Many of us had great expectations. We saw the enforced downtime during the pandemic as an ideal opportunity to clean out and throw out: to get rid of the junk that’s cluttered our homes and stuffed our drawers for way too long. If you were able to do that, congratulations. If not, don’t feel bad- and join the club. It seems many of us had high hopes but the piles and papers continue to populate our homes. And it may just be our emotions, rather than our energy levels, that have been the cause of our procrastination.

According to an essay by Bonnie Miller Rubin in The Washington Post, it’s not so much about lacking the time to clean out, but rather, it’s facing the negative emotions and “museum of memorabilia” that thwarts us. Writer Ann Patchett has also written about her efforts to sort through her stuff after watching a dear friend clean out her deceased Dad’s apartment. In her recent New Yorker piece, “ How To Practice”, Patchett describes her process of working her way through her home finding items to discard. As she came to discover the many previously purchased items that no longer mattered, she exclaimed, “I found little things that had become important over time for no reason other than I’d kept them for so long.” Along those same lines, but with more practical lessons, AARP created a list of 13 things you should throw away right now, including any of your “just in case items” (you can always buy more), extras or duplicate items (how many dish towels do you really need?) and any items that are associated with bad memories.

Whether it’s discarding your own stuff or packing up the belongings of a now-deceased loved one, personal property expert Julie Hall (The Estate Lady) recommends separating your emotional attachment to an item from its monetary value. She ideally recommends items be sorted through before a crisis occurs to minimize family feuds and eliminate added stress on what may already be a grief-stricken process. As the author of a new book on the subject (Inheriting Clutter: How To Calm The Chaos Your Parents Leave Behind) Hall suggests you first remove everything you want to keep and then start at the top of the house and work your way down, and perhaps hire a professional to help evaluate and sell items no one wants.

And which items might sell? Interestingly, it seems antique and hard-to-find vintage items have become the rage during the pandemic. With Instagram postings and profiles of celebrity homes, it seems younger people have suddenly taken a shine to items they would have previously turned down. House Beautiful recently listed “10 Things From Your Grandparents’ House That Are Back in Style” including needlepoint and pin-tucked pillows, colored glassware, decorative plates, and even china cabinets. So before you toss, consider what the kids out there might like and take a look at the options for online selling here.