.... so I bought this shredder

You have no idea how much stuff you have until you have to deal with it, move it somewhere or just downsize things. We just accumulate junk: clothes we haven't worn in years, chotchkies that were interesting at the time, too many glasses and dishes and books read and never read, old tax documents, etc. And if thats not enough, when, sadly, we lose parents and/or loved ones, all the stuff they acquired and didn't deal with gets assimilated into the pile of stuff we don't want but can't throw away. In addition (pun intended), if you are an artist as I am, there's a constant flow that's like a hole in your boat of paintings and frames and art books into the vessel that is our house.

Lots of this stuff can go to people who can use used stuff. The clothes and dishes go to Salvation Army,  the art books (6 boxes of them from me so far) go to the local library, and the cool stuff goes on ebay. Buttttttt..... what the heck to do with the old documents, photos, paintings and frames? I had the brilliant idea to go to office depot and buy a shredder for $150 so I could sit there and have the joy of grinding up old receipts and bank checks, the shreds of which would be used at a later date for cat litter. Sort of a fun little irony in a hapless cat taking a big dump on stuff that was once valuable and is now no longer. But I digress, something I do a lot... must be an artist thing, I wonder if I'm ADD or HD-ADD in 3D? Crap. Did it again.

Oh, right, the shredder and the bank stuff. It's all unpacked and I'm anticipating the screams from old bank checks and w-9's and 1098-S forms and the BFD-EZ form as I drop them into the Great Pit of Carkoon. The switch is on, the first bundle goes in and... Jam. Fudgepacker. Now I have to destaple and feed these things in one at a time. This is not like the movies where the FBI is mass shredding like a pit bull puppy with a pillow. It's painfully slow. Now what? I know. Burn pile.  Way more fun. I waited for the end of the year, grabbed up anything taxie older than three years and a stack of paintings and a can of gas and whooosh, their souls were committed to the heavens.

I suppose my point is this, there are many ways to deal with old paintings, sanding, reworking, overpainting with a color and a brand new start on top. But burning a handful of art is very cathartic and highly recommended. As the mutineers of the Bounty burned their ship at Pitcairn Island, it is the point of no return. It says to the self, I'm growing in new directions, the old directions just aren't working for me and there is no turning back. I saw a show of a contemporary artist who said in his wall statement that one day he burned ALL of his previous works, he could have included some of his new stuff too but that's just me. I'm thinking about it. Whatever doesn't go on etsy, whatever I don't love goes over the rainbow bridge via cremation.

And as for the frames, I think I will have a big fat frame sell-a-thon for $10 and under. I'll let you know when that happens. Let me know if you want a sneak peek at my stock. I will also be selling a barely used shredder.

bloglarrymoore13 Comments