Junk Drawers aren't just for junk.

Is a junk drawer really full of junk?  Upon inspection, my junk drawer does contain some junk - keys that go to long-forgotten locks, batteries that may or may not work,  nail clippers, spare hardware and items I absolutely cannot identify.

Today's Items

Miscellany

After an informal polling of friends today, everyone agrees that the junk drawer also contains miscellany.  Define miscellany, you might ask.  According to Merriam-Webster, miscellany is a mixture or a collection of different items.  It appears, I have miscellany in abundance.  There are items in the junk drawer that aren't junk, but have to go someplace, so they end up in the junk drawer.

In the picture above, there is this random plastic cup/lid.  I have an arrow pointing to it and the question, "what is this?"  I honestly don't know.  Did I save it consciously for a reason, or did it end up in the junk drawer because I couldn't think of anywhere else to put it?  If I were looking for it, whatever it is, would I look for it in the junk drawer?  How long should I hang on to it?  Will I need it?  And still I come back to the most pressing question, what the hell is it?  Seems silly, but I feel a little anxious about that crazy cup/lid thingy.  We will come back to this later.

There seem to be a lot of random batteries in my drawers too.  Do they work?  Is this Lone Ranger of a battery, a dud?  I am gathering these random batteries together and will purchase a testing device.  The duds will be disposed of properly and the good ones will be used.

Another item I seemed to have tucked into lots of drawers - nail clippers.  Here's a thought-provoking question - how many nail clippers does one family need?  And the follow-up question, why can't we ever find a nail clipper when we are looking for one?  This may be a life mystery I cannot solve here on the pages of a blog.  I have collected the clippers together and they are now in the drawer of my bathroom.  Hopefully, we will be able to find 1, or 2, or 3 in the coming months!

Keys appear to be troublesome as well.  We have many keys and not many locks.  I have the keys in a nice little ziplock bag.  Of course, they aren't marked and haven't been touched since I put them into the nice little ziplock bag.  Maybe I have hung on to the keys as a metaphor - you be the lock, I'll be the key.

Going to the trash.

Then there is the bag of spare parts.  These are the various screws, washers, nails, and plastic caps that are left over from build-it-yourself furniture.  We hang on to these little gems thinking we may need them one day.  Of course, we rarely do need them, and they mostly prick then end of your finger when you reach into the back of the drawer to find a nail clipper.

Spare Parts

So in keeping with the Only 3 Things A Day Challenge, I'm getting rid of the keys - there are many, many more than 3.  I am also getting rid of the spare parts, also accounting for more than 3 items.

I want to throw that unidentifiable plastic cup/lid out as well.  But I keep thinking, what if I need it someday.  Since the challenge isn't supposed to cause me any anxiety.  I am giving myself permission to hang on to it.  I promise to revisit the junk drawer, and the mysterious cap in about 6 months.  If I still haven't identified the cap and it's purpose by then - it's history.

What's your junk drawer look like?  Give yourself permission to sift out the junk and trash it.  Hang on to the miscellany, and please share any tips you have for keeping your clutter at bay.  Remember, I'll never judge you or all the stuff you have accumulated.  Together we can lighten our loads!