I have been clearing

out two cupboards. It is the sort of thing one does when one is sans computer I suppose...or the sort of thing one should do when one is sans computer...or perhaps just should do occasionally.
We seem to collect things that "might be useful" but really should be passed on to other people much sooner.
The charity shop can use all those bags we seem to have collected or been given - you know the sort of thing. The bags in which the Senior Cat's new shoes came. The bag that came with a birthday present. The bag the Senior Cat collected at a gardening show and the one I collected at a craft show. There is a shoe box filled with rubber bands and used twist ties. There is another box filled with pens and pencils. (Yes, I went through those and yes I have thrown out all the pens that do not work and made the Senior Cat sharpen the pencils so we can use them again.)
There were almost two hundred plastic milk bottle tops. (When did we drink so much milk?) The Senior Cat was saving those because "they might be useful". I have put them in for recycling.
There were business cards and old bills (paid) and  a "dental reminder" notice.
The other cupboard had cleaning things in it. I am pretty good about using things to the end and then throwing them out but there are always things that do get kept. There was an empty bottle which had once held disinfectant, some worn out scrubbers, a half used tin of "light tan" shoe polish. My mother had shoes that colour but the Senior Cat and I do not. It was hard and useless but I suspect he had kept it because it had been my mother's. I quietly threw it out. He will not notice because he uses a different icecream box (in which he stores the shoe cleaning brushes and cloths and polish). There was an almost empty box of cheap washing powder. (I had thought it was full.) I quietly removed that too. It cannot be used in our current washing machine.
I  will prowl through the food cupboards too. Perhaps there is something to be said for computer down time...but I will have to catch up on work that is waiting. This is being written at the library and scheduled for later.
I have brought some magazines to the library. They belonged to my mother. The staff will put them on the "free" trolley. Someone will use them.
We do not need these things. I do need some space.