I quit my job this week. I had known that was coming and I have an exciting new opportunity lined up, but it was still an emotional week for me. I’ve worked at the same place for nine years and I’ve thought for a while it was time to move on. One more change in a year of changes.

As I start sorting and packing up my office, I am realizing that I have spread the Stuff to there as well. Books, mementos, office supplies I brought from home, a red stapler that was an office-warming present five years ago. It will take some sorting to make sure I don’t end up adding to my over-loaded man cave during my planned reducing.

First run on Ebay was good practice but I need to regroup and try again. Next time I think it will be larger items. First up – a statue.

Many years ago I lived in a house with a roommate. That roommate had a friend over who happened to pass my room when I wasn’t home. “I didn’t know you had a kid,” he said. He had mistaken my action figure collection for the room of a child. Rattled my cage, to be certain. I started rethinking the quality of my collection.

Out went super-hero action figures, in came statues. Certainly higher quality and not mistaken for toys, they still lack something for me. I think it is that they breed more statues. One statue is a statement on something you love, given pride of place. Eight statues is a pile of stuff.

Exiting in this purge will be my Faith statue from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I like the statue, but it is bulky and dominant in the room. I last watched Buffy over five years ago and I haven’t had much desire to go through it again. Time to let this one leave the building.

The statue not leaving the room is the bust of G’Kar from Babylon 5. I love this item. There are two emotional connections for me here. Babylon 5 is my favourite show ever (as you can see from my mega-viewing-fest). The other is that it cost $50. But not just any $50.

One of the last times I visited my grandfather it was in a retirement home. He slipped me a $50 as I was leaving and said it was for a few birthdays he had missed along the way. It was such an old-fashioned and sweet gesture that I decided I would buy one thing with that $50 that I was unlikely to buy myself and it ended up being this bust.

My grandfather wasn’t a sci-fi fan or anything. He barely watched TV and only owned one for the rare occasion that he watched a hockey game. I’m not even sure he owned a colour TV in his life. I got this one thing because I knew it would stay in my collection no matter what.

In writing this, I have been glancing at where that statue sits. A few small things clustered around it, making it one item amongst a few. No more. Pride of place. I stopped writing for a minute to rearrange that shelf so G’Kar sits alone. I want to make sure this object that reminds me of so much gets back the focus it deserves.

One item becomes more present while another exits. And so it goes. Time to remember what is treasure and what is not. I’ll keep this in mind as I start packing up that office and thinking of what goes in on my first day at the new job.

Update on the reading/watching pile:

Books (hard copy) – 10 (down from 11)

Graphic novels and trades (including rereading) – 110 (was 121)

Movies (hard copy) – 29 (was 33)

Clearly have to get some focus there. Not really making a dent so far. I am re-reading The Invisibles ahead of December 21. If you’ve read it, you’ll know why.

It’s still slow getting the 900 Things out of the house. I have now identified over 100 though, mostly books. I had no idea I had so many books.

Next weekend will be sorting the Christmas decorations. They are on the purge list as well. Perhaps Ebay will be seeing some Christmas village houses.