Clutter Be Gone

For as long as I can remember, I have been surrounded by it. My parents are the quintessential pack rats. Spring cleaning would literally take the whole season if they tried. I remember when I was young they used to spend weekends upon weekends trying to sort and organize our basement, or garage, even spare rooms, typical catch me alls for their junk. To this day it's pretty much a useless cause. One good thing from all of this iis that my sister and I have realized it is not the way we want to live. By nature we try our darndest to remain the polar opposites to this. I am pretty organized when it comes to my living space, my workspace, even my car for example. Sure, I find it hard to get rid of receipts (but I am convinced that's because I might need them someday) and my room is jam packed with wall to wall furniture (and for this reason I am convinced it's because I need to see it visible and safe, otherwise my good shit will disappear into the Patience abyss). Oh Gawd...am I a pack rat in training? My parents can't say no to talking ANYONE'S cast off's, and on the flip side, they will only give their junk to our own family, if absolutely necessary. When i really analyze it, there are two reasons my parents are they way they are. They both grew up poor, my father in Cabbagetown and my mother in The Beaches of Toronto in the post war era where because money was scarce whatever possessions you had were important. What they rely on now is the ideal that if they hoard everything, they will not have to go out and purchase it. Lies...generally what they need never gets found, so it gets bought, soon lost and then voila...we have two if not more of the same damn thing strewn throughout the house. It's a tad frustrating. Alas, I will continue to try with every effort not to be a cluttler bug, break this cyle and move on with my life free and clear with perhaps a bare wall here and there.

Toodles