spring cleaning in the dead of winter

I've been doing a lot of mental and emotional spring cleaning over the past few months (part of the genesis of this blog in fact). Now, I'm doing the real thing.

I moved into my apartment nearly 5 years ago. At that point, it was my 15th move in 11 years, starting with leaving home for college as a freshman. At the time, I swore that I would not move again unless I was either (a) moving in with a boyfriend/husband; (b) buying my own house; or (c) moving out of central Ohio. I was tired of packing things and unpacking my things and hauling them around.

My little apartment is about the size of a postage stamp, but the layout is such that I don't feel cramped. However, I do have limitations on storage, and one thing that I forgot in those years of moving all the time is how much stuff accumulates when you stay put for awhile. Cue George Carlin During those years, I never lived more than 2 consecutive years in the same place, and when I moved, I tried to declutter as much as possible.

I certainly have tidied my apartment in the 5 years I have lived here, but I have not purged the excess clutter that has accumulated in that time. It's time.

Since I am not planning on moving anytime soon (note that I have not met any of the 3 above self-imposed conditions), "spring cleaning" is the only way to actually initiate such a purge. Of course, contrary person that I am, I chose to begin on the coldest weekend of the year. My sister and her family just moved down to this area this weekend, and we rented a storage unit together, as both of us had items that we want to keep but do not use on a constant or regular basis (camping gear, holiday decorations, etc).

Now that some big items are out of the way, I can go through the rest of my things and decide what I really need or not. Some things are reminders of old friends and family or significant events in my life, some is just junk. I have to remind myself that nostalgia is all well and good, but if the object in question is no longer significant to me, then it is time to let it go.