Saturday, April 7, 2018

Paperwork & Filing

I spent some time, these past couple of days, doing my personal paperwork and filing.  Mostly, filing, actually.

I have a love/hate relationship with filing, just like some people do with ironing!  I love to file and even worked as a File Clerk, at one time.  At one time, I had impeccable files, even at home - everything filed by date, most recent on top, two-hole punched and fixed in place with those two-pronged metal file clips; files labeled with category or name and the year, with important information written right on the file cover, itself - account numbers, etc. (that was something my step-father taught me to do; he was my filing buddy).  I prided myself on having organized files!

But, that level of organizing files can be time consuming, and when I don't have enough time to file the way I like, the filing piles up and becomes backlogged!  As a result, I've learned to compromise; these days, I no longer hole punch them and use those metal fastening clasps.  These days, it is more of a "get everything into the appropriate file, Bless; you can sort through it and organize it, later".  A "lick and a promise", one might say.  But, the perfectionist in me wants everything to be neat and tidy, and every time I go to drop another piece of paper in the file folders, the mess gets to me and then, I hate filing! 

When the file folders got too big, or at the end of the year, I'd box up the files and store them; in my closet when I lived at the apartment and in the garage since moving to this house.

When I joined an organizing forum and we had a discussion thread about organizing paperwork, one of the things we discussed was why were we holding on to all these pieces of paper?  Some documents, such as legal documents, need to be kept practically for ever.  Other documents, such as tax returns, should be kept for a certain number of years.  And, it used to be, in the days before the internet,  one kept appliance manuals for the life of the appliance.  But, these days, so much is available online, there really isn't much of a need to have files of paper copies for a lot of things.

So...why am I holding on to bill statements for utilities, etc.?  Once it is paid, I should be able to toss them, right?  But, do I toss them?  Oh, no, I write, "paid", the amount, the date, the check number (or if it was paid online) and I file them!  I used to keep them for years on end, but these days, I have assured myself it is OK to keep only the current year's statements.  On Friday, for example, I cleaned out the telephone and internet/cable files and tossed out the 2017 bill statements.

Why do I feel the need to keep these documents?  Maybe it is a fear that I might be called upon to provide proof of residency in the form of an electricity bill with my name on it from the date I emigrated!  Silly, isn't it?  Or, is it?  It has been my experience that authorities sometimes ask for the silliest documents as evidence of something or the other.  When I applied to sponsor my husband, shortly after my marriage, I was required to provide evidence that my prior marriage had ended (divorce papers or death certificate of spouse).  Sure.  Except, there hadn't been a prior marriage!  How do you prove that a marriage had ended when there hadn't been a marriage in the first place?  (You do so by providing copies of LOTS of documents, of course!  How else?)

Or, maybe it is because of something that happened when I was a child?  When I was 10 years old, my mother had a falling out with her step-children and, to make a long story short, it was decided that the household would be broken up, my half siblings would go their way and my mother would go her way and I would go with her.  But first, the household furnishings will be divided - the furniture, the appliances, the cutlery, the crockery, the anniversary clock that had been an anniversary gift to my parents from the uncle who was now, as the executor of my father's will, deciding who received what (the ownership of the house wasn't in question; that had been decided in my father's will).

The problem was, my mother had bought some of the "luxury" items of that time and place with her own earnings, which was not part of the household budget, and she claimed ownership of those items.  But, just her word that she paid for an item with her money was not sufficient.  There had to be written proof of some kind.  If my mother could prove, with receipts of payments made out in her name, or if my father had made a note in the household ledger that she had provided the money to buy something, etc., that she had paid for and bought a certain item with her own money, then, that item would go to her.  If she couldn't prove it, then, it would be added to the common goods, its value would be divided into seven equal shares, and she would be given the opportunity to pay 5/7 of the value to her step children and "buy" it back.  Well, my mother was not a keeper of receipts.  Things she bought with good faith during her 10 year marriage to my father, never dreaming that she would be required to prove that she bought them with her money, were now lost to her.  It pained her that she had to buy back her own belongings.  After her death, I found an old file folder with pages of that household ledger showing some entries of her contributions and she had written a note to me, attached to the file, "Bless, past history?"  I couldn't bear to throw those papers, but, eventually I did and I cried as I did so.  In fact, I am tearing up even now, as I type this.  It wasn't so much the things as the fact that her word wasn't sufficient and she needed to back it up with proof in the form of a piece of paper and had to buy it back if she wanted it.  I sat next to her on the sofa as the household items were divided.  This happened 52 years ago and I still remember it as if it was yesterday!  What I took away from that was - keep all your receipts!  Hold on to all the paperwork!  You never know when you might be asked to provide evidence of something or the other!   LOL!

By the way, mother chose not to buy back the anniversary clock that had been an anniversary gift to her and my father.  The person who gifted it knew very well that it had been a gift; he could have spoken up and said, this was an anniversary gift and therefore, not part of the common household items, but he didn't.  Mother loved clocks and used to talk about that anniversary clock for the longest time.  Years later, my step-father bought another anniversary clock - larger, fancier - as a gift for her; I have it on my mantel, now.   

I know that there is no one to question my ownership of what I have.  But it is hard for me to let go of papers.  As long as I have them, I can provide documentation.  When they are gone, I can't prove anything.  That old bill statement is a security blanket! 

Today, I sorted through two more file folders.  The contents of one have been sorted in chronological order and two hole punched and fastened with the file clasp thing, and organized to my satisfaction!  The contents of the second folder have been put in chronological order, but not hole punched, etc., because I will probably toss them at a later date.  I intend to go through my file cabinet and organize my folders to my satisfaction, a little at a time.  I might toss some of it, and I might box up some.  For now, it is enough that I have caught up on my filing and paperwork. 

How about you?  Do you hold on to a lot of papers?  Do you hold on to things like bill statements, children's school records (report cards, achievement certificates and awards, etc.), old vehicle registration records, and so forth?  What are some of the things you keep?  What are you comfortable with tossing? 



10 comments:

  1. I can understand your need to hold on to such papers Bless. I'm a bit that way myself. I have a well organised file containing all my important paperwork and it has been a godsend when I have needed to provide information and have it to hand quickly. Every now and again it has a clear out and there are certain things I will keep hold of even though it is painful to do so. X

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    1. A well organized file is a very good thing! Mine has become rather a jumble, but I will get it sorted, again. :)

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  2. We have always had a file cabinet with folders for paid bills, instruction manuals for items purchased etc. After I retired I decided to go thru and get rid of lots of paperwork! Not sure why we held on to so much of it for so long other than didn't have the time to sort it out. It was fun to look at some of it but also a lot of work. I found it best to do a little at a time.

    In the same vein I have slowly been going thru lots of paperwork, school reports etc. from the children. Much harder to get rid of because of the personal attachment. One of my friends did a huge sort out of this and presented each adult child with their memories and without fail each one threw them in the trash.

    It was very hard to read how your mother was treated and I can see how that would have had a lasting impression on you.

    I hope you are having a good Sunday.

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    1. Sandy, you have a point there about not having enough time to go through this stuff. Easier to stuff it into a file folder! "When in doubt, file and retain" has been my motto! LOL.

      Like your friend, I have held onto my daughter's school reports, etc., thinking she might like to look back and see them when she was an adult. But, she's an adult now and she says she's not interested. All she needs are the transcripts from her undergrad and grad school, she says. So, I have her consent to toss all her old report cards, etc.

      My plan is to go through one or two file folders a week. And persuade myself that I really don't need half the things I have in my files, like all my homeowner's insurance payment records from the year my house was bought!

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  3. I hadn't thought about manuals being available on-line and therefore not needed, although I have searched for them on odd occasions, for example when we were overseas on a trip and the coffee maker in the kitchen baffled me completely. I was able to find out how to use it when I looked up the manual on-line.
    In the basement we have a large filing box with handle and compartments, that is full of receipts and manuals for various items in the house. Once in a blue moon I go through it and get rid of anything outdated, as warranties are not for more than a year or two.

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    1. Bushlady, good point about warranties expiring after a year or so!

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  4. I had to smile I too tend to keep bills for years, like you there is a part of me that feels I will have to prove I paid them! My excuse is that my father was an accountant and he had boxes of stuff! Sorry to read about how your mother was treated. I also hang on to letters and cards.

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    1. I am going through the regular household bills like the gas bill, the phone bill, etc., and tossing all but the current year's bills. Now, if only I remember to clean out the files at the end of the year! I no longer hold on to letters and cards, but I've kept all the birthday cards and graduation cards my daughter received; however, she says to get rid of them!

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  5. I receive most of my utility bills on-line. When they come in I still inspect them and contest any perceived errors and make notes on my calendar to check the following month to make sure the changes were made. I can go back through the digitized files to compare this month's charges against last months or the same time last year. I like that aspect of receiving bills on-line.
    I also keep my appliance manual, any extended warranties, and the bill of sale attached. In the case of theft or fire, I want to prove to the insurance company that I was in ownership of a particular brand and model. (I think you mentioned once that you have photos taken of your furnishings) But my biggest downfall is wanting to save every card I was ever given. That is when my SIL comes in and forces me to get rid of anything older than one year. I hang on to every scrap of paper with a memory attached. I'm such a sucker for those.

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    1. I don't save any cards I've received, but I have saved all the cards my daughter received for birthdays, etc.! But I've saved bill statements and things! LOL. Glad your SIL is helping you with letting go of some of the excess. Maybe if you take pictures of the items with sentimental value and put together a memory book with a few select items? Would that help?

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