We, out of consideration for the people who we will inevitably leave behind, are in the process of clearing out accumulated rubbish and bric-a-brac. We started with the filing cabinets and the computer room. A huge amount of paper that we thought might be important one day has now been shredded and put in the recycle bin. My wardrobe has yielded quite a few items that I no longer have the chance to wear. I kept them in case I needed some after five sparkle but no more cruises for us so they went to the Salvation Army thrift shop.
Next it was the shoes. Too many shoes and most were becoming shabby so a few pairs went in the rubbish bin. Today I will make another trip to the Salvos to donate a brand new pair of strappy silver evening sandals, a pair of pink lolly coloured sandals barely worn at all and an expensive pair of black suede dress shoes with heels. I have never worn them outside the house and have been holding onto them on the off chance that one day I might need a good pair at a moment's notice but really, my knees are never going to tolerate even medium heels any more. I'll never wear such shoes ever again while I am still breathing, and after that I won't need them any more. If they can be sold and the money be used to support a charity, then that is much better than sitting in the wardrobe inviting mildew.
The process is not finished. The garage and the shed need a lot of purging but Hubby is more attached to his old things than I am. I did manage to to persuade him to join me in the shoe cull though.
Edit. The volunteers at the Salvos were very happy with the shoes. I had cleaned, washed or polished them and they looked quite presentable. Final touch was to sanitise the insides with a fungicide spray. Even if they can't sell them they might be given to homeless men with big feet.
