My desk.

I do not want to box up one more thing. Not one more piece of paper, not one more thumbtack, nothing, and I very well might not.
I listed the contents of my desk last night as case in point of the trivial stuff in my life.

Vintage metal index card box containing forever stamps and an old Dale Carnegie pamphlet, "How to Stop Worrying and Start Living and How to Win Friends and Influence People."
4 mini DV tapes of artist talks
1 hi-8 of performance art
X-acto knife
1 pair needle nose pliers
ipod earbuds
2GB SD card
1GB SD card
8 dollars
box of thank you cards
emory board
DO NOT BEND stamp
king size black magic marker.
4 paint brushes
1 rock
1 mini level
sunglasses
cab receipt
vintage eyewear, outdated prescription
bucket for watercolor water
"Careful, I'm fragile" piece of cardboard from Lay's potato chip box
LOTR 13 cd audio book featuring Ian Holm
business cards
3 teeny tiny mixing bowls
backscratcher
2 rolls of drafting tape
1 roll of scotch tape
laptop battery
earplugs
Snoopy playing cards
calendar planners 2006-2010
eyeglass repair kit
empty box of Sucrets with girl scout badges
"Fragile" stickers
"Glass" stickers
scissors
pushpins
2 more emory boards
special cloth and cleaning kit for the computer screen.
lamp
first aid kid
wacom pen
wacom tablet
35 cents.

LaRose got it down to this:

X-acto knife
1 pair needle nose pliers
ipod earbuds
8 dollars
king size black magic marker.
4 paint brushes
sunglasses
2 rolls of drafting tape
1 roll of scotch tape
laptop battery
earplugs
eyeglass repair kit
scissors
pushpins
2 more emory boards
special cloth and cleaning kit for the computer screen.
first aid kid
wacom pen
wacom tablet
35 cents.

The obvious difference would be the "E" word. Ephemera. 

Gone were the girl scout badges I was planning on sewing on my painting coveralls, along with the calendars denoting my whereabouts for the last 4 years. My Snoopy playing cards were no more. Artist talks I have given, but not uploaded to the computer, vanished. A Dale Carnegie primer which I found ions ago, and have kept for it's retro ephemera value, and because it seemed like a civilized outline of how to coexist with people- gone. LaRose's cut was practical. Keep the stuff that's useful. I on the other hand would be inclined to keep the stuff that's not useful, but insightful. "Careful, I'm Fragile" is a 6" x 4" piece of cardboard showing a anthropomorphized Dorito with a big smile, wearing gloves and shoes. I acquired this in the 80's. I could probably do without the LOTR cd set, but I figured since I listened to it on the drive from Chicago to LA. I would play it in reverse order on the the drive from LA to Nashville. The calendars are for tax purposes, but also so I can remember what works and what doesn't. I could probably get rid of the DO NOT BEND as the Postal Service isn't in the habit of folding my mail. I'll ditch the metal file box. The vintage frames are nice, I should put them on ebay. I already threw away one backscratcher. 

Once in Nashville, I will be doing the sorting thing all over again with even more stuff, but the urgency of having to vacate and separate won't be there.