We were discussing this in another thread and I thought it was important enough to start a main thread about.

What is it that you seem to hoard in your life?

I have many bins of fabric, that I expect "someday I might use". Like five giant bins! I am finally taking steps to donate that fabric to family and friends who can actually use it.

The entire house is a mess, that's just one example.

I was collecting tons of corks and am making a concerted effort right now to USE them all in crafts and to get rid of them.

Books. I hoard books. I have 13 boxes packed of books. Most of which I haven't even read.

There's people who buy books, then there's me, who stalks the libraries and sees when they have their clearing out sales. Then I come home with another box of books for only a few dollars!

Oh I can relate to that completely! I used to be a very avid book hoarder. We had book shelves filling every room, stacked with tons and tons of books. I am surprised the floors didn't begin to buckle.

I had to be VERY harsh with myself and start giving away books to libraries. I reminded myself I could go borrow them any time I wanted to. And this way other people could read them too.

Now that being said we still have MANY bookcases left in the house. Four in my bedroom. Three in Bob's room. Another 3 in James' room. Three in my office. So obviously the problem is not gone. It's a slow process. So for example I have webpages on Philip K Dick (an awesome sci-fi writer) and I get questions on his books fairly often so I keep those as a reference library, and I love to read them. So I probably won't let those go. I have a lot of wine books that are a reference library for my wine site. We have every book by Robert B Parker ("Spenser for Hire") and I have a large set of pages on those books. I have a lot of classics - Jane Austen, Bronte, Frost, that sort of thing. I re-read those so it's unlikely I can let those go.

So I still have work to do.

I have started, and am being somewhat successful at clearing hoarding nests.

Books were my worst problem for a long time. We moved six time in six years so I did get rid of a lot of my books.

I have finally convenced myself, just because I have had it a long time does not give it value; it just means that it is old.

Of course there are those things that have a value of some kind, but that is not what I am speaking of.

I managed to get rid of about 90% of my Christmas decorations. I gave them to my kids and grandkids. Honestly they meant more to them than to me.

Books!!! Cable wires (I dont know why)

SHOES. Not nice workable shoes...But my on's outgrown shoes...I cant bring myself to throw them out...

And old bills. I just have them everywhere, inbetween books, on the desk, on the moniter, kitchen table, everywhere you look, there are unopened cell phone bills :S

Perches....This is weird, I dont know where most of them came from, or why I have them, but I have a box of perches...wood ones, branch ones, rope and cement ones...One made out of mineral, and plastic ergo dynamic ones.


My son has a collection of pom poms, and random jigsaw puzzle pieces (another item I have no clue of the original source)

That's a brilliant idea - BLR - let others care for your items and you can go visit them whenever you want!

428pm - We have a whole shelf set full of wires and cables. We're both in the computer industry so we always think "Oh that might come in handy sometime". I think it's time to dump them all on the floor, figure out what we REALLY need in there and give away the rest. Just how many audio plug cables can one household need?

I have a solution for the bills. Get this scanner -

http://www.amazon.com/NeatReceipts-Mobile-Scanner-Digital-Filing/dp/B001CQFRPO

(that's a non-affiliate link)

I *love* mine. You just sit there sending bills into it one after another, receipts, you name it. Then you can have them all in your computer forever, and get rid of the paper copy. I only bought mine a month or so ago and I am just happy with it.

You sit there watching TV, mindlessly feeding in the receipts, and it auto sorts them all

that is some kind of cool

Niki and Lisa, I totally hear you about the book hoarding. But I have really been doing better over the years by reading things, reviewing them, and then either selling them or donating them away.

Something funny is that books are a sort of form of currency among RVers and at RV parks. I really enjoy trading books I've read for books I want to read, all free. And when I meet nice people RVing I ask if they want any of my stack of 'already reads'...and they usually reciprocate with theirs.

About the rest of my hoarding, let me think on that and add another post. I have so many areas of hoarding I have been working on clearing from my life.

Lisa, what i do with my corks is full up a quart zippie, write Crafting Supplies on it with a sharpie, and drop them off at Goodwill. They are happy to take them and sell them for like 2 dollars for the bag.

I mention this b/c as a wine drinker, you are NEVER going to use up all your corks. I just add my corks to a pretty clear vase - it is pretty as decoration - and when it is full, I bag em and donate them.

As for fabric, I hope making me some prayer flags will be helpful! lol.

But really, those can be bagged, or taped with masking tape into bundles, and brought to thrift stores too. The craft sections of thrift stores are so much fun to pick through. I know lots of people who head straight to the craft sections to see what they have.

Let me just say that if any of you fellow book hoarders look to sell your books, and you have any that are even vaguely philosophical or theological I will buy them from you!

I have a 10 book long list and building on Amazon. *drools* Buying used is so awesome, apart from buying a book for $2 and spending $4 on the shipping. I just bought 2 books, even though I have 4 books here that I have yet to read!

Lucky I'm gonna be a scholar/teacher. Gives me an excuse to hoard unhealthily. =)