The Memory Caves of Your Home
Did you know that your home has one, two, three or more caves hidden within? Fortunately, we’re not talking the Mammoth or Carlsbad Cave variety, but instead hidden areas that serve as memory caves, full of a lifetime of memories both good and bad. The easy five-step process you’re about to learn about will help you get a handle on these memory caves, so let the adventure begin!
We’ll start with determining where exactly your memory caves reside. Most likely they are notorious nooks like the garage, basement, and attic — places that are just enough away from your usual living spaces that you can let things build up without really noticing.
Memory caves hold everything from priceless antiques with incredible stories behind them, to forgotten items that you don’t need anymore. Whether the things in your memory caves are important or plain old clutter, they cause the same problem: Unorganized items take up a lot of space, both physically and emotionally.
Having a memory cave garage, for example, might mean that you don’t have room to park your car. And that cluttered basement? It can weigh on you mentally and emotionally, knowing that you have an entire space that isn’t being used to its potential.
It takes a solid plan to address memory caves, and the process is made even easier by breaking it down into these five easy steps:
Step One – Identify Your Problem Areas
Every house, and every person, is different. This means that your neighbor’s memory caves are unique from yours.
Only you can identify your memory cave locations yourself. Consider where you hide things that you don’t use on a regular basis. Where do the holiday decorations go? How about the clothes you’d like to fit into one day? And where are the family heirlooms that you keep but don’t display?
You may find that you use one area as a memory cave, or various spaces within your home. These are the places you’ll need to tackle.
Step Two – Prepare to Declutter
Start with one room. A typical memory cave can take some time to declutter, so it can be helpful to have a snack and a drink at the ready. Then gather some bags or boxes and organize them into three categories:
- Donate;
- Move to Another Room;
- Repair;
- Trash.
Step Three – Start Sorting
With the bags or boxes at the ready, venture into the memory cave and start sorting! Pro tip: It can be easier to start with larger items, as they are more visible and can moving them can make an immediate impact.
For every item you touch, determine if it should be donated, if it belongs in a different room of your home, if it needs to be fixed or repaired, or if it is garbage. Keep in mind that something that still has life can be donated instead of trashed.
Work your way from larger items down to smaller items, sorting as you go.
Step Four – Clean Up
Now that the room is empty, or close to empty, you can do some quick cleaning. Dust, scrub, mop or sweep, and wipe down surfaces. You are well on your way to making this a more useful space, so start with a clean blank slate!
If there are any structural things you need to make the room more functional, like shelving, install it before returning your “keep” items to the room. Having gone through your belongings in the memory cave, it should be easier to know what types of storage solutions might be useful.
Step Five – Deal with the Items
It’s time to go back to the sorted items. For garbage and recycling, the solution is easy — throw these items out or take them away to be recycled. This will take care of a large part of your clutter problem!
For keep items, put them back into your space, but in an organized fashion. You should have fewer items to store, so your space will better suit your needs.
For items that need to be repaired, get on it right away so that they don’t become part of another memory cave. Items that belong in other rooms should be moved as soon as possible for the same reason.
Schedule a Donation Pickup with Pickup Please
For items you have identified as good donation candidates, it is equally important to make that donation as soon as possible. Many people get as far as sorting, but the items never leave their homes.
Connect with us at Pickup Please and we’ll make it easy to move your unwanted items. In the process of decluttering, you can also make a difference to the lives of American veterans and their families.
We can take away all of those things you do not want stored in your memory caves, including clothes, home décor, and other household goods. We’ll do so quickly and it won’t cost you a thing. Plus, Pickup Please allows you to schedule your pickup online, and we can be at your home to retrieve your items in as little as 24 hours in most locations. And you’ll get your tax deduction receipt, because your donations generate funding for many support programs of the Vietnam Veterans of America.
When you set up a donation with us, all you have to do is pick a day that works with your schedule, and leave your labeled bags or boxes outside on that day.
We will arrive on the designated day, whether you are home or not, and in rain or shine. It doesn’t get much easier than that!
If you want to clear out space in your home, and get rid of things that you are no longer using, you can support a great cause at the same time. Setting up a donation pickup with Pickup Please is easy. Schedule a free collection of unwanted items via the online form.
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