I wish it were legal to kill rude neighbors, but we called the police instead.

 

When we first started to talk about what we were doing this weekend, I was originally planning to go to RQS's place as Marian.  However, I didn't have enough of my winter wardrobe ready for a cold weekend (cold by recent standards, that is) in NYC.  So, I surprised RQS by picking her up at the doctor's office as Mario and was lucky to find a spot near her house.

Why were we in NYC this weekend?

When one has an apartment in an older part of the city, one has to deal with vermin of all sorts (rodents, roaches, and other unwanted critters) on a regular basis.  This weekend, the exterminator was scheduled to come between 12 and 1 pm.  (In the past, he was scheduled to come between 10 am and noon, but things changed lately.)  So, both of us got showered and dressed, then waited - and waited for an exterminator who never came.  After a call to the super, we gave up and left for our next stop - RQS's storage compartment.

RQS has been cleaning out her storage compartment as long as I've known her.  Don't get me wrong.  She has a room sized compartment near her home which contains the detritus from her late parents' house which she has had to sort through over time.  So, we ended up spending time there, sorting through boxes, compacting empty cardboard boxes, and making it easier to get at things in the compartment.  After a couple of hours there, it was time to return to her apartment to rest a bit.

One of the movies we wanted to see is Conclave.  It is a story about what happens when a pope dies, and the political shenanigans which occur when some cardinals jockey to be elected pope.  Without giving away the final wrinkle in the film, there is bribery, there is a child born out of wedlock, and there is an incognito cardinal (with certification) who has been serving in Kabul, Afghanistan - all the things that would make a story about a papal Conclave interesting.  We highly recommend this movie for those who like intelligent drama.

Once the film was over, we ended up going back home.  And that's where things became sour.  One neighbor was having a party, playing music loud enough to make the glassware in RQS's curio cabinet rattle.  One could feel the floor thump a little due to the repetitive bass line from the loudness of the music being played.  It was 10:30 pm, and we wanted to sleep.  Our next door neighbor on the same floor was also being annoyed.  Since we couldn't be sure of whether it was the apartment below us causing the problem, or the noise was from the building next door, RQS called the police.  30 minutes later, it seemed as if things quieted down.  Just as well - I'd hate to see things continue like this because of an inconsiderate neighbor.

I got some things done this weekend.

 

Every time RQS comes up here, we spend a little time cleaning out the clutter in my apartment.  This weekend was the first time we attacked my downstairs storage compartment, and we got a lot done in less than an hour.  From not being able to make it in to the compartment, we made a path which allowed me to reach the back shelf of the compartment. This may not mean that much to some, but I have over 600 vinyl LPs in the compartment that I want to get rid of, and I have someone willing to buy them when I'm ready.  All I have to do is make a path, so that I can get all of the vinyl out of the compartment and into the record dealer's truck.

To say that my record collection reflects a sometimes eclectic taste is putting it mildly.  I have a CD of music which was played as the Titanic sank (not original, of course), Ernie Kovacs' music collection played on his TV show (including Solfeggio, or the theme for the Nairobi Trio), Orson Welles' recording of the Begatting of the President (about Nixon's election in 1968), Glenn Miller movie music, Gershwin's piano roll recording of Rhapsody in Blue, Carl Stalling's sound effects and music for Looney Tunes cartoons, and others too numerous to mention.  For all I know, I might be sitting on a gold mine.  But I doubt it very much.  My vinyl collection is in very good condition, and I hope it beings me enough money to pay for a long weekend away from home.

There are some things I plan to transfer from vinyl to digital storage.  For example, I have an alternate version of Jim Croce's "Age" which has never been released on CD.  Other vinyl recordings may be treated the same way - transferred to digital first, then disposed of.  But I intend to find out about a pressing of John Lennon's "Imagine" album that has two stampings of one side, and never should have gotten out of the factory.

So much cleanup to do, and so little energy at one time to do it....

Swedish death cleaning - American Style

 

Have you ever looked at a messy apartment and congratulated yourself for getting rid of a lot of the clutter? That's how I felt yesterday after a closet clean out session.  In addition to rationalizing what I'm keeping in the closet, I have given it greater organization for future storage.  

- - - - - -

Some of the things I found in the closet were tools needed for painting and for bathroom tile work. Although I will likely hire out most of the future work of this ilk, it pays for me to keep some of these tools around - just in case.  Next, I found 12 bottles of distilled spirits, all of which I intend to give away over time.  The bottles are properly sealed, and will likely have retained their alcohol content after 30 years. Then, I found enough clothing to fill 2 large donation bags - which went to the donation center today. What I found most interesting is the amount of makeup supplies that I've been keeping in reserve for future use. I never realized how much stuff I bought planning to use, and then stored away as my makeup needs changed.

I will soon need to clean out my storage compartment, so that I can make room for things I don't need in this apartment on a regular basis.  For example, I want to rotating out-of-season clothing between the apartment and the storage apartment, so that the apartment (and its closets) doesn't feel cramped anymore.  Part of this cleanup will be the disposal of a 600+ Vinyl LP collection  I don't play these albums anymore, and I want to see them go where someone might enjoy them.

In both the apartment and the storage compartment, I have some cut glass decanters which have never been used.  I know that 2 of these decanters in the apartment were wedding presents, but I'm not sure of the others that are in the storage compartment.  There will be a tinge of sadness when I get rid of these items, as I will be feeling sad for hopes that died with my wife.  The decanters are among many items I have which provide connections to my late wife, and going through all the clutter has stirred up both memories and feelings.  The more "valuable" things were when my wife was alive, the more feelings I will need to deal with as I dispose of those things.

- - - - - -

Given where things are now, I'm starting to see light at the end of the tunnel.  There's a part of me that wonders what my late wife would be doing had I been the one to pass away.  But I'll never have answers to those questions.  All I can do is move forward, so that I have a place that I can be proud to have guests in again.

Less is More

Lately, I've been driven to gradually eliminate clutter from my apartment to make room for the electricians to work on my electrical outlets and switches.   As a result, there is a great improvement on how the apartment looks, and a higher likelihood that I will again have a cleaning lady make regular visits to the apartment.

Looking at the above two pictures, you can easily see an improvement in the appearance of the area around my loveseat. Still, the work is far from done.  I now need to clean up more clutter in my bedroom, and then make room in my downstairs storage compartment to hold stuff that I use on a regular basis.  I'd consider storing containers with out-of-season clothing in this compartment, along with large packages of consumables (i.e. Paper Towels, Toilet Paper, etc.) that need not be kept in the apartment proper.

- - - - - -

I liken this process to answering the question:

How do you eat an elephant?

The answer given is:

One bite at a time.

That's the philosophy that RQS and I have been taking with cleaning out our respective apartments.  Both of us are dealing with the emotional value of objects.  With RQS, it is furniture and glassware inherited from family members.  With me, it is furniture and glassware inherited from my late wife, as well as some items gifted to me years ago.

- - - - - -

This evening, I watched a YouTube video on how to tell if you have too much stuff.  I'd say that most people of my generation have had to deal with this problem.  This has been a problem of mine for years now, and I feel that I must attack it while I'm still healthy enough to do so.  In the past 12 months, I must have donated 8-10 large bags filled with unwanted items and clothes and delivered them to a nearby donation center.  I have also given away 6+ boxes of unwanted books to a local library's thrift shop.  And I'm not done yet.

Part of decluttering is to provide temporary organization to the things one wants to keep, so that space can be made to hold things that are to be given away or trashed.  Once enough space is available, one removes the scaffolding of the temporary organization, and repeats the process until enough clutter has been eliminated to make a home feel comfortable again.  In my case, I have also taken on a philosophy that old things that are needed, but no longer are comfortable or reliable (i.e. worn out sofas and mattresses, and TVs that no longer work properly) should be replaced as needed to create a more comfortable living space. This means that I will be improving what's left in my home.

- - - - - -

Hopefully, in a few months or so, I will have a place that I will feel comfortable having guests in again. Until then, it will be a process of pruning what I own to a level where I consider the apartment a home, and not just a cramped nest....