DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: My girlfriend doesn’t always get why I like to have certain things on hand, like all kinds of batteries, paint for touch-ups, odds and ends of lumber and plumbing accessories, some really good quality hand and power tools, and the such like. I got a lot of it from my father when he and my mother downsized to an apartment.
A lot of the stuff I now have in our garage came from his father’s basement workshop and it’s all in good condition, or I wouldn’t have taken over on it. Having what I might could use comes in handy when there’s a repair to be made on our place or a friend’s or my girlfriend’s own mom’s. So she knows it is more than just a lot of junk.
Most of what I’ve had cause to fix is still in use, so that’s saying something about how being what she calls a packrat can come in handy.
She told me she wants to start using some of the garage for some furniture she’s getting from her great-aunt’s estate. The house we’re renting is too small for it, but we are planning to get something bigger and of our own before we get engaged next year.
She told me I have to get rid of some of what she calls my “junk,” but I most decidedly do not think it’s junk, and neither does she when I fix something at our or her mom’s house.
Do you think she should be able to make me dump my stuff just so we can make room for what we can’t use right now any more than I can use some of what I have laid by? — MY STUFF’S USEFUL
DEAR MY STUFF’S USEFUL: Like you, I fully understand the value of having items in reserve for when they’ll be needed.
However, I’m betting that your girlfriend sees her great-aunt’s furniture in precisely the same light as you see your own stockpile.
I believe the two of you need to find ways to compromise on how you use your limited garage storage space. It may take some finessing and strategizing, but I’ve found you can often fit more into a space than you think if you do it carefully and creatively.
Since you’re looking at the possibility of moving to a larger home next year, it mightn’t be a bad idea to check out local storage rentals. Even a small unit could make a difference in the amount of space you need in your garage between what you and your girlfriend want to hold onto for now.
These are suggestions for a temporary fix. If you two are planning on making a life together, like most successful couples you’ll soon learn compromise is key. The way you work together to solve issues like the one you and your girlfriend are facing right now may possibly set the course for your future as a couple.
