Most of my spring cleaning so far has been using things up (via SKTL's April Pantry Post) or giving them one last affectionate gaze and then loading them into a PRE-donation box. I stopped buying paper books about 10 years ago during the height of my international travel, but I still kept a few dozen gifts, interests and speculative collector's items. We've all been there: a well-meaning friend or relative hands you a dope graphic novel or collection of essays for your birthday and it's all good in the moment. After some time, you realize it's this 300-page obligation from that loving person who listened to your interests and made that wonderful gesture. Now, as much as I enjoy reading, I am quite slow at it, so the stack just doesn't feel right to show off. Into the PRE-donation box they go, along with videogames and gadgets.
From that box, there are rarely things I feel comfortable re-gifting. In such a consumer culture, the idea of re-gifting can be sensitive. I think there's too much of a focus on the condition of things rather than how useful or thoughtful the item in question is. It's especially a missed opportunity because oftentimes, we can clean the item ourselves and present something rather nice that has the only drawback of missing its shrink-wrap.
The other consideration from the box is the value check, and this is where we all have Closet Gold. A lot of this old media and tech is worth something to someone somewhere, so I usually search for the PRE-donation box items on eBay to see what people are paying. I am a huge fan of Facebook Marketplace and eBay. Facebook Marketplace is free to use, but my 3-years experience has lead me to lots of last-minute cancellations. eBay has selling fees, and you'll need to find packaging as well as ship the item yourself, but you can generally get more money for the item and you don't have to deal with flakes. The best part of both apps is that using them on your phone makes the listing process quick and convenient. I spent 10 minutes listing 7 items on eBay and I made $37 this weekend off two books that are too niche to donate.
The last option for the PRE-donation box is of course to donate or give away. With your tools, please keep the SKTL in mind, as we are looking for electric pressure washers, sawzalls, and lawnmowers. Heck, you could sell the items through one of the above methods and donate the proceeds if that's more useful to your recipients! Anyway, what I'm saying is in our rush to make space and consolidate, let's not forget that sweet sparkly Closet Gold.
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