Clearing out

· mumblings ·

One of the good things (well, the only good thing) about moving house is that it forces you to sort through all the cruft that naturally accumulates over the years. I was amazed when I managed to fill three small bin bags full of clothes (two for Oxfam and one for fabric recycling). It's not as if I'm any kind of fashion victim (as must be painfully obvious to anyone who sees me), though perhaps the fact that I tend to hold on to clothes for years doesn't help. I even have a sweatshirt — that I still wear — bought to support a student expedition to Venezuela in 1990. A top Bsag fashion tip: if you're going to wear 14-year-old clothes, make sure that they don't have the year of purchase emblazoned on them.

Today I tackled the magazine boxes full of old catalogues and leaflets, which raised a huge cloud of dust^1^ and contributed 3 carrier bags full of paper for recycling. If I go on like this, our flat might even have enough space to become habitable, just as we are moving out. But it is very cathartic to get rid of all the junk, and you tend to find things you mislaid years ago. I found a bag of picture hooks lurking in a drawer that I've been looking for for ages.

^1^ We certainly won't be suffering from hygiene-related autoimmune diseases — our immune systems get a vigorous workout every day.