Far Too Much Stuff

The BBC News website seems to be developing a curious obsession with what are nowadays called 'storage solutions'. Who can forget the classic piece on cardboard boxes ('We've all been there...')? Now comes an equally, er, hard-working piece on the startling discovery that people are leaving stuff in self-storage warehouses for longer - which, amazingly, is the most popular story on the website today, with a terrific stream of comments building up. This piece doesn't go down the 'We've all been there' route, opting instead for the ominous 'It begins as a temporary solution...' and following the unfolding of the inevitable narrative of descent into helpless self-storage dependency. As the piece makes its stately progress through paragraph after paragraph, facts and figures are deployed, along with harrowing personal testimonies and insights from a wide range of leading storage experts. The social implications are considered, and there's a mention of the excellent Freecycle scheme (which I heartily recommend as the best solution to having too much stuff). Then along comes a touch of economics - the 'endowment effect' - before the inevitable dip into psychology and a contribution from Oliver James. It's a long, long ride to nowhere in particular. The fact is, we all have Far Too Much Stuff - although, of course, followers of Nigeness will not need telling that books don't count as Stuff.