We just had an unprecedented basement flood (we're on the top of a huge hill, but we didn't plan on a gutter downspot accidentally moved directly into a window-well on a day with 2" of rain in a half hour).

So far, I have I filled 20 large trash bags with the the remains of the walls of my formerly-finished basement as well as ample quantities of stuff I thought I'd need, and as I did so, I felt wonderfully freed and liberated from the endless curating of "Maybes" and have made a firm commitment to limit my "this could be useful one day" collection to three, relatively small, plastic shelves plus a 6' high, 28" wide cabinet.

I was especially glad that the Big Box of Cassette Tapes was totally ruined, and I was even glad that all of the spare computer parts were soaked and ruined. There's a 12 yard dumpster coming this evening, I know I'll only need 6 yards, so I look forward to filling the rest of it with stuff. A friend of mine just told me a great way to de-clutter your life - get the house and yard ready to sell, even if you aren't really going to sell it. If you can trick yourself into thinking you're selling, all of the projects tend to fall into clear perspective.

Pile of rubble by the driveway? GET IT GONE.
Collection of scrap copper pipe? SELL IT NOW.
Small hole in the ceiling? PATCH IT!
Bedroom needs paint? PAINT IT.

We're in that mode now, and now that I MUST clear the basement to the foundation walls, owing to the heavy water damage and immediate mold bloom, I'm taking stock of what's really needed and what's been just crap.

It feels great to let go.