Books were actually my first hint that I had a problem with too much stuff. (Though it wasn't until I was faced with the prospect of moving to a small room in Boston that I actually forced myself to get rid of stuff). When I got my first job, one of my favorite things to do was visit Barnes and Noble. I bought a bunch of books that I didn't touch for at least 6-12 months, during which time they did nothing but clutter my bedroom.
Someday I hope to have a nice big personal library, but until then I only keep as many books as can fit in a couple of plastic bins under my bed.
Things with sentimental value: I have a folder with printouts of a bunch of code I wrote back in 1997. It was one of the coolest projects I ever worked on, and I keep meaning to go review it to see what sort of stupid mistakes I was making in my ignorance. It's been 10 years and I haven't spent more than 2 minutes looking at it, yet I lug it with me wherever I go. Other examples are pictures, concert tickets, recordings, papers, articles, contacts, etc... I accumulate stuff without having to buy anything.
Like paystubs, bills, insurance paperwork, receipts, and all the other bureaucratic garbage that you never know if you'll ever need or not.
And pennies.
Sometimes I feel like I waste half my life trying to get rid of all the stuff that winds up in my apartment.
Someday I hope to have a nice big personal library, but until then I only keep as many books as can fit in a couple of plastic bins under my bed.
Things with sentimental value: I have a folder with printouts of a bunch of code I wrote back in 1997. It was one of the coolest projects I ever worked on, and I keep meaning to go review it to see what sort of stupid mistakes I was making in my ignorance. It's been 10 years and I haven't spent more than 2 minutes looking at it, yet I lug it with me wherever I go. Other examples are pictures, concert tickets, recordings, papers, articles, contacts, etc... I accumulate stuff without having to buy anything.
Like paystubs, bills, insurance paperwork, receipts, and all the other bureaucratic garbage that you never know if you'll ever need or not.
And pennies.
Sometimes I feel like I waste half my life trying to get rid of all the stuff that winds up in my apartment.