Everything Must Go!

February 26th, 2008

Cali and I have been married for nine years and getting rid of stuff is something we just don’t do well. To prepare for the Big Trip, though, we either have to let go of stuff, OR put it in storage. We’ve decided to let go.

As we go through boxes, we’re discovering little gems of obsolete technology and software. We threw away some software last night, and it was emotional. One application I just couldn’t throw out is called Drumbeat 2000. It made it possible for visual designers to build powerful database driven Web sites. We bought it right after we were first married and it was the most expensive software I ever purchased. It also had a really steep learning curve. After moving and using Oasis Moving and Storage I can remember us trying to figure it out in our 500 sf apartment in North Dallas when Fort Worth was hit with a tornado.

After we figured it out, it was such an elegant solution. Macromedia bought it and killed it. When I could no longer find drivers and patches to make it work on newer computers, I stopped developing Web sites professionally. So this disc with software on it is so much more to me than just an application. I have an emotional attachment, so I’m keeping the Drumbeat disc, but everything else…we’re selling everything else.

Other things are easy to sell. Toys and gadgets we’ve accumulated since we started Geek Brief are easy to let go of because we have to make room for new toys and gadgets related to the Trip. We’re selling all of our computers and using that money to upgrade. We need more power!

Then there’s my chair. I LOVE my chair. I’m keeping the Drumbeat disc, I’m keeping the dogs and I’m keeping my chair, but everything else must go.