Monday, February 22, 2010

Cleaning My Clothes Closet


One of the things I hate the most doing is cleaning out my clothes closet. It was supposed to have been done before the beginning of the Chinese New Year and of course it didn’t get done. Since I did not have to go and look after my baby granddaughter, Dallas, today I decided to take the bull by the horns and get it done. I figured I would need about two large garbage bags to load everything into and after I would take it to some recycling bin. I had four bags.

My closet was loaded with clothes I had worn to work and no longer wear because 1) I no longer work and 2) I have gained weight since I stopped working. I have gained at least fifteen pounds. Although I am not overweight the clothes in my closet are in much smaller sizes. I even had clothes inside which I brought with me to Malaysia twenty eight years ago. Hey they were expensive and over the years I did not have the heart to throw them out but today was the day, I was merciless.

Why I have a tendency to collect so many clothes over the years is beyond me. Most are not worn and just hang there taking up space. I have to admit that any clothes that are given to me by my children as gifts will hang in my closet for years even if I no longer wear them or even like them. To me any gift from my children is to be cherished. After all they buy me gifts out of love and to throw these things away is like not having any appreciation for the love they show you. My drawers were once full of drawings, cards and other little pieces of useless knick knacks bought for me by my children. A few years ago I finally managed to let go and throw most of them away as my drawers were becoming too full and so it is the same with my clothes closet, I had no more hangers left and the clothes I had bought for the Chinese New Year were haphazardly thrown over the baby’s crib that is in my room.

This morning after my shower I got down to it with gusto. Out went all the slacks and jeans that I could no longer pull over my enlarged ass. Blouses, sweater and shirts which could no longer be pulled or buttoned over my sagging belly went. Shorts and tank tops which were too small or so old that they looked like rags were thrown out. Dresses, skirts and a few Baju Kebya’s and Kurungs (Malay Traditional costumes) were all thrown out. Other useless junk was thrown out as well along with faded out bed sheets I no longer use. Everything went and by time I was finished I had so many hangers left, well I just don’t know what to do with them and my closet is now so empty I have nothing to wear.

That’s ok though at least there is space in my closet now and over the next few years or so I’m sure those hangers will become full once again. There will be plenty more birthdays, Christmas’s, Mother’s Days and Chinese New Years that will warrant the buying of new clothes. There will undoubtedly be many more shopping trips where I will buy new clothes and probably a few years down the road I will take a look in my clothes closet and discover there is another load of clothes that no longer fit my growing ass.

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