Clearing out the lumber

“… it seems fitting here to devote a few words to another kindred matter, namely, the hoarding up throughout the house of what may literally be designated as lumber. It is astonishing what a number of utterly valueless things are allowed to remain in nearly every household, and it is well remarked that no one ever knows what a collection of rubbish he possesses till he has occasion to remove. There may not be much to be ashamed of in the first load or two of furniture, but at the latter end there is a strong feeling that a dark night would be more adapted for moving—the darker the better. At least every twelve months there should be a regular clearance of worn-out articles, and that miscellaneous collection of odds and ends which can be of no earthly value to anybody, unless he be an antiquary.”

Philip E. Muskett The Art of Living in Australia, 1893
CHAPTER IV: BEDROOM VENTILATION
(Accessed via: http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/)

With a house move imminent, I feel it is time to heed the advice of Philip E. Muskett and clear out some of the ‘lumber’ in our home.

It is only two years since we last moved house, and although I felt that we did a reasonable job of clearing out the cupboards at that time, there are always those drawers or shelves you just can’t bear to sort through. So they get packed up and moved.

And moved again.

Eventually, you can’t even remember where some of the stuff came from. And it certainly doesn’t get looked at between house moves.

There’s the items that you once started collecting, but then gave up on…and now they don’t really suit the home’s decor, but you can’t bear to part with them. Like the Wedgewood.

Then there’s the old sporting equipment, that you keep ‘just in case’ someone wants to use it. Of course, by the time someone does want to use it, the item is so old-fashioned it looks like you’re playing with an antique.

And then there's the vinyl LPs and singles from the 70s and the 80s. (Do we even have a record player in the house nowadays?)

What about the boxes and boxes of my daughters' drawings, paintings, schoolbooks? I know I should sort through them and keep just the very best, perhaps photographing some of the rest. But do I ever do that?


This time around, I’m determined we’re going to clear out a little more of the lumber, but it's a fine line between de-lumbering and recklessly stripping away your personal history.

What lumber is lurking in your house?