The wrong Portland

4/10/10 Bag of clothing & bag of linens, donated to Salvation Army

Downsizing big bags of clothing is actually very satisfying, since they take up so darn much space. The bag we jettisoned today was filled with Joanna's clothes, who is always good at getting rid of unused clothing when the seasons change.

I'm good at getting rid of old sheets and pillow cases, it just takes six months. I've had a large plastic bin with unwanted linens since October in The Dreaded Basement.

Today, we needed to vacate the house, since a broker was coming to show it to potential buyers. (Anyone out there want to buy a great log home, complete with in-ground swimming pool? It's a steal of a price!) With Fred as a chauffeur, Laurent as our conversationalist (albeit in American Sign Language), and the need to go somewhere, it seemed like a good time to head for some donation center.

As usual, the challenge was finding an interesting downsizing destination. If I instinctively knew the best way to give away the linens, I would have done it back in 2009. I spent a half hour on the computer this morning researching charities. A study in frustration.

I thought I'd made a major breakthrough when I stumbled upon a blog that linked to dozens of Portland charities. One of them was an organization that provided temporary housing for homeless children, and the professional-looking website asked specifically for bedding. Bingo!

Then I realized that the charity was in Portland, Oregon, not Portland, Maine. Ugh.

In the end, I just punted, dropping the stuff off at the Salvation Army store in Raymond, a few miles from my house.

Not an inspired choice, I admit, but we had lunch, a walk, and some window shopping in our sights. Not every downsize can be an award-winner.

And, now I have one less bin in the basement. What I sacrificed in inspiration, I guess I made up in storage space. Yep, that's a trade-off I'm willing to accept.