It's Just Stuff
In preparation for my trip, I ended my lease and sold almost everything in the 400 sqft fraction of a house that I lived in for three years in Fort Lauderdale. It's amazing how much all that stuff that you couldn't live without at some point or another becomes a burden when you move or downsize. Not to mention thinking about carrying everything you need for six months definitely puts things in perspective.
I started by taking a ton of pictures and posting things on Craigslist. Some things sold, like my Apple monitor and my Tri bike, but most things didn't. I even had one guy in Miami offer try to barter frozen steaks in exchange for my iPad, which is hilariously ironic. A few days before my move out date I put one final post on Craigslist for a Moving Sale where I planned to slash prices to make sure I got rid of everything. I set up shop in my parking space on Saturday and we had a steady stream of people stopping by to check out the goods. I painfully sold a good portion of my furniture and decor at a fraction of what I paid for it and promised myself I was never buying brand new furniture or decor again.
The biggest miracle was that the next tenant met me prior to moving in and agreed to buy my bed frame, headboard, pull out couch + matching storage ottoman, patio furniture and barstools. And a friend of his bought the mattress so it was a godsend that I didn't have to move the mega pieces of furniture out of my place.
All together I was glad to make just over $2,000 but again it's a terrible ROI. Everything that didn't sell, we donated to a massive operation called Faith Farms a few miles away. They had a huge campus with multiple thrift stores and so much furniture that it was spilling out of the building and onto the pavement. (Sidenote: I put a posting on Freecycle.org as well that invited people to come take for free whatever didn't sell, but the moderator never approved it so I was pretty disappointed with that.)
When it was all said and done, everything I owned fit rather comfortably in two cars. All I have left is my car, my cat, my Vitamix, some art supplies and art made by myself or friends, some standard kitchen utensils, some bedding in a space bag and two suitcases worth of clothing and a few pairs of shoes. When I got to my parents' house, I purged as much as possible from my old room before unpacking the stuff I brought from Florida. Felt so good to get rid of so much.
Moral of the story: You don't need as much stuff as you think you do and you will feel so much better when you get rid of it. (Shout out to my homeboy HD Thoreau!)