Re-evaluating.

Last night I got back from an AMAZING week in Hawai'i. Let me just say the New England weather was an unwelcome sight.. My sister, my mom and I stayed with some relatives on the Big Island and we spent every day on the beach. Talk about relaxing! Which is just what I needed after the stress of midterms last week. Ugh.

I also really enjoyed living out of a suitcase for a week. Well. I enjoyed having such a small amount of things for a while. I wouldn't mind living out of a bureau though, instead of a suitcase..

But it really made me think of what I need for clothing, which makes up at least half of my 600+ possessions. If you recall my earlier posts where my shirt count was at about 55..well after doing all my laundry and dragging out my summer clothing, I'm estimating at least 100 shirts. Oh.My.God.

The first thing I did when I got home last night (after showering off that I-just-spent-all-day-traveling feeling) was start getting rid of more things. My sister and I are planning a killer yard sale this summer, with everything we're getting rid of, as a reward for all our hard work. Should be fun!

* * *

I'm realizing I may not make it down to 100 possessions, but I'm okay with that. I saw a video of someone giving a tour of their apartment with their 100 things. And god was it boring and empty.

So I'm updating my challenge.

I love photos and art, and I love displaying lots of them all over my walls. I strive to create a welcoming, clean, bright space.. So my new challenge is to determine what I really need and to only have possessions that are important to me and that I use. While that might not be a specific number, I'm still keeping with the idea of the challenge: to avoid buying things just to buy, and avoid shopping as a means of entertainment.

Know what I mean?

Speaking of buying things that I use frequently: I just got the new Morgan Page CD, Believe. I've been listening to it all week. It's incredible. His album Elevate is another one of my favorite albums. So if you're looking for some new music, I highly recommend checking those out.

The Challenge.

I've found myself facing a dilemma. I want to get down to 100 possessions, but I'm also really into this 'reuse/recycle/refurb' mindset, so it's hard to let go of things. But that's what most of it is: things. And I'm starting to be able to take a step back, and ask myself if I really need that 55th shirt, or would 54 maybe be ok?

I know I said I was going to post my original list of things, and I could, because I typed it all up. However I'm up to about 600 things right now, which would make for a disgustingly long post. So I'll just summarize and say that I'm estimating I have close to 100 shirts (?!) and 500 other things that I probably don't need.

Wow.

But I've already gotten rid of over 50 things.

Progress feels good.

In other news, I finally organized pictures of my quilts! I'm still missing pictures of my very first quilt, so as soon as I get those I'll start putting them all up!