Taking stock:
Contents =
3 small purses
2 wallets
1 travel cosmetic case
1 sunglass case
1 pilates dvd
8 orphan socks
2 pair matching socks
2 pair new in package socks
7 receipts
1 $5.00 silver certificate
1 matchbook from the Sands casino
2 key chains with 2 old keys
1 leather journal
1 corkscrew and cork
1 paper drink umbrella
1 rubber bat
4 fest buttons
1 travel manicure kit
4 bottle lens cleanser for my glasses
5 screws
1 set bra straps
2 lavender sleep masks
1 skeleton key
a pile of love letters and cards
7 rings with boxes1 necklace with box
1 antique brooch
2 baby pictures of yours truly

Some of the items you may recognize from my underwear/bra drawer. The junk drawer seemed like a more logical location for these. There is not much in here I wish to part with. Okay, I no longer need the bra straps since I previously purged all my bras and disposed of them via the free table last week. The two key chains will probably make their way to the next free table as well. Although I have sleep issues, I have never used the sleep masks. They are outta here. Socks. sigh Yes, more socks. A comment was made during the purge of my sock drawer on how amazing it was to have 69 pairs of socks and not one was missing it's matching half. See Jennifer, I lose them, too! I have a whole bag of lost souls that these eight will be joining. The matching four will find a happy home with the remaining 43 pair I own. The receipts from purchases I was evidently hiding from Hubby will be accounted for and filed with the rest of the year's purchases. The purses, wallets and cosmetic case will relocate to my shoe closet which has yet to be purged. Sunglass case and lens cleanser will relocate, too. Maybe I will add the cleanser to the free pile? I use vinegar for that now anyway. I always knew I had a screw loose, but five? Those should be in the basement. The miscellaneous keepsake paraphernalia and letters will stay, I'm sentimental like that. The jewelry will stay put, too. If you ever want to rob me, I guess you know where the goods are. Oh, and the pilates dvd; one of these days I will stop spending so much time on my arse blogging and will use it. I have some extra junk in my trunk that could use a little purging if you know what I mean. Better put it somewhere less hidden, like the basement... where I never go.

Purge list:

• t-shirt drawer
• cami drawer
• work out drawer
• pajama drawer
• underwear drawer & bra/swim drawer
  
• sock drawer
• junk drawer

Perhaps this post would be more appropriately named Warehouse. As in, where in the house should I relocate this stuff to?

Despite the fact that I own enough socks to outfit a centipede, I cannot bring myself to part with many of them. I am keeping all of the boot socks. The snow gets pretty deep here in Wisconsin so I spend most of the winter in boots. I managed to whittle my trouser socks down to five pair. One each to match the three pair of dress shoes that I would wear socks with and two neutral pair to go with any of them. All five of the athletic socks are going. Refer to my workout drawer as to the reason why. I am keeping five of the long and twelve of the short everyday socks. I know it may sound like a lot, but I really do wear all of these everyday. Not all at once everyday! I am not the centipede in the picture. I could only part with three of the winter socks. They were wool, which drive me nuts, otherwise I would hold onto to them, too. And lastly, the four house socks are a must keep! House socks? Thick fuzzy socks I only wear in the house as, or in conjunction with slippers. Wood floors are cold!


43 pair still seems like too many. Nearly half of them are specifically for the winter, so it is really more like 23 pair, right? My feet are so cold I sometimes sleep with socks on. Right now, at 2:00 in the afternoon on a beautifully sunny September day, it is 64 degrees in my house and 75 degrees outside. Without having the AC on! I told you my house was cold. I am posting in socks, of course, slippers and a sweatshirt. Admittingly, I am making excuses to justify the amount of socks I am keeping. I warned you I would way back here.


This week's weight loss is three pounds. That brings the tally of clothing removed from my nine drawer dresser no longer full to 29 pounds. It is mind boggling that I had to work to deliberately remove 29 pounds of clothing, which seems like a lot, yet according to the EPA Office of Solid Waste, Americans throw away more than 68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person per year! Without regard to where it is going or the benefits it could provide to someone else and the environment by staying out of the landfill. If we are throwing away that much clothing per year, it makes me stop and wonder did I ever need to buy it in the first place?

What? You don't have a corkscrew and rubber bat in your underwear drawer? No? No, not that. What then? Small print. What small print? Oh, that small print. I was hoping you wouldn't catch that. You mean the small print, lengthy list, and oddities weren't distraction enough. Damn, you're good.

All right fine, I will say it. I have 40 pair of underwear! Happy now? I suck at strip poker and wanted to be prepared. Well. There is nothing like tallying up what you own to give you a good hard smack in the face at how much of a consumer you really are. Good grief brief!

I am keeping the four bralettes, they are all wear anyway. Ten pair of underwear should suffice. Sitting on my fat ass blogging has caused the other thirty pair to shrink in the drawer. All eleven of the bras can go. I really hate these torture devices. The amount of money I spent on them trying to become an Angel makes me sick. Ugh. Three of the swimsuits are unflattering. Okay, honestly none of the swimsuits are really flattering, but these three more not so. The other four and a half (one is just the top) I will hold on to.

Now, these garments people are a bit squeamish about reusing. So, what do I do with them? I have yet to find a place where I can send my clothes for recycling. Help me out folks. Throw me a friggin bone here.

Actual pairs of pajamas - five. Seems to be a lot of extra crap in this drawer. Now, why I have swim shorts and long underwear in the same drawer? They are both seasonal I guess. As for why they are in my pajama drawer? Like I said it gets damn cold in Wisconsin and I am very stingy with the heat. Come December I will be living in those long underwear! However, I have no justification for why there are swim shorts in my pajama drawer. No I do not own a waterbed.

Taking stock:
Contents = 13 "workout" items

Man. This is no better than my t-shirt drawer! Apparently I needed one camisole for every t-shirt I owned. What am I doing with so many camisoles you say? Well, I HATE bras. So instead I wore these. Why I needed 30? I only do laundry once a month. Or, I'm a clothes whore. If you chose the latter, you would be correct.

It has been so long since I have worn some of these that they still smell like my old laundry detergent and dryer sheets. I quit using dryer sheets last October! Makes you wonder what they put in that stuff!?! 24 of these no longer fit. Clothes shrink while sitting in the drawer. Did you know that? It's true, ask any woman.

So I have decided to keep the six that still fit. Pass eight on to my daughter. Turn seven into cleaning cloths. And sell/donate nine. This week's weight loss. Six pounds!
Previous clearinghouse posts:
Clearinghouse
Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Clearinghouse series: clearinghouse

This is what remains. Previously it was so packed I could barely get it closed and even had to stuff a few in the front. Now I have room to spare! I removed nine pounds of clothing from my drawer. Talk about taking a load off! Averting nine pounds of "waste" from the landfill also feels good.

Reuse