Help. I'm stuck in purge-atory.
It all started when I cleaned out my closets, which led to cleaning the ceiling fans and even the dreaded high-chair.
This weekend we tackled basement boxes. Junk.o.rama. I haven't seen these things in 15 years; treasures from grade school thru high school.
I'd like to think I could recycle or sell some of it, but me thinks I think too much.
Let's take a look.
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| Exhibit A: Ah, my coveted 3rd grade scratch-n-sniff sticker collection. |
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| Exhibit B: My 1980's floppy disk software programs that Bill Gates sold first. |
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| Exhibit C: My embrace-your-menstruation-welcome-to-womanhood LIES manual. |
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| Exhibit D: My ceramic breakfast art entree (which I was awarded 9th out of 10th place thankyouverymuch). |
See what I mean? Back to purge-atory.
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Ha! I thought I was a packrat!
Oh, I especially got a chuckle from the "LIES" part of the welcome to womanhood thingie! Ain't that the truth, sista!
My husband has all sorts of stuff like that! I keep thinking that he'll go through it when we move, but I think he'll just take it with us.
The sticker book is funny. I have tons of them I saved from the early eighties and it is fun to go back and look at them. Sometimes it is hard to part with things.
I don't like keeping anything, anything in the house that I'm not currently using. I've given things to Goodwill only to have to buy them again a year later. So, I look at this and think...how cool!! These are long gone for me.
If you and my husband were to live in a house together, it would take a matter of minutes before you would both be trapped by a sea of useless crap.
Do the stickers still smell? If so, AWESOME! The floppy disk? Priceless.
ha ha
i think i had that same sticker book
Glad to see I'm not the only one who holds on to useless er, I mean priceless things from my past!
I had that same sticker book, MamaGeek! In fact, I think I still have it in the basement, too. Aren't we the coolest???
AHHH!! That's priceless. And, I had a LIES book, myself. Chunk that crap!
Oh, and the floppy disk? Makes me want to dust off the Apple IIGS to play Logo.
OMG, we totally would have been BFF in grade school. I was in a "sticker club" at the local stationary store!
So did you keep all that stuff, or finally toss it?
i used to collect stickers!! i found a bunch of my googly eye ones...and my puffy scratch and sniff!! my kids took them. they didn't smell so good anymore, though!!
and...floppy discs! hilarious!
xoxo
I think I still have those old floppies somewhere and I know I have a "Growing up and liking it" somewhere. Do they even do that anymore in school? I don't have girls, so I have no idea what to expect!
I don't think I've got much from when I was that young...but I do have a ton of stuff from high school that I still covet. (Even though it's been...gulp...10 years since I graduated!!)
I am going through the EXACT SAME THING right now. Part of my New Year's resolution (and we're moving soon - I can't bear the thought of moving all this crap).
I just have to take a deep breath, throw it in the big black garbage bag, take it out to the curb and never look back.
It's cathartic.
Hey...that looks like my scratch-n-sniff book!
Puffy stickers! God, did I ever love collecting those.
Your group of items is so funny!
I still have dolls from when I was little - most have the hair all pulled out - why am I keeping those useless, creepy dolls? I loved your ceramic art - very cool.
Have a great Monday - see you later. Kellan
Heh heh heh. I can't decide which I like most. Sell that stuff on EBAY! SOMEONE will buy it. Sad - yet so true! :)
You should totally sell that stuff on ebay! I bet you'd make a mint, then take yourself on a spa vacation:)
Ceramic Breakfast is so outsider art...Sell!
I am loving me some of your scratch n sniffs.
I'm keeping my junk in limbo. Much too depressing to think about purging.
LOL! You CRACK me up!
Heidi :)
I remember my sticker book too. Oh how having the coolest stickers were so important.
I love saving stuff like that, I have a few things from my childhood and it is fun to go back and look at it every once in a while. Plus my kids get a big kick out of the stuff too. Wow! Mom was a kids too(during the time of dinosaurs).
I am still stuck on the part where you cleaned the highchair.
Emily
That's quite a breakfast :-)
I too had the same sticker book. Got to love scratch n sniff!
Thanks for the walk down memory lane. I recognized far too much! Oh, by the way, you should have placed first on your ceramic breakfast.
What a hilarious post!
I love how your stickers are in nice straight rows. That's my kind of sticker book!
I had a sticker book just like that!
I love it!!
Floppy Disks, aah the good old days of 150 pound computers and black and green Oregon Trail days :-)
Too funny.
I think your 'breakfast' looks pretty darn good!
I'm a sucker for keeping old stuff. I'm such a sentimental person, glad to know that I am not alone.
I love the sticker book, though
Please tell me you are going to keep all of that! That is priceless! I love it. I know I still have a scratch and sniff sticker book lying around somewhere.
Hi!
I'm new to your blog, coming by way of Kellan, and I love it! That is such a funny post, I especially like the "breakfast art", looks good enough to eat! Maybe the Smithsonian would like these items to put in a time capsule? :)
Lizzy
I had a similar sticker book too. I gave it to my daughter, and she dismantled it. After that I didn't feel so bad about getting rid of it.
I'm having similar cleaning urges -- but I'm not at my house. Frustration.
Okay, I'm totally freaked out. I had the SAME sticker book and the SAME "welcome to womanhood" book in a box under my mom's stairs until a few years ago!!
Now we're kindred spirits for SURE!!
I remember those scratch and sniff stickers! My kids loved them. Haven't thought of them for years, and SURE haven't had them in the house in a decade or more! Have fun with your purging!
TM
I so need to go to lunch. That ceramic bacon is making me hungry...
I love that you still have all that stuff - and the scratch and sniff sticker book? You could totally Ebay that!
OMG!! I had a scratch and sniff sticker book when I was in grade school too!
I had completely forgotten about that trend. I totally would have traded you one of my sparklies for one of your puffys.
Ha! That's funny. Hey, maybe that floppy disc will be worth something some day...you never know!
i often have wondered over the years why i keep my stuff...always had it for the kids. 30 some years later. no kids. *hmmmf* i don't know what to say. you got kids, i guess i would pass it on to them. regardless, thx for the giggle...oh, i too found a floppy the other day!! gotta keep that!
OMG! You are a freaking riot! Yes, lies, lies, lies! It made me think of, "Are You There, God? It's Me Margaret." That is the book that taught me about periods and bras. I ran into my second grade Sunday School class and ran in to tell everyone that Margaret got her period. My mom had a little talk with me afterwards about reading age-appropriate materials :) Hee, hee ;)
Heh heh. Oh my, this was fun and funny. I have that same damn LIES MANUAL. Who named that booklet? DUH!
Wow. You kept a lot of crap. I finally made myself get rid of my sticker album from 6th grade. Some of those scratch-n-sniffs still smelled (oh, there really is nothing like a scratch and sniff pickle sticker). And that manual with the flowers makes me laugh. I bet you could ebay that. I think mine had a picture of a girl on it who was staring with wonder into a compact mirror.
I'm not a packrat, in fact I'm a minimalist. But I do have stuff like that packed up in a box. Why get rid of it? I think it will be fun to look through with my grandkids someday.
Crack me up, I loved collecting scratch-n-sniff stickers in a book much like yours. And that menstruation book? THAT COVER brought back some (BAD) memories!!
I haven't thought about my sticker book in years...I wonder where mine is??
Also, I think I had the same welcome to menstruation/womanhood manual.
OH MY GOSH!!!!! I feel so much better about my "need", no desire, no habit, no...what's the word...to keep my stuff, ahem, junk!
I love the scrath n sniff collection,lol. I dread the high chair also!
OMG! A floppy disk!! I love it!! And the menstruation book? Holy shit... purge away, Mama! :)
Just think how much space you're going to have when the purge is over!
I need to get a sticker book for my daughter. She keeps putting them on windows and the fridge!
I think it is so cool that you still have this stuff. I can't imagine getting rid of it!!
Thanks for visiting my blog today. Too funny this is! Purge-atory. I'm gonna use that! We moved 7 months ago and I have the dreaded scrapbook room left to organize. I don't think I have any scratch n sniffs remaining (little sister) or any welcome to womanhood books (older brother). I bet if I looked really hard, I could find the one from my Catholic high school on "why petting is bad."
KEEP BELIEVING
Is that the Stuck on Stickers book?
What? You mean your PC DOESN'T use those floppy disc's? I'm jealous. :)
PS. I've been talking about you on my blog...
I have not seen a floppy disk in years...
Thanks!
lol
Bradley
The Egel Nest
Exhibit A makes me cringe with delight. Oh, how I loved stickers.
Exhibit D is awesome, and I don't see how you didn't get 1st!! It makes me want to get some breakfast, and I just had dinner!!
Oh, and you're seriously a pack rat. Not quite Andy Rooney, but let's see where you are when you're 89.
I would definitely have to keep the ceramic breakfast. It is TOO cool!
I am having a hard enough time purging/organizing our home office right now. The stuff is just a few years old. I am too scared to go look in the garage.
My goodness that sure brought back some memories -- I remember dying after the scratch & sniff stickers...funny, I stopped by the Hello Kitty store at the mall this weekend, and treated myself to 2 packs of Hello Kitty Stickers and went crazy all over my laptop cover thinking - I AM GIRL, I RULE (my husband and the 2 boys own the house) this just gave me a sense of girly, girl stuff...funny that you found your sticker book too! Ha,lol!
I had a sticker book like that!!!
Oh the memories!
You have got to try selling that stuff on eBay. So many of us had those sticker books as a kid that I'm sure someone would buy it.
And the floppy disk... depending on what program is on it there are some truly geeky computer 'historians' (ie: junk collectors trying to build a computer museum in their basement) that would snatch it up in a heartbeat.
hahaha love the ceramic breakfast thing. I'll bet you could package some of this stuff on E-bay if you write some humorous tags for the pix. I throw EVERYTHING away- after I take a picture of it for the photo album-- ok, so I don't throw away photo albums.
I liked your post! I save that junk too... scratch and sniff stickers were (are!) the best :D
LOL I love it. :) I had a stickerbook like than. Thanks for the reminder of childhood!
have a lovely time purging. it really is a good thing. :)
I'd like to think I could be of help, but instead I need to say the following:
HOLY CRAP, I loved those scratch and sniffs! And the album?? You're soooooooo lucky!
Yours in jealousy,
Autumn
Wow! That sticker collection brought back memories I did not know I had.
Word to you too, MamaGeek!
I heart this post. I wish I still have some of my stuff with me. God knows I still dream about my Snoopy lunchbox from Kindergarten.
Methinks keep some of it. It's nice to have a clutter-free home, but like my mom says, sometimes you don't want to lose 'character.'
OMG - I SOOO remember exhibit A and C!!
BTW - delurking. Been reading for a while now, headed over here from A Tale of Two Kiddies
Keep it. You have to.
THIS IS GREAT STUFF!!!!!!
I used to have the same exact sticker collection and seeing yours now has made me mourn for it badly.
I also used to have the menstruation manual. Hmmm, not missing that much so, you may get rid of it.
And the ceramic breakfast...SO CUTE!! How did you only get 9th place???
Oh goodluck on the purging.
And it feels good to know I'm not alone in the "collecting" biz. But mine is really collecting- forgetting-and-letting-them-rot biz.
Like the ceramic art! If you ship all the get-rid-of categories to Australia, we'll put it in our front yard for a garage sale, because it's still summer.
Be Q U I CK!!!
I had that sticker book :)
Growing Up and Liking It?! I had one of those, too!
Can't believe you held onto that. I'm the biggest packrat ever, and I don't even have mine! I do still have every "Participation Award" I ever received though. (Which is only slightly more pathetic than your 9th place breakfast art.)
And don't you dare get rid of that scratch-n-sniff collection! Those things rock!
hehe
Love the floppy!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HILARIOUS. I so still have my scratch n sniff collection! Oh, and that "girl" guide--CLASSIC. Wonder what you could get on ebay (agree with Nap Warden) for all this stuff???? AWESOME.
OMG--I just noticed you have a zillion comments--people can certainly relate!
Good post - you might like this one - http://zenhabits.net/2007/08/
a-guide-to-creating-a-minimalist-home/
!!!
I get into moods where once I start, I go through the entire house and clean like mad and get rid of stuff.
But with things that you pictured, I still hold on to them no matter what. I lost some things during my parents divorce and it's a little sad not to have them so when I find things, I hold on.
I plan on doing the same for my son so if that makes me a packrat, lol, I'll gladly hold the title.
Wait. Does "Growing Up and Liking It" mean that you have to LIKE your period?
I'm trying, but dang if those cramps and zits don't make it hard.
We have the same problem. Pack-rack-itis. The stuff is overwhelming the house.
NICE!!!
Love the LIES manual.
That sticker book is great. I still have a lot of my old toys and keepsakes (including old school work and projects) at my parent's house. I just can't part with them.
So funny! I have several similar items. When I got married and moved in with my husband, I got rid of a shocking amount of "memorabilia." It's his turn when we move next!
Lawd-a-mercy! You are a worse packrat than me Ma! Boy were those teach-you-about-womanhood books all LIES indeed. But didn't we feel so grown reading them! HA!
These are AWESOME! I am so glad you've hung on to them (I'm horrible at saving---I regularly suffer "purge-mode" as I call it and toss EVERYTHING). You should hang on to this stuff!
btw, I received that same welcome to womanhood book!
Can't believe you still have your "Aunt Flo" book. I'd kill to have mine to peruse ... mock ...
Hee hee! Love the um, art! =)
Good morning:
Thanks for contributing this post to this week’s Carnival of Family life, hosted at Health Plans Plus!
Do you have a ticket for me to enter? I have a lot of those disks around here -- and a few computers to put them in. Jeez. But the artwork was my favorite. Looks better than anything I ever made, that's for sure.
Be sure to stop by the Carnival tomorrow and check out the other wonderful entries!
JHS
Colloquium
I had been all set to totally organize my house BUT I am failing. Can I blame the 3 little kids? I too know there is a old box of mine that has a notebook with my spelling tests and a million scratch and sniff! Out of all of those things you pictured that would be the one I'd keep.
hi! i am new to your blog. i just laughed so hard when i saw these photos!!!
i had a scratch n snif sticker album too! that womanhood book - i had the same one. oh the lies!!!
thanks for making me laugh. take care!
Does the Floppy Disk have Oregon Trail on it?!?! LOL
I used to have a sticker book just like that...but it got thrown out probably 15 years ago!
Dude, I would totally buy that sticker book from you! I had one exactly like it, too, and I know i tossed it out. *sigh*
This article has been included in the latest edition of Mom's Blogging Carnival