When you finally have to get rid of all your stuff

[crazyoldboatguy]

The admiral and I are going thru this at this time as well. We started downsizing last spring with a garage sale and selling thru the interweb. We have given much away to family and friends. The folks at Goodwill know us by name. The house has been put up for sale.

The admiral retired in May. I can retire late next year. The boat project has been restarted - it is a huge crazy undertaking which I may well document in the appropriate place here. The reconstruction of a 70 y/o wood boat is lunacy but a man has to do at least one crazy thing in his life. The admiral prefers the boat project to an expensive sports car or my having an affair - go figure.

It has been a trying time for us. The admiral had, for many years, kept the book collection her father had amassed as well as his piano. All but a few choice books have been sold. The used book world is in a huge transformation. There is little demand for much printed word unless the books are rare. The books didn't sell for very much.

We had collected much stuff during our 30+ year marriage. It has been quite liberating to get rid of most of it. The rest will be stored in a trailer I bought that will be stored inside a shed on family property during what we hope is an extended period cruising on the rebuilt boat once it is completed.

[popeye31]

Just made my first $50 from my junk. woohooo only $24950 to go.

[Chris66]

Having disposed of my worldly goods on more than one occasion I can make a couple of suggestions that may help.
Books- Most seaside cities have a Seafarers mission and they are always grateful for any books they receive. Who knows, one day you may be run down in the middle of the night by a watchman reading one of your old books.
Clothing- Find a charity that distributes goods to a third world country. They will often collect and are not as fussy as the local charity / resell shops. Bare in mind that most secondhand clothing sent to charity is shredded for rags if it is not 100%.
Tools- Those that you find are not worth selling but are still of value can be donated to your local "Men's Shed" or similar. The old guys there will certainly put them to good use and one day upon your return you might find yourself at the Men's Shed, just to be able to tinker with something when the boat projects have run out.
All of the rest that simply cannot be thrown away- Buddy up to someone who owns a large factory or warehouse and exchange storage of a couple of pallets for sips of rum and tall tales.
Stuff is just stuff and if you speak to anyone who has been through a natural disaster and lost everything you will realise that none of it really means anything.

[Capt Phil]

If you are traveling to Mexico or the South Pacific, particularly some of the smaller islands, simple tools (non-power)are really appreciated as are kids clothing and school supplies. Try and search out the local priest who usually know the ones truly in need. Village elders are also good folks to get to know who can get your spare junk to folks who really need it.
Phil

[Crosis]

My unimportant view of liquidating stuff is if you need money to fund your move, boat purchase or cruise then by all means try to sell what you can for as much as you can. If you don't need money then why try to get money? For me, I don't need the money I would make from selling my stuff. I will be giving it away to people who can give it a good home. Most of my stuff is collectibles. Star trek stuff. Some may be worth money some might not be. It doesn't matter. I will give it away. This will enable me to be possession free in a short time.

[robert.]

We are selling most of what we have individually. My wife is a cragslist maniac. I am good at Ebay for the more expensive and small stuff. It is amazing and even disgusting what we spend our money on to fill a house that we don't use! We are both getting stoked about living on the boat full time and getting rid of our stuff. I sold my truck recently and I was happy to get more than I expected. It is six months before we leave and the insurance savings will add up. I am about to sell everything from my storage unit including a couple of ORV's. I think I will like the $$ in my account for than the thought of what I own. I made a promise to myself not to do this ever again, once we get settled on an island somewhere in the future. LOL.

Fair winds!

[IdoraKeeper]

Anyone fixing up an Alden is my kind of people. Deleting stuff is just like getting in shape and losing weight. Enjoy!