{"id":6032,"date":"2025-12-22T14:26:34","date_gmt":"2025-12-22T20:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/?p=6032"},"modified":"2025-12-22T14:26:35","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T20:26:35","slug":"toss-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/toss-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Toss It"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>With new gifts filling your house, should you keep your old stuff or toss it? I grew up in a family that used the same pieces of Christmas wrap for 10 or 15 years. We weren\u2019t allowed to tear open a package. We carefully cut along the tape or lifted it gently, refolded the paper, and stored it away for another year.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"675\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Whut-is-it-675x450.jpg\" alt=\"African American woman in front of black background looking surprised while holding a small present with lid open. \" class=\"wp-image-6034\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Whut-is-it-675x450.jpg 675w, https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Whut-is-it-338x225.jpg 338w, https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Whut-is-it-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Whut-is-it-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Whut-is-it-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Whut-is-it-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>The fact that we held onto things is evident in the houses I\u2019ve cleaned out and the building I\u2019m still emptying. I\u2019ve rented multiple 30- and 40-yard dumpsters \u2013 5 just for stuff my mother accumulated. Two of those equaled over 10,000 pounds of trash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As gifts arrive, it\u2019s a great time to contemplate another round of tossing. As I do, I\u2019m reminded that I like feeling prepared. But do I <em>really<\/em> need another insulated tumbler, or do I just hate washing the one I have?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So when it comes to a specific item, how do you decide whether to keep it or toss it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Determining what to keep can begin with a few simple questions\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><em>Does this item feed me or weigh me down?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Do I use this item or is its value sentimental?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Would someone in my family value this more than I do?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Is the item in disrepair?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Would cash serve me better at this moment?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Could the item help someone?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>How long have I had this without using it?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Can it be replicated digitally then disposed of?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Does this thing fit my current lifestyle?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Am I hanging onto something based on wishful thinking?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Has the tech become outdated?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Is it something my family or neighbors can collectively use?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Do I have more than one thing that serves this purpose?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Have I received an updated version?<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Can it be repurposed and will I repurpose it?<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>How you answer these questions will make some answers obvious. If something weighs you down, toss it. If something has mostly sentimental value, a photo may suffice. If the item is in disrepair and you determine that you aren\u2019t willing, or can\u2019t afford to, fix it, give it away (or sell it).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While I don\u2019t want to hang onto every little thing, I like the feeling of being prepared. I hate the feeling of being wasteful. I keep the best boxes throughout the year to use for gifts during the holiday season. I keep small flowerpots when I repot to larger ones. I have a collection of Allen wrenches I\u2019ve saved from furniture assembly just in case a bolt comes loose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I have jumper cables plus a rechargeable jump starter. I don\u2019t plan to get rid of them because I\u2019ve loaned them to two neighbors in the last month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the other hand, there\u2019s a window seat, cedar chest, and box of small antiques that are nagging me to sort and toss. If I don\u2019t finish those before the end of the year, I want to make sure they are included in my 2026 calendar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Actually scheduling a toss out reminds me that as long as I don\u2019t replace at the same rate I toss, I have more time for fun. It also allows me to take advantage of free recycling events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I wish you lots of lovely gifts this holiday season, but when one isn\u2019t for you, don\u2019t be afraid to toss it to someone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Happy Holidays!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With new gifts filling your house, should you keep your old stuff or toss it? I grew up in a family that used the same pieces of Christmas wrap for 10 or 15 years. We weren\u2019t allowed to tear open a package. We carefully cut along the tape or lifted it gently, refolded the paper, &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/toss-it\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Toss It&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[792,9],"tags":[3950,220,502,499,3948,3949],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6032"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6032"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6032\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6035,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6032\/revisions\/6035"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}