Some realms just become "clutter magnets". The junk just seems to accumulate there. A tool chest is a good example of this. Let's just look at two examples from the infamous "Why do I still have this?" category.
I honestly don't know how hold this masking tape is. It could very well have been from my parents' original home, and purchased when I was in high school. I really don't know. What I did know, is that when I tried taking off a piece, it tore off into the shape of Nevada. So I tried again. And again. And again. "But surely," I thought, "with a roll of tape this big, I must be able to get at least half of the tape off in full pieces, right?" No such luck.
You might think rolls of tape like this are too big or too full to throw away. Or at least that's the mentality of a pack rat. But they're not. Into the trash you go, Mr. Tape. You're dryer than...well, you just think some old female celebrity, whoever comes to mind for you first. And now think of a part of her anatomy. There, I didn't say it. But you just thought it!
And now we come to the floss. I bought this when I moved into my old place some 8 years ago. "200 yards! I'll be set for YEARS!" Or so I thought. You see, in my old place, my sink was right next to the shower, and the only thing separating the two besides the tub itself, was a shower curtain. I had this floss on the side of the sink. Sure enough, a lady I was dating at the time somehow managed to move the curtain and have it fall into the shower, into a pool of soap-scummy shower water.
Well, I sure as hell wasn't going to put anything from this particular spool into my mouth again. But with 200 yards (minus whatever I used in the week before it took a high dive into sludge city), my pack rat mentality kicked in. "Surely," I thought, "I can use this for some kind of rope or twine." After seeing it in my toolbox for years, I finally realized "No, I'm NOT going to end up using it for some purpose like that. Besides, who'd want to hang a picture with something waxy and mint-scented?" Into the trash you finally go, with your even older friend Mr. Tape.
