination: Textile recycling.

Good to the Last...

Good to the Last...
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Practically empty travel sized toothpaste.
Origin: Travel.
How long kept: At least 6 weeks.
Why kept: I Might Need It. If I can only squeeze out the last teeny
little bit. (Kind of like the soap slivers.). Out Of Sight, Out Of
Mind in the medicine cabinet.
Destination: Trash.

Confession: If I weren't out of Q-Tips, on account of refusing to buy
the smallest size seemingly now available, 500, I might have used one
to coax that tiny bit of toothpaste out of there...

Who Is That Masked Woman

Who Is That Masked Woman
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Airline sleep mask.
Origin: Business Travel.
Usage: Not even on the plane.
How long kept: 10-11 years.
Why kept: Aargh, and Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind.
Destination: Textile recycling.

WTH?

WTH?
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Less than 1/2 cup of I'm not entirely sure. See confession.
Origin: Plastic container in my kitchen cabinet that had survived prior purges -- Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind.
How long kept: Huh.
Usage: Possibly.
Why kept: It Might Be Useful. I guess.
Destination: Compost.

Confession: Is it cornmeal? Couscous? I am flippin' stumped. Truly. And since I can't identify it, its age, or its provenance, I'm going to take a leap and say that I'm not going to eat it.

Cutting This Rug (Pad)

Cutting This Rug (Pad)
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Leftover rug padding.
Origin: Non-slip goodness.
How long kept: Since March, 1988.  (When I bought a small rug with my first-ever bonus.)
Why kept: I Might Need It. It Might Be Useful. Out Of Sight, Out Of
Mind.
Usage: Nope. Didn't Need It at all.
Destination: Textile recycling.

Confession:  I considered using this as packing material when I sent the Christmas books to Chicagoland.   However, I forgot!   It's not Useful if you forget to use it!

Confession, cont:   Yes, I also found this in my toolbox.   There's probably a bit more to come out of that special case of the Evil Storage Box.  

I Can't Handle This

I Can't Handle This'
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Handles.
Origin: Heavy/unwieldy stuff I bought.
How long kept: Definitely since the last century.
Usage: Don't think so.
Why Kept: They're Perfectly Good. I Might Need Them. And Out of
Sight, Out of Mind...in the tool box. (Storage Boxes Are Evil.)
Destination: Ka-chunk. Right into the trash.

Getting scrappy

Getting scrappy
Originally uploaded by DeClutter

What: little scraps from fleece blankets
Why kept: I could use them to stuff little things I make. Out of sight. Good crafting intentions gone bad
How long kept: two years
Destination: textile recycling

I almost asked "A" is she wanted them :). Too late. They are in the bag!

Twisted, Sister

Twisted, Sister
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Twist ties.
Origin: Purchased along with electronica, I believe.
How long kept: Aaargh.
Why kept: It Might Be Useful. Out of Sight, Out of Mind. See confession.
Usage: Nope.
Destination: Trash.

Confession: I made a foray into my tool box for an awl. Pretty sure that there's one in there, somewhere. Thankfully, my toolbox is about the size of two shoeboxes. It is a motherlode of blog items, a special case of the Storage Box. Storage Boxes are Evil.

Stay tuned for other inane items I've been hanging onto because, face it, baby: I Might Need Them.

Mindful (?) Gift

What:   Posters
Origin:   I took a meditation course, and the organizers sent these out later.  
How long kept:   Probably 5 years.
Why kept:  Out of Sight, Out of Mind.   And Sticky.  
Usage:   Not at all...when I last looked at them, the cardstock was so nice I had craftastic ambitions.
Destination:  I made them into book covers.   I'm making advent-type calendar books for my 3 oldest nephews, based on the wonderful Mary Ann Moss' "Remains of the Day" journals.  

Confession:   These posters aren't really my "style" and were also too big for my home office.   (They were about 2 feet by 2 1/2 feet, and there were 3 of them.)  Might have been nice in my old cubically excellent office in corporate America.  

But all in all, a bit of an odd thing to receive.   (And it must have been odd to find an envelope to mail them in.)   I felt kind of badly about not enthusiastically appreciating them.

This Cup Runneth Away...to Recycling

What:  Plastic measuring cup from a 300 ounce container of Tide.   It's also an unnecessary cap to the container's faucet.
Origin:  Thrift and laziness.
Usage:  Never!   I keep a small nalgene bottle that I use to carry detergent to the laundry room.
How Long Kept:  Since July, 2004.  (How do I know the date?   I have a Sharpie, and I know how to use it.  For some reason I marked the Tide container.)
Why kept:  It Might Be Useful.   And Out of Sight, Out of Mind, in a cabinet.   I Might Need It for mixing paint in my crafty life.
Destination:  Recycling.

Confession:  The 300 ounce Tide container way predates this project, fruits of a suburban shopping trip.   It's been great to not be schlepping detergent home from the market.  Since you barely need an ounce of detergent in the low water washer, this thing has lasted forever.

A+ on thrift.   (I don't even think this cost $15.)   But the darn thing is huge!    I could sublet the space it takes up.   It's almost gone.

Confession, cont:   The cup, too.   Seriously, I took this out as a blogging candidate, and then put it back.   Thinking, "WTH are you thinking!" I got it the heck out of here.

Confession, part trois:  Once again, back dating!   I'm still committed, but busy working on another project...I fell asleep on my sofa watching Casablanca.

(Kind of a chilling at this time, actually, given my personal feeling that our country is blogging our 4th amendment rights...)

Too Tart

What:  Tiny little tart pans.
Origin:  Beverage experiment.
How long kept:  Maybe 6 months.
Why kept:  Out of Sight, Out of Mind.   And a bit of They Might Be Useful.
Usage:  A little bit.
Destination:  Recycling.

Confession:   Bought a few of these at Bed, Bath, Beyond in an experiment in making tiny little ice cubes -- remember the old fashioned aluminum ice trays.  It worked.   These little guys rusted.  Uh, WTH are they made of?   Not sure that I actually trust that these are safe for food...

Confession part deux:  I had these lined up to to out to recycling...and fell asleep on my sofa.    After getting in bed, I thought, I forgot to blog!   However, I did not get out of bed.  This post is backdated...

Pom-ain't

Pom-ain't
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: A teensy amount of pomade.
Origin: Hairdo goodness.
Usage: Quite a bit, until I stopped using this.
How long kept: Since summer.
Why kept: I might start using it again: I Might Need It. And, Out of
Sight, Out of Mind.
Destination: Hairgel, down the drain. Container, #5 recycling via
Preserve.

Tubular. (Totally.)

Tubular. (Totally.)
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Skin cream.
Origin: Trip to the dermatologist.
How long kept: Summer 2008.
Why kept: I Might Need It. And, Out Of Sight Out of Mind.
Destination: Trash.

Quick Pick

Quick Pick
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Pre-loaded plastic fantastic toothpick-thingies.
Origin: Travel swag.
How long kept: Probably 10 years.
Why kept: They're Perfectly Good. They Might Be Useful. Out Of Sight, Out of Mind (medicine cabinet bounty).
Destination: Trash.

Confession: I did try to use one of these today It was too large for
my mouth.

Pour A Little Sugar On Me...

Pour A Little Sugar On Me...
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Plastic container.
Origin: Bulk sugar purchases.
How long kept: 5+ years.
Usage: Yes, refilled at least twice.
Why kept: It Might Be Useful. It's Perfectly Good. And a little bit
Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind.
Destination: Recycling. My newest batch of sugar is in a glass
jar. Plastic, be as out of my life as much and as soon as possible.

Misc flotsam

Misc flotsam
Originally uploaded by DeClutter

I unearthed this from a shelving unit. It has various good crafting intentions gone bad. Some have been kicked around for a few years. Other items just a few weeks or months. The Cars Lightning McQueen was a crafting intention using a Cricut that my friend owns. I purchased the cartridge and attempted to make Lightning McQueen. It was SO tedious, I just left the cartridge with her appliance. I can use it anytime and it's not in my house :-D That was from last December.  All of this will go to recycle, trash and one thing is return to lender, back to mom. They are safety pins used last summer at a garage sale. UGH

Flashing Forward

Flashing Foreward
Originally uploaded by 365 Things

What: Tiny LED flashlight.
Origin: Gift from a fellow camper on a big hiking trip.
Hiw long kept: Since 1999 or 2000 Usage: Not since a trip to a
retreat/yoga training in 2004?
Why Kept: Mostly Out if Sight, Out of Mind. It also Might Be Useful.
Destination: Gifted to my nephew, The Boy.

Confession: I did get "M"'s permission to give this to The Boy. Not
sure that I trust that it won't get shined inappropriately at the Kid.

Sigh.