How many of you are in this position??

"How many of you are in this position??" asks Ronnie of Nashville​

Me too, I guess. Last ten years of my military career, Linda and I were moving every two years. With each move we were taking less with us, shedding 'stuff' with every move. By retirement, we were lean and mean as far as possessions go. How I long for those days again.

Retired here in Houston for twenty years now, I am surrounded by stuff my kids have no use for. Heck, I use very little of it. What to do with it? There are times when I'd settle for some natural disaster to take it all so I don't have to worry over how to dispose of it. But that would be too easy.

There is just not a market for this stuff anymore. Now, as I understand it, donations are no longer tax deductible here in the US. That takes Goodwill out of the picture. Well, not really-as it is a place to dispose of it. But they are reaching saturation as well. Dunno. Neighborhood bonfire and weenie roast comes to mind. Good way to meet people and have great fun burning all that extraneous stuff?
 

We have an interesting situation like this that centers around generational distance from the source. My wife's parents were missionaries in Japan for 40 years. They accumulated a lot, (I mean a lot!) of Japanese "things", including artwork, lacquerware, etc.; some of which is quite valuable. These things are very important to them and they believe that their children hold them in similar regard. (Some do, some don't.) Since she grew up over there, my wife is very appreciative of and values these things. The primary theme of our home decor is Japanese, with things that she acquired herself, as well as things that have come to us from her parents. When they go - there will be a LOT more coming our way (that we don't really have room for).

Our daughters, on the other hand, while they have grown up around these things - do not have the same attachment. In fact we have already given them the few things that they have expressed any desire to have, primarily a few wood block prints and paintings.

So, we will eventually have quite a treasure trove of Japanese things that will have to be disposed of.
 
Gary O' said:
Doubt I'll give a rat's pooper who does what with whatever we leave
Kids are getting our properties
Along with that, our prized junk
Part of the deal
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That is how it's going to be. I think by then they'll find more of it useful.

As we cleaned out our parent's houses, so shall they be tasked with the tradition.
 
Too many knick knacks here. For sure.

I can't believe some of the stuff I see in carts at the Goodwill. I often buy nothing there. Or a book or two. Rarely do I find more than two items. I see people's carts loaded. I don't know if they are hoarders or what the deal is.
 
I'm the last one of my family still alive, I've never married and when I'm gone the family will be extinct.
We lived overseas for 20 years; I grew up in Hong Kong and Mom & Dad were collectors of many Chinese artifacts and all the paraphernalia requisite for the regular entertaining that ex-pats did in those colonial times.
I'm planning on staying on this rural property another 10 years and then move into an apartment in town if I'm too feeble to handle this location anymore. So then I expect I'll arrange for an auction to unload the bulk of these items and keep the best for myself.
If I check out before then I suppose my PR will bring the auctioneers on.
In the meantime I eat healthy, exercise and try to age as gracefully as I reasonably can.
While the past speaks to me from every place my gaze lingers inside this house.
 
My mother had a cabinet full of fine china. Like the OP said, no one wants it anymore. My guess is that she never used it, but she felt like Hyacinth from Keeping Up Appearances with her Royal Doulton china.

The realtor who sold her home also held an open house to sell the belongings she didn't need when she moved into assisted living. Most of the large items like furniture sold. The rest we took to Goodwill. We kept her pictures and mementos.
 
Marian said:
Whoa! I was censored! 😳 was that a bad word? I used the medical term for that part of the anatomy.
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You know what a no-no is, right @Marian? acuteWell, that's how it is around here. :rolleyes: Mama Google doesn't like those words, whether you use the medical term for them or not, you'll get the asterisk treatment. I had an entire post deleted before I knew the "rules." We don't get it, but that's the way it is. wassat
 
George1959 said:
I didn't collect anything except books. Now I bring them to the municipal waste combustor,
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Can’t you donate them to a library or similar.

hearlady said:
See? I knew this would come in handy!"
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A phrase that men learned at their daddy’s knee.

fuzzybuddy said:
I can understand why a 28 year old would not want a 64 piece tea set that just sits on shelves. What were yesterday's status objects, today, they may have lost that status
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And they’re not dishwasher safe.
 
No antique junk to pass down. Financial assets, home & contents defined in our wills. Obviously what they do with that is up to them. Never did accumulate anything that didn't have a functional use.
 
We have tons of antiques. Some are heirlooms some we bought. Our DIL hates anything we like. Our son loves our stuff but not enough to fight with his B of a wife. We have nieces who will likely get the heirlooms other stuff will be sold by us starting this summer.
 
I have Glass and China Tea Sets, plates , my daughter said shes not interested in them .. And yet I was telling my son the memory of a Veinna cup and saucer that hubby bought me 50 year ago , I think the memory it evoked of his father really touched him and i think he will hang onto it after im gone .
 
We are facing this right now. 15 years ago we got married and moved from 2 1800 sq ft homes to one 1400 sq ft home. Now, our last (hopefully) move has been from that home to an 11 sq ft apartment. Since it is cheaper to pay rent on the old place than to put stuff in storage, we are slowly getting rid of stuff.
We still have some major pieces of furniture we will have to dispose of.
 
bowmore said:
We are facing this right now. 15 years ago we got married and moved from 2 1800 sq ft homes to one 1400 sq ft home. Now, our last (hopefully) move has been from that home to an 11 sq ft apartment. Since it is cheaper to pay rent on the old place than to put stuff in storage, we are slowly getting rid of stuff.
We still have some major pieces of furniture we will have to dispose of.
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might want to edit the part about to an 11 sq ft apartment
 
Well I was...sort of. My mother left silverware and a silver serving tray, which after awhile I decided I would never take time to clean, She had plenty of knick nacks, including some nice ceramic figurines...which again I could not be bothered with. I hated cleaning those things when I was younger. I kept her frosted glass candle holder (pictured) that sits on my bathroom shelf , a decorative amber colored glass vase, a rose colored pitcher, a few of her clip on earrings and some of her clothes. I also kept a round copper tray with black faux leather and a stainless steel tray with etchings.

20230307_115536.jpeg
 
My parents did not own antiques or collectibles or anything like that, so nothing was passed down. Both parents said to feel free to sell modern furniture, the piano, designer clothes, etc. Hubby and I have no kids.
 
I do not have anything valuable. I would say all of it is more sentimental to me. The oldest things are a rocking chair from the Sears catalog circa 1930s and a rifle that was owned by hubs great great grandfather, I am not sure of the make but it was produced in 1909. There are a few pieces of jewelry.

I have things of my fathers, his pipes which he bought all over the world while in the Air Force, black and white pictures taken from aircraft. a picture of him shaking Nixon's hand on a base visit, his flag that covered his coffin during a military funeral 1963. Various other personal items, I even have his denim duffle bag from his service. I hope my son will keep all these things and pass on to future generations.
 
squatting dog said:
Same hear. Daughter hates me, but, she gets it all. I'm guessing the cars will be sold right off along with a few guns, and the rest will end up in a landfill. :(
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Your daughter hates you, that just can't be true. I really can't imagine a world where there child hates them unless there was severe abuse. I know that is not possible, you are not a mean person. I know you suffered a lot in the war but I do not see you as one who would place that anger or horror on others. Did she make decisions in her own life, drug or alcohol abuse that she has chosen to you to take responsibility so she does not have to face the fact or the consequences of her own actions.

If that is the case, I would not leave her anything. I know you are quite an animal person, why not leave your estate to organizations that train dogs as service animals. There are so many that need the blind, children, vets, seizures, anxiety issues.

If everything fell apart, and I felt my assets should not go to my son this would be on my list. I would change my will for part of my funds to go to those organizations, part to go to my local animal shelter and part to our local high school band programs.
 
Shalimar said:
Sometimes, offspring fixate on a parent/both parents as scapegoats. Sad, and very toxic.
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My older sister was huge into this revisionist guilt tripping of my parents. Her life didn't unfold like she wanted, so she would lash out/ blame my parents.

I told Mom and Dad not to pay any attention to these ridiculous allegations...that we all won the lottery when we got them as parents. My sister chose her own path and when it didn't work out she just needed someone to blame, I gather.
 

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