The Joy Of A Simplified Life

Whenever we move I realize just how much stuff we have. Granted I weed out and purge items both before packing and while unpacking yet our household items just seem to multiply on their own. By the time our next move comes around I feel as though I am back to square one. Will I ever learn?

But after each move we spend a few (or more) blissful weeks leading an uncluttered life. This is the time it takes for our unaccompanied baggage to catch up with us and it is during this time that I realize how little we really need to get by. I remember the feeling when we moved to Tirana. Prior to arriving there I was in a panic about how we would survive with only the items we could fit in our suitcase. How would I cook without my own knives or favorite cookware? How many times would I have to do laundry in order to keep us in clean clothes? How would we keep Sidney entertained? But you know what? We survived a very long six weeks just fine. Yes I did a lot of laundry and longed for a sharp knife but we wore clean clothes and ate just fine. When our unaccompanied baggage arrived (the day before our household goods, by the way) I felt overwhelmed by all of our "stuff". There was just so much of it, I had no idea where to store it, and in reality, we didn't need most of it. But I unpacked, put everything away and slipped back into our cluttered way of life. And now we are doing it all over again.

We've been living in a family suite in a hotel for over a week now. It is cramped and I am going stir crazy and am ready to leave but we are getting along just fine. Sure we are wearing and re-wearing the same clothes but I have a laundry room right down the hallway and daily maid service. The kitchen leaves everything to be desired but we've still been eating fairly well given the circumstances. Because our space is just so small, out of necessity we are forced to be neater than we ever have been. And it is actually kind of nice.

But that odd sense of serenity came to a crashing halt last week with the arrival of our unaccompanied baggage. We only used half of our weight allotment but looking at those five big boxes squeezed into our tiny hotel room just about gave me a panic attack. It was impossible to move around with the boxes in the room. Where were we going to put all of these things and did we even need them? As we set about opening them I realized that we really did not have the space of any of these items. The clothes? Our one closet and set of drawers were already filled with clothing. Without counter space there really wasn't any place to even put my salt and pepper grinders let alone space for my mixing bowls. My pans were too big for the burners and without an oven my baking sheets were obsolete.

One by one we opened the boxes and wondered what we had been thinking. We did pull out a few items--Sidney's books and a few toys, Glenn's uniforms, and my beloved knife set and soup pot. Everything else got put back into the boxes and pushed down the hallway to our storage cage. I actually felt a sense of relief when the boxes were out of sight. I managed to tuck away the few items we had taken out and gave Sidney a stern warning that all of his things needed to be kept neat and not underfoot. Momentarily, I felt better. But I realized that I had once again delayed the inevitable. We still had all of our "stuff" with more on the way. Once we move into a house the rest of our household goods that we had packed out from Albania would arrive. And later, all of our furniture, which has been sitting in storage in Virginia since 2011, will show up. And all of these items will need a home. Unpacking everything will become a brief, full time job. I will once again feel overwhelmed by all of our stuff, rue its existence, and wonder where it will all go. But then we will settle in and life will go on until we do it all over again.

But in the meantime, perhaps we will have a few more weeks (or more) of uncluttered freedom. I can't wait.

Cleaning House

This is what it looked like as the movers packed up our house to move from Washington DC to Albania:

Yes, we moved seven full crates jam packed with our worldly belongings overseas with us.  Since this didn't include any of our furniture it was comprised of our "household goods": clothing, personal items, and my endless and very heavy collection of small kitchen appliances, serving dishes, and cookbooks.  I've always prided myself in being a minimalist and initially I was quite proud of how little we were bringing.  That was until  we went six weeks without any of our belongings and survived just fine.  The arrival of our seven full crates reminded me that the reality is we have too many unnecessary things. 

Fast forward nineteen months.  We are still one year away from moving (to where I have no idea) but I'm already starting to worry about what this next move will entail. Rather than get rid of things while we have been here ---something I had crazily thought we would do and used to justify the reason I brought so many items I no longer used-- we have only been consistently accumulating more items.   We are regularly gifted with knick knacks and miscellaneous trinkets that while interesting (sometimes very "interesting") just collect dust and take up shelf space.  But not all of our acquisitions are destined for a mythical yard sale.  In addition to two large and heavy pieces of furniture, a giant custom made solid oak kitchen table and an extra large antique dowry chest, we've accumulated more books, toys for Sidney, and yes, kitchen items.  As I look at my overfilled wardrobes, pantry that could feed a small country for a year, and cabinets filled to capacity, I'm realizing that I do in fact have too much stuff.  No, I am really not a minimalist.  So how did I get to this point and more importantly, what is a girl to do about it?

I used to be one of those people who carried that teeny tiny purse that was so fashionable yet incredibly impractical.  I remember my friend Catherine laughing at me and telling me that some day I too would be lugging around a cavernous bag.  At the time I told her it would never happen but fast forward a few years and here I am, over sized bag in hand, digging through the bottomless pit to find a pen.  Somehow I have become "that" person.  I am the very same person who used to be able to travel for a week with only a carry on.  I am now the one who checks an large suitcase for a long weekend.  I really dislike being that person but can't quite figure out how to minimize.  Whereas my mantle and bookshelves used to hold a single, carefully selected picture frame, our shelves are now filled with lead crystal plaques, post Communist era military propaganda, miniature lithographs of scenes depicting European cities, and oddly enough, a collection of shot glasses and key chains.  And the alcohol.  We love good wine and an occasional after dinner liqueur but the number of potent brandies, rakis and vodkas filling our shelves is threatening a collapse.  There is no way we could drink everything in the coming year and what on earth will I do with these items once we leave Albania?

So here is my plan:  2013 will be a year of downsizing.  No matter how pretty, unique, or potentially useful it might be, I will not be purchasing additional serving dishes, table linens, or pottery.  I'm going to limit myself to a single medium sized suitcase when traveling for a long weekend.  (Hey, it is a start and in my defense, my bag usually includes all of Sidney's clothes and sundry paraphernalia).  For the rest of our time in Albania I'm going to limit the size of my weekly grocery shop.  No longer will I buy things just because they look interesting or extra items because they might not be there next week.  I'm also going to stop taking all of the extra food from people who departing post.  Seriously, we could easily go several months without shopping and still have food to spare.  When the annual Embassy yard sale comes around, rather than simply organizing it for everyone else, I'm going to personally be organized enough to rid myself of the too small clothes, obsolete baby items, and other boxes filled with things I have no use for.  

Without a doubt a year from now we will be taking more "household goods" out of Albania than we brought in.  I will strive to have fewer items then than I do now.  Somethings I won't part with though; just think about the dinner conversations that will be able to ensue when we pour our special Russian vodka into Hungarian shot glasses as we show guests our Albanian double headed eagle plaque and Chinese key ring collection.  I bet you would all like an invitation to that dinner.