Don't Save It, Throw It Away!

I’m a collector. I tend to hold onto stuff that’s there’s really no realistic reason to hold onto, but I rationalize there’s some kind of value to it and it’s worth keeping.

I’m not as bad as people who have a compulsion to save everything they’ve ever owned. And I mean EVERYTHING! Receipts, food cartons, junk mail, clothes, newspapers, garbage. Their homes are completely packed and there’s barely any room to walk. They finally have to call these specialists who excavate through layers of stuff and clean the place out for them. They enter the place in these decontamination-type suits and goto work.

When I see these programs about these hoarders I feel really bad for them. But I also have to shake my head and see the conditions their homes are in by this compulsion they have.

My problem isn’t that huge. It’s really come down to magazines. I have mags dating back years that have just been sitting around. I get some entertainment mags and some of those cool men’s magazines (yeah, get them). After I read them I organize them by date and store them away. The only time I’ve gone back and looked through them was when I decided they have served enough time in my hands and to trash them.

Right now I’m going through all my entertainment ones. I realize most of them don’t have any value. I enjoyed reading the articles once, but don’t need to read them again. Once again I’m finding myself skimming through the same articles I read once before, just in case I missed something the first time around.

I’m still keeping the photos I like from them though. Some of the pictures I enjoy looking at. Simple as that. They’re mainly of actors or scenes from films I like. Most of them I’ve only seen that particular image in that magazine, although if I tried hard enough I could probably find them out there on the net.

These pictures I could possibly put them to use at a future date….I always say that. I’ve had plans for countless collages I would make from these pictures. I haven’t really done that yet. I could still use them for another hobby-type thing, but that’s another story.

So the magazines are going out the door, but I’m gradually filling folders of photos from them. At least they won’t take up as much room. I haven’t even thought of going through my cool men’s magazines. I don’t want to be forced to make any decisions with them yet. There’s enough room for them to stay put for awhile.