Packrat

Back in July, I moved from the US back to Canada. I must say, it feels great to be close to my family and old friends again. However, I did have to leave behind a great church and many close friends whom I got to know really well.

To minimize the cost of moving, I sold all of my furniture, since most of it was purchased at Ikea or Walmart and not worth keeping. I do regret selling my desk chair; it was a faithful companion for seven years, but the cost of sending it back was prohibitive. Everything else either accompanied me on the flight or was shipped via courier. Even taking into account the cost of repurchasing furniture, I saved several thousand dollars versus using a moving company.

In preparation for the move, I spent the month beforehand gradually sorting through my stuff, tossing/donating what I didn't need anymore, and packing the rest in boxes. As I was going through old folders and boxes, I realised that I might be a bit of a packrat. Here's a sample of what I found:

• Three boot disks - one for Windows 98, one for Windows Me, and another for Windows XP.
• My health insurance card from university. (It was tucked in a CD folder than I hadn't opened in years.)
• Microphone from the IBM Aptiva that my family bought in 1996.
• The 2007-08 donors giving report from my alma mater.
• Unused cheques from a bank account I hadn't used in about ten years.
• This list. (The paper copy fell into a box and was lost for a few days.)
• A dozen lanyards from university orientation or corporate events.
  
• A full set of monthly bus passes from a co-op work term in 2005.
• Employee discount card from the above co-op work term.
• Coupon for one play of Skeeball at an amusement park in New York State.
• A SnakeLight!
  
• Flash cards that I had made to study for Calculus I in first year of university.
• Two wheat pennies.
• This list. (I lost it a second time.)
  

I tossed most of the things above, but I did keep a few of them. I am a recovering packrat, after all.