For the past few weeks, I've been taking care of a lot of errands and odds and ends that I've been putting off for a while. I prefer to think of this as "getting my affairs in order" and it'll actually take a little bit more time before I feel like I'm done. I've been an accountant, homemaker, webmaster, handyman, and IT technician. And I guess blogger now too.
As an IT technician, I'm currently tinkering with the four computers and three DSL modems strewn across my apartment as I migrate to a new laptop, try to fix my Internet connection, and clean out some old gear. The majority of this equipment I will be selling or recycling (at GreenCitizen for those of you in San Francisco). All of this "inventory management" (if I have to use an enterprise-level term to describe it) got me in the mood to clean out all my other unused things as well. It might be winter everywhere else in the country, but it's 64 degrees and sunny here in SF, so some "spring cleaning" seems appropriate.
My eyes then turned to my decent-sized collection of CDs and DVDs, which I've considered razing but never had the energy to do so. I finally succumbed to the realization that in an era of MP3s and streaming video, CDs and DVDs just aren't that relevant anymore. I always rip my CDs to MP3s immediately after purchasing them, so all those jewel cases have been unopened for many, many years. I don't rip my DVDs but I watch most of those movies so infrequently that they've also remained untouched for a long time now. In fact, I don't watch movies that much anymore and, if I do, it's usually something I've never seen. Holding onto a large number of movies I've already seen just doesn't make sense.
With a bit of nostalgia and a pleasant jaunt down memory lane, I packed all my CDs and most of my DVDs into a conveniently-sized cardboard box:
I headed to Amoeba and waited patiently while the desk clerk took an inventory of everything and then offered me a paltry sum for the whole lot. The entire experience was depressingly typical for such a transaction. I was hoping for a bit more, but in an era where you can buy used media online for literally a few dollars, a brick-and-mortar store can't spend that much on used items. I took the cash and left, a bit sad, but also kind of happy that I've trimmed the fat of my personal possessions a bit.
(Upon some further reflection, unloading all my CDs makes my vinyl collection more important and more satisfying, which was honestly the whole point of buying LPs to begin with.)
There were movies that I couldn't bear to part with though. Some are just too epic, some have spectacular replay value (who doesn't love a 90-minute comedy while pregaming?), and some I have an inexplicable attachment to. My old media collection of about 200 items has been whittled down to this:
If you disagree with any of those choices, then, yeah, well, ya know, that's just like... uh, your opinion, man.
As an IT technician, I'm currently tinkering with the four computers and three DSL modems strewn across my apartment as I migrate to a new laptop, try to fix my Internet connection, and clean out some old gear. The majority of this equipment I will be selling or recycling (at GreenCitizen for those of you in San Francisco). All of this "inventory management" (if I have to use an enterprise-level term to describe it) got me in the mood to clean out all my other unused things as well. It might be winter everywhere else in the country, but it's 64 degrees and sunny here in SF, so some "spring cleaning" seems appropriate.
My eyes then turned to my decent-sized collection of CDs and DVDs, which I've considered razing but never had the energy to do so. I finally succumbed to the realization that in an era of MP3s and streaming video, CDs and DVDs just aren't that relevant anymore. I always rip my CDs to MP3s immediately after purchasing them, so all those jewel cases have been unopened for many, many years. I don't rip my DVDs but I watch most of those movies so infrequently that they've also remained untouched for a long time now. In fact, I don't watch movies that much anymore and, if I do, it's usually something I've never seen. Holding onto a large number of movies I've already seen just doesn't make sense.
With a bit of nostalgia and a pleasant jaunt down memory lane, I packed all my CDs and most of my DVDs into a conveniently-sized cardboard box:
I headed to Amoeba and waited patiently while the desk clerk took an inventory of everything and then offered me a paltry sum for the whole lot. The entire experience was depressingly typical for such a transaction. I was hoping for a bit more, but in an era where you can buy used media online for literally a few dollars, a brick-and-mortar store can't spend that much on used items. I took the cash and left, a bit sad, but also kind of happy that I've trimmed the fat of my personal possessions a bit.
(Upon some further reflection, unloading all my CDs makes my vinyl collection more important and more satisfying, which was honestly the whole point of buying LPs to begin with.)
There were movies that I couldn't bear to part with though. Some are just too epic, some have spectacular replay value (who doesn't love a 90-minute comedy while pregaming?), and some I have an inexplicable attachment to. My old media collection of about 200 items has been whittled down to this:
If you disagree with any of those choices, then, yeah, well, ya know, that's just like... uh, your opinion, man.
