I am guilty
Here’s the rest of the story. The man used that piece of wood to obliterate his tv, thus truly breaking the news.
Guilty, guilty, guilty. I cannot toss out a nut, screw, washer, bolt or piece of wood because I will need it some day.
I’m guilty of doing the samething with kitchen gadgets. My huband keeps the wood, nuts and bolts, screws, etc.
I may need them is good enough reason for me! But I have read about someone who had a jar with a label “too short strings”. I am not like that, my old strings, shoelaces, short wire and stuff may have uses (and I actually use them up eventually). And screws and dowels and buttons and tacks etc. are proper things, I have many boxes with those many small parts in them to store those. Who would throw those out? 
But I have too many wood pieces, maybe.
I have zillion pet rocks too but one never can have too many of those.
I can’t throw out things that work. I am very, very careful what I buy. I wasn’t that careful all my life I fear, besides things come with other things and my woe changed so I own 2 blenders and I can’t use them since years at all… Maybe I will throw out the big one that is a tad faulty (but I fixed it).
But I can’t throw out ANYTHING that isn’t obvious garbage. I have way too many plates (some are in boxes in the cellar), cloths (I need to throw them out, they just take up space…) and even food. I could NEVER throw out ANY kind of food that isn’t utterly awful to eat. I even have a little sugar and we don’t eat sugar so it’s just… There. I bought it to practice icing for gingerbread, sugar alcohols are expensive… But I gave up the whole thing and now I can’t do anything with it. We may eat sugary stuff sometimes but we couldn’t ever add normal sugar to a dish. (I can’t even buy any, I had to ask my SO to do it. Mental barrier or something.) Once I used sugar to make some geode like thing… (It wasn’t bad but not pretty enough.) I can make play-dough from starch but what can I do with sugar? No idea so it just takes up space for the next years I suppose.
Not me. Nothing is held back for “just in case”.
It’s extremely rare that I have to replace something I tossed.
So, it’s worth it to me to live a clutter free life. Physically and mentally.
I am dreadful for hanging on to stuff … just in case … the shed is full, the back room is full, the wardrobes are full … the whole house is full 
i really am a minimalist desperate to come out of the closet 
My things don’t take up soooo much space, usually…
At least I don’t have a few cubic meters of computer hardware… My SO collects microprocessors. But they need to get tested so he has dozens and hundreds of video cards, sound cards, HDDs and other stuff as well (he has only a few from the really big pieces, thankfully). I just remember someone collects sewing machines in their apartman… That’s worse.
I am not a minimalist at all but I like order and I am super bad at having the resemblance of it… Oh well.
I should ask my wife about resources she uses to help her (and us) declutter. She’s really been tossing a lot lately. And I think it’s a good idea. If you haven’t used it 5 or so years, it can be tossed. Well…except for wood. You should keep that. 
You want to see my detached garage. Empty, could near fit in 2 cars, even with shelves.
Couldn’t get 1 in now. Changed to workshop, storage, washing n drying utility room, and under used multi weights gym and treadmill.
Not to mention all the cable, electrical components, tools, materials, paint, chemicals, PPE etc.
I wouldn’t like to do a stock take, put it like that!
Don’t bolt when I tell you this, but I have a bunch of screws loose in my toolbox. It would be a real wrench to part with them. I guess collecting screws is my secret vise. I also keep those things you put on the ends of screws. Some people think I’m nuts, but others think I’m screwy.
Well, Paul… I saw what you did there.
But I can’t think of a good follow up… I’m plumb out of comebacks.
Glad this was just a drill.
My issue is - cables. I have a huge jar full of electronic cables I will probably never use again because they are outdated. But occasionally, I have use for one. And I have no idea which are outdated, and which are not, I am not at all tech.
I say 10 years (and often that “I am sure I never will use it”) but I agree. It doesn’t make things throwing out ANY easier for me… Sometimes I ask the help of my SO as I can decide it should be thrown out - and he can throw it out (unless I keep him but if I said I won’t use it, there are chances). Just because I KNOW it’s the right thing to do it, I can’t do it.
But screws and the like are NEVER garbage! They are proper, useful items and they may come handy one day! I make sure I have many kinds of screws, I use up a lot from some kinds but if I ever need some really big ones, I have those too… I love screws. And they are easy to put in boxes, don’t take up much space.
It reminds me of the fact that if we throw out a machine, we look at it and figure out if some parts can be useful one day and keep that… Even I am like that and my SO is the hardware collector…
(I am the rock collector, mostly. This week I brought home 4 pet rocks I think. But one can NEVER have too many pet rocks. I collect bones too especially skulls. I have a mummified bat head in a tiny jar now. It never will become a proper skull, too fragile. But main thing I have the skull just with some extra on it. Throwing out my pig skull #5 (partial) is a big decision. I barely could throw out the wild piglet skull that fell apart and became mostly useless.)
I have all those gadgets that aren’t use regularly in the basement cabinets. I do like clutter free in the living areas for sure. Having a basement & garage helps keep the clean lines in the living areas for sure,
It can also be a slippery slope. We have a huge barn, and hubby stored all sorts of things in there, the space seems endless. I am not up to going through all of it, I will leave it to my heirs, lol! I do use a small room next to the barn that I store stuff in - but it’s stuff I use occasionally but not often.
That must be nice. It’s a sore point for me that we have no garage and just a tiny cellar full with bicycles and my old motorbike. We still would keep zillion things in the house. Even my screws and whatnots are in the house but it’s more comfortable. Sadly I have no dedicated place for my DIY stuff.