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July 2023
With only 6 weeks of vacation between contracts (my shortest break yet), I decided not to leave the country like I usually do. And since it was summer, it seemed like a good time to go clean out my storage unit.
In April of 2017 I put everything I thought I might want in the future in this 5ft x 5ft box. It is temperature controlled, which was reassuring. When I tried to give the managers a time frame for how long I’d keep it, they told me that most people end up keeping them much longer than they think they will, so don’t worry about it. I’d spent the winter of 2017 carefully sorting through everything that ended up in there. Things that had been transported and mailed from California to New York City and back, and then driven to Colorado and back and forth a couple of times (like when my parents sold the house I grew up in and my mom drove out the stuff I had left there). My stuff had grown from filling a room in a shared house to my own studio apartment. When I locked the padlock in 2017 and drove my car to California to temporarily use as a home base while I figured out what to do next, I didn’t have a major plan. I knew I wanted to travel, but I didn’t know if I would keep traveling or if I wanted to pursue acting in another city. I kept a minimal set of things that would be expensive to replace if my next step was to stay put – kitchen stuff, plastic drawers and metal shelves that didn’t take up much space when they weren’t assembled. I kept clothes I thought I would want if I wasn’t living out of a suitcase. And all the little mementos of my past – pictures, posters, my favorite books. I’d been back to briefly visit this storage unit twice since I’d packed it, both times dipping in for less than an hour. The first time was the summer after I’d travelled to Europe where I dropped off some treasures from my trip to lighten my suitcase, and then another time during the pandemic when I grabbed some of my office clothes that I could wear on the ship.
Now after carefully deciding what to keep and what to leave behind as I packed my life into suitcases every two to six months, I would sort through what I’d left behind for myself in Colorado, and see what I could fit in the SUV I rented to drive it all back to California.
Before:
I was prepared for it to be emotionally draining to sort through all of this stuff again, but it wasn’t so bad. All the house stuff that was replaceable could go to goodwill. All of the towels and bedding could go too. My Aunt Wendy has all of that stuff at the farm. After six years of living without these things, some things were so much easier to let go of. Old grubby clothes that were very comfortable but unattractive could go. Clothes that I didn’t necessarily love, but added variety to my wardrobe. There were so many things in there that I easily could have replaced with new versions. I decided to leave behind the reference books from school – from yoga school, theater school, filmmaking school. If I finally decide to write a screenplay, I will just find a newer book.
I’m keeping the things that cannot be replaced. Some things I’m keeping because they bring back fond memories of people and places. Mostly of people. I realized that a lot of souvenirs didn’t do that. I don’t need three T-shirts and shorts that were cute when I was in my 20s to remember the trip my family took to Maui. I don’t need the shot glass from Bubba Gump’s restaurant in New Orleans to remember going there on our cross country road trip. The things I’m keeping that I can’t quite justify are the memories that are kept on technology that isn’t accessible anymore: cassette tapes, VHS tapes, CDs, DVDs. I powered on my laptop that I bought in 2004 and it still works!
kinda
I mean, it turns on and the files are there, including music and pictures I’m not sure if I have them anywhere else, but Apple couldn’t tell me how to transfer those files. The computer doesn’t recognize my USB and Airdrop wasn’t invented yet, so I’m still trying to figure that one out.
It was interesting to think about how I thought I would need the reference books to continue to study the subjects that I dove deep into (acting, yoga, a little bit of film making). It’s really cool how I’m using so many of those skills now everyday, on top of getting to see the world.
After:
Everything fit in the car! Ron Voyage (and I, too) was concerned about the possibility of someone breaking into my car if it was all packed up – even though I knew that there was absolutely nothing in there that would be of value to anyone else but me. After considering my options, I decided to stay at the $65/per night Jailhouse Motel and Casino that I had stayed at on the way over. When I pulled up, the parking lot was full of sports cars. I felt reassured.
And everything went great! It took about half the time I thought it would take to sort through my stuff. Everything perfectly fit in the car. I had a great time listening to my podcasts and audiobooks as I drove Highway 50, the ‘loneliest highway’ (the Rockies in Colorado and the Red Rocks in Utah are beautiful, but boy is Nevada desolate!) Plus, I got to see my friends Emily and Sarah and meet their babies.
Next week I join the Enchanted Princess to cruise the Mediterranean, my dream contract. I’ll let you know if it lives up to my hopexpectations!