Posting for a friend....... he knows I am he is not alone....
"Many of us have more gear than we need. I certainly wish I could slim it down to a few guitars and a couple of amps, plus some pedals, but it seems so difficult to let them go. Too many possessions become a burden, do they not?
Of course, it all depends on what you think is too much. To me, it is all about having a few good things with character that won't let you down. I am bad enough but I have a friend who spends (and always has) lots of money on gear, always chasing the next 'ultimate' gtr/amp/pedal...
Familiar reasons/excuses/procrastinations may include:
- I may need to use it!
- I wil llose money on what I paid!
- I love the look of it!
- their commission is too high!
- I have had it for years!
- custom-built is hard to sell!
- etc, etc...
I am struggling internally to sell things that I haven't used for years. These things weigh down on me yet I can't quite feel happy to release! What is the secret to solving this Stoic challenge? It is like giving up something you are addicted to - you actively have to WANT to let go to feel happy about it.."
Give me him your cosmik observations....
(Obviously I'm keeping the really good gear until I need to sell/trade,but don't tell the wife...)
Comments
As for letting go, just do it - I’ve struggled for ages in the past with guitars that were supposedly sentimental etc. and actually freeing yourself and realising they are just guitars, and there are other great guitars out there if you make a mistake is quite liberating. I now have the attitude that nothing is sacred, if I wake up one morning and want to shift no.1, I’ll do it. Can’t imagine it right now np it never say never, it’s only an object.
Thanks for those comments, you are definitely feeling what I'm talking about.
The power possessions have over us is not to be underestimated.
I have a few things I will probably end up selling for trading here - just need to work through it all and see what needs to go.
Cheers!
They will get donated to the kids when they are old enough.
It's an interesting (if you're into that sort of thing) psych question, or perhaps its a sociological "imagine no possessions" angle.
But, ultimately
(a) it's just stuff,
(b) you own it, not the other way around,
(c) if you want more, get more, if you want less, sell it.
(d) be careful how far you take this approach, or you'll end up running around naked in the street.
Or is it just another way of expressing some sort of OCD quest for "the best". Rather than "which is the best guitar in the shop - I need to buy it", it becomes "which is the best guitar I've got - I'll bin the rest".
Just relax, and enjoy playing them.
There is absolutely no way that I'm going back to a Columbus LP (vague) copy.
1.) my job will probably be affected by the consequences of coronavirus so it made no sense holding onto stuff that I could liquidise and it would probably be wise to do so in case I needed to fall back on that liquidity.
2.) values of gear will likely be affected by coronavirus too so I was ruthless with myself and didn't allow emotion to get in the way of pragmatic decision making. I took a big hit on some pieces of gear but was satisfied that selling now would probably be better than selling in six, twelve or 18 months from now when values of non essential gear might be worth much less than they are currently.
The side effect of selling quite a few guitars and an amp rig (among other unused items) has been quite revealing. I feel much less attached to 'things', have learned that the less I have the happier and more content I seem to feel and it's helped me prioritise what's most important to me.
The house is much neater and has much less clutter and I've spent a small amount of what I've made from the sales of gear on redecorating the lower half of the house and making a few improvements thus resulting in a much nicer place to live.
Do I miss the gear I've sold? In all honesty, not a bit. Before selling I'd look at said piece of gear and the thought of parting with it would pull on the heartstrings but once the decision was made that 'this has got to go' I was resigned to the fact that I'd have to be tough with myself and since saying goodbye I don't feel any real emotional attachment to what I no longer have. Sure they were nice things to have, and I have allowed myself to keep one nice guitar, but they don't add any value to my existence.
And, as I always tell my kids, if you can't be happy without something, you'll never be happy with. Happiness and contentment come from within, nothing external can give you happiness. I hope I've been a good example to them in that respect.
I'll shut up now. Flippin' heck, some people like the look of their own type!
There is no 'H' in Aych, you know that don't you? ~ Wife
Turns out there is an H in Haych! ~ Sporky
Bit of trading feedback here.
So, with 'encouragement' from my missus, I had a purge. Sold so far are one acoustic guitar, two steel guitars, one Weissenborn copy, two guitar bodies, five pedals, one power supply and one amp. Also still for sale are one resonator guitar, a rack-mount effects unit and controller, a looper and a guitar case. Net result - almost everything left over fits in the two cupboards and almost £3k in the bank. Happy missus and enough to buy another very nice guitar (that's the bit she doesn't know yet )
Thank you, folks
There is no 'H' in Aych, you know that don't you? ~ Wife
Turns out there is an H in Haych! ~ Sporky
Bit of trading feedback here.
Not playing is the worst for me. During lockdown I've been lusting over telecasters, jazz masters, fuzz reverb and pitch shift pedals. I've bought nothing.
If I get made redundant I know what will go. When Mrs s and I retire we are probably going to buy a flat. A while back she asked me about all my guitar gear re not fitting in a flat. I told her I'd sell it all and buy a pre war martin.
As tTony stated you own the stuff.
When it owns you then you have a problem like one of my wife's clients who met her in their kitchen because the other rooms were full of old newspapers.
You first, tho.