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Opinion | It may be time to consider a spring cleaning | Richard Ransom

Richard Ransom explains why he thinks the timing is right for a good spring cleaning.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — We're accumulating too much junk. 

We've always been great at buying stuff, but Axios.com reports we're taking things too far with clothes we'll never wear, spare furniture and keeping things we "might use someday". 

In fact, add up all the McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger Kings, Starbucks and Walmart stores in this country and you still wouldn't get to the 50,000 self-storage complexes that now exist. 

Psychologists say more stuff doesn't give us joy, but stress. 

"Never in history has it been easier to swipe a card or click a button and wait for the Amazon truck to arrive," Axios said. "And never in history have Americans had bigger houses or storage sheds to keep it all."

Marie Kondo, a Japanese organizing consultant, said to stop less with cards and stop using them for purchases.

"It's a very strange phenomenon, but when we reduce what we own and essentially 'detox' our house, it has a detox effect on our bodies as well," Kondo said.

My wife and I downsized after the last kid moved out. We couldn't believe how much stuff we had or how good we felt when we got rid of it. I strongly recommend a good spring cleaning.

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