The other day I reached into my freezer for some ice. Since my ice maker only partially works, I encountered a large frozen blob. This happens frequently, meaning I periodically have to dump the whole thing out and start over. As I dumped the ice blob, I noticed some things about the ice cubes that got me thinking about other accumulated, lumped-together possessions. These thoughts led to this post: When You Hold On Too Long… A Simple Lesson from a Surprising Place.
Fresh ice is a beautiful thing, isn’t it? It is crystal clear, shiny, and makes a glorious sound when dropped into and swished around in a glass…
The whole “fresh ice” experience makes me happy. There’s just something fabulous about things that are pristine, novel, and unspoiled. It’s so fun to have new things!
In contrast, the longer we hold onto possessions, the less exciting they often become. Admittedly, we have our “old favorites,” like the comfortable jeans, soft sweatshirt, or chair that molds perfectly to our body. Nevertheless, the excitement we feel for most belongings fades over time. This is normal, which is why professional organizers often talk about the importance of circulating items out of your space.
For a variety of reasons, we tend to hold onto items longer than we should, such as:
- Concern we will miss it once it is gone.
- Fear we will need it after letting go.
- Desire to be environmentally conscious and not “throw things into a landfill.”
- Belief that we will “someday” fix, repair, mend, clean or otherwise restore pieces to working order.
- Guilt about letting go.
- Anxiety over looming criticism from family members and/or friends.
- Vague plans to use them in the future.
- A “just in case” mindset.
As a result of these decluttering hurdles, many individuals hold items that are unused, unwanted, and – in many cases – uncared for. Unfortunately, simply holding onto items neither honors them, nor guarantees that we will use them in the future.
Getting back to my ice cubes. As I waited for the ice cubes to melt in my sink, I made a few observations.
Characteristics of Old Ice Cubes
Loss of Attractiveness
The congealed blob of ice was not very appealing. What used to be beautiful little chunks of icy joy had become a lopsided and bizarre-looking monster. Honestly, it didn’t look like anything I’d want to put in my drink.
Shrinkage
Oddly, and for reasons I can’t fully explain, many of the ice cubes from this mass had shrunk in size. As those of us of a certain age joke, these ice cubes “aren’t what they used to be.” They no longer had their characteristic shape. I’m guessing this is because the seal on my freezer is imperfect, and they are partially thawing in the tray and then sticking to each other. Of course, a small ice cube can still chill a beverage, but certainly not as well as it did when it was full size.
Discoloration
Another thing I can’t explain (I’m sure the scientists out there will tell me in the comments) is why the ice cubes had grown cloudy. The crystal-clear cubes were gone, replaced by opaque, almost white ice cubes. They also smelled a little “off,” as if they had absorbed odors from the other items in the area. Again, this fact alone doesn’t render them useless, but did I really want to use ice that looks icky and might impart an unwanted scent?
Comingled
As mentioned before, the ice was in a blob. Part of my ice maker leaks water into the tray, so in addition to congealed cubes, there is also a “skating rink” at the bottom right half of my tray that glues the whole thing together. [I know, I should get a new icemaker, but the cost of replacement is sort of daunting!]
Even if I could carve off a chunk small enough to fit into my glass, it might overwhelm the drink. Plus, I wouldn’t be able to stir it around and hear the cheerful jiggle, so it just wouldn’t be the same.
How Old Ice Cubes are Like Our Stuff
Household possessions, like old ice cubes, can lose their appeal over time. They may wear, fade, break, stretch, shrink, stain, wrinkle, become moth-eaten, fall out of compliance, or become otherwise undesirable. We may have kept things with good intentions, but over time, these good intentions have been reduced to accumulated clutter (at best) and unusable items (at worst). For example:
- We keep old baby clothes for younger siblings or grandchildren, but when we pull them out, mysterious old stains have reappeared.
- We stash sporting equipment in the garage in case we decide to take up the sport in the future, but they fall into disrepair in the damp/hot/cold space.
- We save items because “they might be worth something someday,” but over time, their market value crashes.
- We pile boxes of memorabilia in cardboard boxes in a basement which unexpectedly floods, ruining the contents.
- We hold onto “extra” furniture for our children who, upon moving out, inform us that don’t want any of it.
- We store thousands of photos in the cloud, for which we repeatedly pay for incremental storage, but then can’t find a photo we want when we really want it.
- We keep all the cords for every device we’ve ever owned, but we need one, the collection is so tangled and unidentifiable that we end up ordering a new one from Amazon.
The Lesson from Old Ice Cubes
So, what should we take away from these old, shrunken, smelly, cloudy ice cubes? I suggest setting aside some time–perhaps over the next couple of months– to intentionally examine your “old stuff.”
What do you have that has been in storage for a long time? Look into spaces like attics, eaves, basements, crawl spaces, under beds, in spare closets, on high shelves, and in storage units. Maybe you have boxes that you’ve never unpacked from a previous move, or maybe some belongings that you haven’t touched in years. Perhaps you have containers of food or supplies you stockpiled during the pandemic. If you haven’t interacted with it in a while, it’s a good candidate for review!
Importantly, this isn’t a job that needs to be tackled in a day. Rather, bring one box at a time to a well-lit, comfortable space like a dining room or near the living room couch. Set aside a time (e.g., each night while watching TV, for 30 minutes once a week, etc.) to simply review what you have. Be honest about whether you use it, need it, and/or still love it, and about how much time and energy you are willing to put into returning it to full functionality.
I’m all about the circular economy. If you have items that are still usable, then instead of storing them for decades on the slim chance you might use them, pass them on to someone who can use them now. There is a lot of need out there, and it would feel lousy to keep something for so long that by the time you pull it out, it can’t be used.
At the same time, if the condition of an unwanted piece is already poor, resist the urge to donate it. While donating might alleviate the guilt of letting go, doing so can create a burden for someone else. If you need help with how to get rid of unwanted items, check out the series I did on how to get rid of things.
Stay Focused on the Reward When Dumping Old Ice
Whenever I dump out a tray of old, yucky ice cubes, it isn’t long before I hear the “drop” of new cubes into the bin. Within a day, I will have a tray full of the ice I love to look at and use.
Getting rid of the old makes space for the new. Decluttering not only makes you feel lighter, but it also keeps you focused on the life you are living today, with space for what might come into your life tomorrow.
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What do you own that you haven’t looked at in years?
I don’t know about the thawing and sticking together, but I do know that ice shrinks in the freezer (when not used soon enough) simply because freezer air is dry and the ice essentially evaporates. (Even if the freezer seal is good.) And yes, I have some things that need review. I’m pretty good about rotating food, but pharmacy-type items not so much. I also remember once thinking I had some good camping supplies, but when it came right down to it, they had deteriorated in the hot/cold garage where they’d been stored for too long.
I’ve definitely had that experience of pulling something out that I thought was good, only to realize it was now trash. I always feel bad when this happens, like I made a decision with good intentions (or kind of didn’t make a decision at all), and then it turned into waste. At least with the ice, when I melt the blob, it goes back into the pipes or I can use the chunks to water plants.
What a great analogy! As we declutter, we often see how long overdue it is to let go item because it is not as “good” as it once was.
Exactly, not as good and sometimes, not even usable. It’s just a reminder to myself that keeping doesn’t always equal future use.
Seana, as often happens, I feel like you’ve been watching me! I can relate to more of these analogies than I care to admit.
I recently read that cats get bored with their toys so instead of leaving them all out (which I’ve usually done), you should only put out a few and switch them up every couple of weeks. Maybe we should do the same with some of our own stuff, like clothes, knick knacks, etc!
The knick knacks – oh yes! Rotating it is what makes me notice (and hence) enjoy those things, right?
Great reminder, Seana. I can relate to the ice maker situation; we have the same issue.
Visiting these old things in a home makes me happy. They are small tasks that can be done quickly. Perfect for me and others with just a few minutes. I like to do this during mid-August through September, during Emergency Preparedness Month. This task helps me see what I actually need and what I do not for emergencies. Having a timeline and a ‘why’ reason for clearing these old things helps me get things done quickly and makes me feel accomplished in a short amount of time.
That’s a good reminder… going through our stash of emergency and first aid supplies. Since we don’t touch those often, its easy for these to become out of date without our noticing!
Your analogy to the ice cubes in your freezer had me chuckling. I can just see it and understand completely how these ice cubes compare to things we hang onto just because. This is one reason Jonda’s Zone plan works so well. When you assign a room or area to a month of the year and then spend that month intentionally reviewing every item in the room there’s less likelihood of things collecting. Of course, doing this requires a whole bunch of discipline and scheduling.
I’m glad to hear so many relate to my ice cube analogy. Makes me feel better about my ailing freezer LOL! Yes, love Jonda’s zone plan!!
I enjoyed your analogy. My icemaker was like that after a few years, and I just disconnected it and went back to the old reliable ice cube trays. While I am pretty good about letting go and getting rid of things I know there are some things in the attic that are ready to depart. I’ll handle that this November when I routinely work in my attic. The past couple of years I have noticed the items but just passed over them.
Attic is a classic place for this type of stuff to end up. I know we’ve got stuff up there that can go. Memorabilia particularly seems to go up there to hibernate. 🙂
You had me at ice cubes! I love them as much as you. Once when our icemaker broke, I was besides myself until my wise friend suggested I purchase some ice cube trays or a bag of ice. So smart. I hadn’t even thought of it because I just wanted my ice cubes to dispense as expected.
And that’s similar to what you said. What happens when that ‘thing’ no longer works as expected? It’s time for a shift. It could be a workaround like getting a replacement. Or, it could mean letting that thing go completely as you no longer need it.
Ice, however, is something I’ll always need. By the way, it’s been years since we fixed the icemaker and I’m noticing how it’s not quite working as well as it once did. I get those big blogs of cubed ice, too. I can easily fix the problem. But I’m guessing that at some point, the fridge will need replacement, as these appliances don’t last as long as they used to.
I’m so glad to hear others share that they’ve had the same struggles with their ice makers! They just seem prone to not last very long. I’m also waiting with baited breath to see if the whole thing fails. I’m thinking the failure of the fridge might be the straw that leads to an entirely new kitchen!
Oh, bravo, Seana! This is all absolutely true! The mountains of clothing or piles of papers or the unsorted stuff in the back of the closet is exactly like the stinky, smushed blobs of ice from the freezer. (Why do all ice-makers end up doing this? I turned off my ice-maker on my circa-1986 fridge/freezer when I moved here in 1998 and have only used ice cube trays since then. The yuck is prevalent, otherwise.)
This post is a microcosm of what we teach our clients: why it’s hard to let things go, what yuckiness comes when stuff gets ignored, and how the yuckiness is constant across everything from ice to our various stuff entities. Understanding this makes it all so much easier to follow the advice you provide.
We can all use a refresh every so often, and I’m looking forward to using *next* month to make fresh ice out of my home. 😉
I’m laughing because almost everyone who has commented has had a broken ice maker. These manufacturers need to get it together, right?
I’ve definitely got some stuff I’ve held onto that I think would be better off in someone else’s hands. (The attic is calling…) I’m hoping to bring some boxes down during the winter months and give them a review!
This blog brings to mind so many things. It’s just easier(although just lazy) to put off getting into that, but the longer you wait the harder it gets. I immediately thought of a storage closet in our house that should be examined! Maybe after the Holidays! After the holidays I will probably think of another excuse. However Your article did make me feel a little guilty so that’s a good step forward.
There will always be another project, right Dianne? It’s not about feeling guilty, but more about getting excited about the result around the corner. 🙂