changes

Last weekend my sis and I had a slumber party at my dads FILLED with organizing. We have been talking about it for months, and finally made it happen.

I am a border line hoarder. I can admit it. I'm a sucker for nostalgia, I can't help it! I have tried recently to channel that need digitally, through photos and video...but I still have my weakness for physical memories. Jokes have been made for years about how much crap I have in my dads attic, but holy crap, physically taking all the bins down and looking through them. I get the jokes. It is RIDICULOUS.

To be fair to myself...I used to spend hours and hours and my grandparents looking through my mom and uncles school work, so I have proof that there are people that will enjoy it someday! But I now know...not in this amount. So slowly, I made my way through the bins to toss and keep.

It's funny too, because since my sis is 7 years younger than me, she always used to copy me (now it's flattering of course-not that she does it any more LOL), and she did with collecting too. But it wasn't really a weird thing for her, she was just mirroring me. So for her, this weekend was a breeze. Her throw pile was HUGE and keep pile tiny. Mine...is getting there...

I think I will have to go through a few rounds to get to a realistic place, but it felt so dang good. Also, it makes me never want to buy anything ever again what the heck.

By far the funniest/most ridiculous thing I have kept. All of my paperwork from 7th grade to graduating college, organized in files my subject/grade. Even ever math assignment I did. WHAT THE HECK! The conclusion that I came to was, I can keep all the papers I wrote, keep some notes/worksheets just because they might be interesting to see someday when everything is digital, and I couldn't yet part with any biology folders/binders....which there were a lot of. But hey! Progress!

Ok these two timelines are so funny and so sad at the same time. First of all, this just goes to show what a spoiled bubble I grew up in (no credit to my parents-they are amazing, more just the college upper middle class town's credit). I realize how privileged the comparison makes me seem. I feel blessed though that I can now recognize this, and appreciate that I can always work on being a more understanding and empathetic person. The funny part is my desirable timeline, where the f did that come from?????

Photos, holy crap photos. I wish I had record of the amount of money I spent on developing photos. Actually, no I don't. It would be scary. They are all beautifully organized but dang are they ugly. And I kept the weirdest worst quality photos! Oh the horror of having to print your whole roll of file. The sad part is that I will have to remove them all from these cute albums. It just takes up too much space and there isn't a use for them realistically. But I will do my dandiest to keep them as organized as possible within a box!

I have every pay slip I had ever received in my probably 10+ jobs. WHAT THE HECK. I kept a few, like the summer after 8th grade when I made 5.55 an hour fertilizing corn. But the rest, I shredded!

Sis working diligently on her crap.

Dad watching us struggle.

Hundreds of copied photos. Since nothing was digital, I made so many copies of every photo. This huge pile was for a HUGE collage that I had in my room. Like 5 x 3 feet or something ridic. I recycled them all, which is sad since I have really specific memories of taping all the originals on sheets of paper, taking them to the copy shop and carefully making copies of each one...still like $1 a pop I think too. Woof. And then carefully cutting them to make collages. And then carefully de-taping the originals and putting them back in their organized homes.

I know it sounds like torture, but I'm sure I got off on it at the time.

LOL

Every race bib from cross country. My sis actually found something super cool. Her captain from CC collecting these, and made each person a bag of them sewn together!!! How amazing is that! And it was such good quality, actually really strong!!! So neat!

We were all obsessed with duck tape in middle school, I found many a things made out of it in my boxes. I even found a vest that I had made out of a paperbag, and then covered in duck tape...it said "It's my birthday" but I can't remember if it was for me or something else.

Pages and PAGES of notes and papers.

All of the cards I ever received...or some of them, there was another box. Recycled! Go me!

3 HUGE binders of CDs. We used to have parties just to shared music and burn. I kept the mixes and will toss them in my car for a road trip some day. My read CDs I think I gave to goodwill. And my burned CDs I think I gave to my dad. No need for them now! Go technology!

I really wish I had made a pile of ALL the paperwork...but this was a pretty good pile I snapped a pic of. But geez, this was probably 1/10 of the paperwork I tossed? Maybe even less!

All the flashcards I made for Spanish class.

All the ticket stubs from my first vacation ever. DISNEYWORLD! I have the best memories from that trip!

OH MY GOSH. This was hilarious. All of the home made t-shirts I made in high school. They all had creepy yellow stains were any sweat must have turned a deep color from age and attic wear. I brought them all to good will!!! I'm totally kidding. I tossed them all. Special shirts to note: 1. For a friends birthday we put photos of her on a shirt and wore them to school  6. The shirt I had to have people sign for a homecoming court game. I let people sign my face with sharpie that day too...not a good decision. 8. We made shirts for the Lizzie McGuire movie premier. HA!

Our Good Will haul! And there was some more too!

Overall it was a really fun experience and we were both in the mood which made it really easy. It was wearing though for sure. We spent a couple hours Friday night, and then 5-6 hours Saturday. Sis was such a good motivator. We feel ready to take it on again!

And on another note. My dad is so happy right now. He has so many good things in his life right now, and we are just thrilled. This was all done because he is (very) slowly making a move to Texas! So we just took the first step clearing out some of this shit. Everyone keeps asking if it's so sad that he's moving, or so sad clearing out our childhood home, but I honestly am not even worried about it. For some reason I've never been the type that has been attached to a place. I am an EXPERT at making a place a home, that is no exaggeration. But it's always been really easy for me to let it go. Maybe it is because I'm good at collecting ways to remember moments spent somewhere. Maybe that's an advantage? But either way, I'm OK letting go of our life that was at this house because I have my mom and my dad and my sister. That's who matters, the memories at this place are way stronger than the place itself. Good things are coming, and I can't wait :)