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TODAY

Thursday, March 28

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Fuel

John / August 11, 2005 12:34 AM

This box of papers that is sitting on my floor next to my desk right now. I haven't thrown it away yet because it serves as a wonderful footrest.

Atul / August 11, 2005 7:20 AM

My broken Macintosh G4. Too expensive to fix, too pretty to throw out... Maybe it would make a nice side table.

Huckle Cat / August 11, 2005 7:31 AM

My favorite pair of black sandals

Anthony / August 11, 2005 8:29 AM

Ralphie. My teddy bear from ages 0-3. On one hand, you can't throw away something like that, on the other, I also wish I didn't have this attachment. It sucks when your parents move.

Not Lance Mountain / August 11, 2005 9:14 AM

The skateboard I bought three years ago that I only rode once. I took it to Burnham Skate Park (31st and LSD) with the idea of getting back into skating after fifteen years. I started carving around and immediately fell and broke my wrist.

And not Tommy Guerrero / August 11, 2005 9:37 AM

I'll second the skateboard. I have two. Both never get ridden but I just can't seem to get rid of them. As much as my wife hates to see them sitting in our home office I find comfort in knowing that they're there.

len / August 11, 2005 9:47 AM

Several pairs of skinny jeans from 5 years ago. I'm not going to be able to fit into them ever again, due to metabolism slowdown and office job arse-expansion. But I keep hoping...

paul / August 11, 2005 9:50 AM

My T.V. I can't seem to throw it out even though it fills my home with ideals and programs that are so...mediocre.

Emerson Dameron / August 11, 2005 9:52 AM

A lot of my old pants and shirts. As a kid, I sported hand-me-downs, and I've always been deeply resistant to spending money on clothes. If I buy 'em, I buy 'em at thrift stores. That takes hours of rummaging, and I haven't had the time. I wear my clothes until they disintegrate.

Pete / August 11, 2005 10:12 AM

A hideous old framed German etching which depicts an ugly poultry-monger woman, a drunken customer and numerous chicken carcasses. It supposedly has little monetary value and doesn't fit with our home decor (and probably nobody else in the world's, either), but I have this odd obsession with it and can't bear the thought of getting rid of it.

tony / August 11, 2005 10:24 AM

Yellowing copies of the (New York) Times, the Post, and the Daily News from 9/11.

emdub / August 11, 2005 10:35 AM

New Yorkers. They collect like dead flies.

"Skinny" clothes that I love but will probably not fit in.

My ex-boyfriend's braid of hair he gave me when he cut it all off. Creepy, I know. I have no ill will towards him, and feel guilty about the breakup (I dumped him), and I am having a hard time with which method to use to get rid of it.. burn it? (too mean) trash it? (too impersonal) ... suggestions?

Brian / August 11, 2005 10:44 AM

Emdub try selling on ebay

sky / August 11, 2005 10:47 AM

I am a packrat and hold on to waaay to many things, for no apparent reason...i just think, one day, i'll need this unused postcard. But I am really horrible about unopened bills or mail....I have some from like a year ago, and I tell myself that next month I'll have the money, and finally open them and deal with my debt.

Cinnamon / August 11, 2005 11:00 AM

Things I need to get rid of: A crapload of fabric that one day I'll be strong enough to admit I'm never going to use.

Things I'm glad I got rid of: Before we moved I got rid of my skinny clothes that I'm never going to fit into again. Figured somebody else needed that interview suit (worn 3 times) more than I did.

Thing I regret getting rid of: I also got rid of my skateboard. I miss it. I got it when I was 18. I miss riding, but a bad fall at 23 kept me off of it permanently. I recently saw an image where someone had put basic L brackets on a wall and turned their skateboard into a shelf. I really wish I'd thought of that cause I could use a shelf, and I miss it terribly.

mike-ts / August 11, 2005 11:04 AM

emdub, if that braid is at least 10 inches long, consider

Locks of Love

an organization that makes hairpieces for children who suffer from hair loss. Go to the web site for more info, and to see if that braid qualifies. If any of you are getting a major haircut (cutting off 10 inches or more), please consider this. I know about them because a cousin, a friend's brother, and someone I knew in a photography group all did this.

jen / August 11, 2005 11:08 AM

i'm remarkably swift about getting rid of stuff. everytime i shop, the new clothes go in, the old go out. selling back books i know i'll never read again. and thankfully, online bill statements have cut down my paper piles by about 75%.

but the one thing that continues to travel with me during every move is my clarinet from my days in grade school. ah, the days of when i was rockin' it on the woodwind for five years of my youth.

jen*nee / August 11, 2005 11:12 AM

My need for outside validation.

Eamon / August 11, 2005 11:28 AM

I have every card anyone has ever sent me.

steven / August 11, 2005 12:14 PM

A stuffed animal (dog) that I received after coming home from kidney surgery when I was just a youngin'. Don't know why I've kept it, but I can't throw it out.

Suzanne / August 11, 2005 12:26 PM

This topic is pretty timely for me as I'm packing up and movin' soon.
I'd hafta say the ex-boyfriend bag filled with things given to me or things that remind me of a few boys from the past. I hardly ever look at the stuff, except when new additions are necessary and I know it's not good to hold on to the past but it feels so strange just to toss it.

Staci / August 11, 2005 12:29 PM

Anything that my now-deceased grandmother gave me. My couch is falling apart and the flatware she gave me totally needs to be replaced, but it's from Grandma, so I can't let it go. She also used to knit me pot scrubbers, and I will never let them touch a pot, let alone throw them out.

Steve / August 11, 2005 12:44 PM

My old stereo components, including a receiver, 5-disc CD player, and cassette deck -- they're all in good working shape despite being at least 15 years old, and now they sit unused on a shelf down in our storage.

And the many, many books and CDs that I've determined to have no resale value, but haven't found the determination to leave at a thrift store....

pat / August 11, 2005 1:07 PM

An ever growing stable of Macintosh Computers.

I've got about 4-5 of the first generation all in ones, a centris 430, a powermac 7200, and a g3 tangerine imac. All that I don't use on a regular basis. I keep telling myself that I'm going to do something clever with the all in ones like making an acquarium or a magic 8 ball or something, but I just haven't had that spark of inspiration yet.

What's worse, is that when I saw Atul's message above about the broken G4, i thought, "I bet that would be a fun project to fix."

d4ve / August 11, 2005 1:18 PM

third all my macs...2 classics, performa and a centris. all so cute, hard to throw away. others include a commodore, atari 2600, n64 and an old basestation. damn i got alotta crap.

Veronica / August 11, 2005 1:19 PM

Books that I either didn't like or have mulitple copies of. I have them sorted out, but they're still just sitting on my shelf. Also, journals from when I was young that I don't read and don't want to risk anyone finding, but can't commit to throwing out. I worry that I'll want them later on.

amyc / August 11, 2005 1:32 PM

Thousands of beads I'll realistically never use for jewelry, all my undergrad papers, the size-4 clothes I'll never fit into again, a big box of mixtapes I made in high school and college.

I'm pretty good about getting rid of crap -- I recently re-sold about 100 books and 30 or so CDs/DVDs, and I drop of several bags of clothes to Brown Elephant every year -- but I still have so much stuff. I was kinda hoping we'd move this year so I'd have a great excuse to purge. But no.

Andrew / August 11, 2005 1:51 PM

I've got an Apple LCIII gathering dust in the basement. I keep meaning to pitch it, but keep forgetting. Maybe I'll put it out for the junqueros to grab.

Jeigh / August 11, 2005 2:48 PM

I have a Mac Classic, a Mac IIcx, a Powercomputing Power Tower Pro, A Palm VII... I also have about 30 pair of worn out running shoes I need to give to Salvation Army or something. I wanted to photograph them first to prove that I had that many pair at one time.

Mister C / August 11, 2005 3:29 PM

Old cards, Childhood stuffed animals, and all that other odd life ephemera are the very things you shouldn't throw out. Like Cinnamon's skateboard, I find myself most missing those things that I 86'd during fits of angst or overzealous life laundry sessions. Box it up and store it if you must, but keep it. BTW-Yes, it does suck big time when the P's move, Anthony. You always think they'll be the permanent repository of your childhood memories, then they make you take all this stuff that you don't have room for but can't bear to throw away.

Things I should seriously chuck: ancient computer monitors and (this is embarrassing) old credit card applications. I started saving them about 6 years ago out of curiosity to see how many would pile up (and for some undetermined Art installation). Now I've got this giant overflowing paper bag full of them. It'll now take 8 hours of shredding to get rid of them and they sit there like some testament to procrastination and weirdness.

Oh, and all my Y2K rations! ;)

Leelah / August 11, 2005 3:46 PM

Steve! Give me your receiver! My 18 year old stereo just died on me.... and of course I can't throw it away either....

I am a serious packrat. I've been getting better about chucking stuff, especially broken electronics!

Mister C / August 11, 2005 3:47 PM

Credit card offers, that is.

ivy / August 11, 2005 3:53 PM

Old emails.

Right now I'm storing 1GB of emails on my web account. Damn.

It's because there's too many to sift through now. It would take too long to separate out the "important" emails. But none of it is really that important...

bran / August 11, 2005 4:15 PM

a bunch of big blank canvases and painting supplies. I haven't painted in five years--but I keep promising myself that I will. In the meantime, my skills just keep getting rustier. argh!

Carrie / August 11, 2005 5:14 PM

cassette tapes. For some reason I seem to think that one day I might own a tape player again. Wooo, think of how much fun I'll have rockin' to Jodeci or Deuce (remember them? "come on baby, kick them daisy's!! look at them girls with their daisy dukes on!") I'm moving soon and am still debating whether or not I should just get rid of them. My sister did a few years ago when she moved and I still don't know how she did it.

I also have a computer that I have yet to donate. It's just sitting there, collecting dust. I have this weird guilt about getting rid of it b/c my mom got it for me for college. She's told me a million and one times she doesn't care if I get rid of it, but I just haven't make the calls yet to see who will come and get it if I donate it. I don't think I've called b/c I still feel guilty for getting rid of it even though it will go to a good home.

I was a packrat growing up and I've finally learned to break the habit... save for the cassette tapes.

fred / August 11, 2005 8:27 PM

Everything.

Justin / August 11, 2005 9:33 PM

My lightning-fried first-generation iMac, the only machine I've wanted to hug; a Newton; CDs; books; photos; letters; ticket stubs.

Brian / August 27, 2005 6:48 PM

A Macintosh SE/30. I know the second I throw it out, I'm going to find a use for it or someone who can use it.

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