Sunday 8 December 2019

Moving and reducing

The two weeks since Celliers and I split have been crazy. In week 1, I had the organising to contend with for a group of 90 on the river - catering, venues, guides, equipment. And, I moved most of my stuff to my mom's place. The weekend went well and I was thrust straight into a very busy work week (which is the norm and not an anomaly) and then a bomb of an emotional distress, which threw me completely. I fell apart. And, on top of this and work, I've been moving into a cottage.

I like to think that I'm generally stable and sane and reasonable and logical. This time, despite what my logical brain told me, I was ripped to pieces emotionally. Of course, time heals - it always does. I have a lot to face this week that needs to be resolved.

I have moved and I spent my first night in my new place on Friday night. It is a really nice one bedroom cottage. I'm on a quiet street in a part of town where I often run. Close to time trial and places where Rusty and I run regularly. Everything is close in Parys, which is handy.

Part of my excitement in moving was the opportunity to sort stuff and to declutter. I have been non-stop busy for years and so my home office had needed sorting and even stuff from when I moved from Jo'burg still needed to be dealt with.

I saw this post on decluttering about two days ago - stuff is a burden that weighs us down. Of course, I need my sports equipment, office equipment and files, kitchen and home equipment, and sufficient clothes, linen and the like to make living easy, but there is always extra that can be shed.

I have been through every file and folder, box, and crate. I've already dropped stuff at the SPCA store and I've released myself of papers- lots of old stuff that I'd been hanging on to and others that were not longer valid or relevant. I have trashed the lot and have a hefty crate for the recycling collectors.

Today, I moved another load of stuff. Some of the things that I am giving away include my waterpoint decorations for Forest Run. Whether I every hold another Forest Run event, I don't know. At the moment, I am too tied down with work to even contemplate it and land access on a section of the route remains inaccessible. There is no point in hanging on to these items for another bunch of years. I've got a car load to go to the SPCA shop.

I've also accumulated bookcase 'decorations' over many years and these all have sentimental value, like the green frog soft toy thing that I was given by a runner at Jungle Marathon in Brazil in 2003 and the wooden camel I bought at one of the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge events; and the wooden puzzles that I like or the belt buckle from my HURT 100km run in Hawaii in 2006, and the wooden abstract snake carving that I like the shape and feel of, and the yellow plushy sunflower that I bought in Atlanta airport on my very first flight to the States in 2004. For most of these items, there is no point in hanging on to them. They don't serve a practical purpose and someone else may be able to enjoy them. I've put all of these in the SPCA crate too.

After emptying paper from so many plastic folders, I have an abundance of empty folders that are still in good conditions. I'm unlikely to use most of them because the way that I do things has changed. SPCA box.

It is cleansing to discard unused items. I'm mostly there with the unpacking and sorting. I'll be better able to survey my handiwork tomorrow after dropping off stuff.

I'll really consider my books over the next week as I'd like to trim my stash. Books are such a weight and volume to carry around and while I treasure my adventure library and have loved reading these books, will I ever read it again? If not, I'd rather pass it on. Letting go of books is hard.

I've got a number of other items like magazine clippings of articles that I have written. There are a lot of them! I don't read them, they serve no practical purpose but some have historical significance. If I threw them all out, would it change anything in my life? No. If I keep them, I just have to find somewhere for the box. And then agonise over throwing them out again at a later stage. So silly.

Rusty has been very unsettled but she'll be fine. I'm here for her. It has been raining non-stop since Tuesday evening. She'll probably feel a lot better too when the sun comes out again. Me too.

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