This year marks my 40th in amateur astronomy and the 54th ride around Sol. Along the way I've collected a lot of stuff related to the hobby, 90% of which is not used. Add to this the "stuff" from other hobbies, surplus from two businesses (obsolete equipment, dead-end projects, tools, etc.), and I figure with retirement looming it's time to get rid of most of it.
Many of the obvious solutions aren't available now -- the local schools don't want donated electronics components, and our local dump charges a hefty recycling fee for anything with wires and blinkin' lights. The auction sites are a PITA for small stuff. I suppose I could just throw it all in a dumpster, and now and then that option seems really attractive, until the wagging finger in my head tells me not to be wasteful.
So what would you do? Have any of you been through this? I saw good ol' Wayne Dyer on PBS a couple of years ago wearing silk pajamas and extolling the virtues of getting rid of "stuff". He made it sound easy.
Many of the obvious solutions aren't available now -- the local schools don't want donated electronics components, and our local dump charges a hefty recycling fee for anything with wires and blinkin' lights. The auction sites are a PITA for small stuff. I suppose I could just throw it all in a dumpster, and now and then that option seems really attractive, until the wagging finger in my head tells me not to be wasteful.
So what would you do? Have any of you been through this? I saw good ol' Wayne Dyer on PBS a couple of years ago wearing silk pajamas and extolling the virtues of getting rid of "stuff". He made it sound easy.
Jim McSheehy
