I have an issue with stuff. It's taken over my home. There are two reasons why this has happened. 1. My husband is a closet hoarder. 2. My apartment does not not have enough closets to hide it all.
My number 2 is questionable because the 2 build-in closets and one walk-in mean that I have more closet space than 125 % of Cariocas. So essentially I can't bitch.
Except number1 and number 2 do not necessarily work well together. And no, I have no responsibility in this. Zero, zip, Nada. Ok, maybe a little bit. But number one is not far off. You see, I was reading Danielle's post about packing and her move. She made a comment that I totally related to:
"How did we accumulate so much stuff? Where is it going to go?"
When we were moving my husband out of his childhood apartment and the amount those cabinets barfed up was astounding. It was Crapapalooza and it was all being boxed and brought to my house.
I'm not saying my dear Mr. Rant collects crap. He just has a difficult time throwing certain things away. Maybe old tax statements make it easier to sleep at night. Quite possibly, the 3,000 pairs of shoes remind him of all the paths he has walked in life. And, perhaps, his multitude of 80s style photo albums bring his almost middle aged heart peace, as he has proof he has lived.
I get it and it's awesome. Of course there's the whole thing that I have about 8 working cabinets, 2 kids, and no where to put anything. It's a pain. I'm used to 2 stories of glorious storage space. Enough space where you don't even know what you have stored.
And that gets to to my stage right now. I want to purge baby. I don't understand why I want storage in the first place. Why in the hell do I need to stuff things in closest? If they are there, you aren't using them in the first place. I want to throw things away.
The Brazilians are not pleased with this attitude. Brazilians do not throw away. They save, take care of, and give to other members of the family. They manage to store things until they are needed by someone they know. They find a way. Honestly, the storage force is strong in this breed of people. The Container Store should come down here and ask the Brazilian people to give them tips.
Then my husband, the shining star he is, came up with a fabulous idea. We will give our old crib mattresses (yes we still have them, do you see what I mean now) and such to the families who lost their things in the flooding. We will take the things we feel clutter our home and let them fill the home of someone else. It's a very romantic concept and a perfect idea.
Of course, I do wonder. Are they in the market for a junk drawer? I mean, a home is not complete without one and I'm looking to give mine away!
