still schtuff

The Fiance lucked out of babysitting duty as the niece stayed at a cousin's house.

We spent the day at our every few months or so garagesale in Alameda. To which, everyone is saying, "Dang, how much stuff can you have to get rid of?"

We started out with 4 people and have expanded to 9 people, seven of whom had stuff for the sale. It's been a rotation in terms of who brings more stuff. Some of us only bring a handful of things. One guy is moving in with his girlfriend, so he was getting rid of various duplicate items. And his girlfriend was getting rid of various "ex-boyfriend" gifts that had been lingering in closets.

Another person had recently moved to a smaller place and had a few boxes. And Ninong was clearing some of Ninang's clothes and shoes. It was sad seeing all her things knowing she wouldn't need them any more. Remembered some of her favorite outfits. At the same time it was enjoyable knowing that someone else would find good use for them. One woman took quite a bit of her outfits to use for costumes in theater. It was nice to think that Ninang was still supporting the arts.

We sold alot of the stuff for $1 a bag. If they could stuff it in a bag, they could have everything in the bag for a $1. Larger items were a bit higher.

The first garagesale was easy. Easy to get rid of things you knew you were going to get rid of anyway. But subsequent ones are trickier, take a bit more soul searching as we let go of things from people not in our lives anymore, dealing with the relationships we used to have with them but no longer have. These things are much harder to let go of, they are filled with regret. Jackets our mothers gave us. Ex-boyfriend gifts. Ninang's shoes. Things we bought way overpriced now worth next to nothing yet still hardly used.

The focus on the garagesale though is karmic return. To be free of not just items, but to be free of the sadness linked to those items, in the hopes of setting them free and setting ourselves free. One person let go of some jackets his mother had given him. He didn't want to let them go because now that she was gone, there was a sadness in thinking that she was not here anymore and that the jackets were a reminder of her. But there are memories and then there are memories. Memories that gather dust in closets, fading over time. And then there are the memories that we use and engage, the ones that are vibrant and alive.

We let go of these things in the hopes that better things will take their place. I've been mentally taking note of the things that have come into my life from these sales. The last couple of times, I got several things that encouraged "rest and relaxation". This time, I got a snowboard and a kite (our dad bought for us when my brother was 6, my sister had it all this time). I guess the karmic return it telling me to go outdoors this time around.

With the upcoming nuptials we figure we'll need to do a few more garagesales. Changes in life, change the things you bring into your life, and the things that go out.