To the OP: I think you're torn because if you decided not to file them like your father did, you will probably think you're turning your back on your father and a lesson he taught you. He neatly filed them because, well, there were no alternatives, right? I really think it boils down to that. But when it comes to family photos, I'm a bit nervous about the possibility of losing them--after all the natural disasters we've seen over the years, and seeing people on TV just bawling because their wedding photos, their photos of their parents were destroyed, I want a backup system. I copied the originals on one of those Kodak Picturemaker things and put the originals (there are not hundreds of them, maybe a few dozen) in a box with my home inventory stuff, which is kept somewhere other than my home. I know my sisters have some of the same photos, but the things that I'd grab in an emergency? Photos would be number 2 (number 1: my dog). Scan the negatives and put them on a disk or hard drive or whatever. And I think that once you do that, you can touch-up or crop or whatever, right? (Some of my photos sure could use something to take that thumb off the bottom left!) Also, even though you CAN make reprints off negatives, they eventually become like videotapes--brittle, color fades (I noticed that when I made prints from slides taken nearly 40 years ago--and my Dad shot with professional-grade film, too). Now, what can't I get rid of? Old Tupperware that is permanently stained red from tomato sauce. Maybe it's finally time.

We've had much better luck with Craig's List than free cycle. For appliances, we sold them on Craig's list - we actually got lucky with the frig and oven and found people in the wanted sections and negociated a reasonable price/no hassle and that was it. Sold the dishwasher. Gave away a few cabinets, threw away a few (disassembled/left by the curb/cut up to smaller pieces). We tried Habitat - they first didn't come, then came and didn't take much... never will use them again. Frecycle folks are usually a hassle - want you to deliver, don't have a truck, can't lift themselves, and lots of drama but that's just our experience. We haven't had to rent a dumpster - we just slowly throw stuff away - get good trash bags and load up 2-3 trash cans each week. Sometimes we'll move one over toward the neighbor so they can't tell whose it is... she wouldn't mind if we put it at her end nor would several others as she has the same house we do and loves what we are doing. For windowes (example), we threw out 3-5 sections each week for how ever many weeks and it worked out fine. Saved dumspter fees and a trip to the dump - neighbor was going to try to get rid of them too but why bother him.

Thanks for everyone's input. I think I've come to the conclusion that I'll probably never get rid of this weed because our yard is too big to be pulling all of them out, and we don't mow here until after they've already done to seed in the spring (like about now). Well, I'll strive to keep them pulled out of my flower gardens because I at least don't want them taking over there. Probably five years ago I never even noticed this weed here, and now wham, it's taking over. I only have a few weeds here that are so aggressive. I'd actually say that this one is probably at the top of the list. If it weren't for weeds, I could spend less time in the garden and more time with hubby. I really do spend a LOT of time outside!

You're already using a number of toxic ingredients. Did you know: most dish soaps have as many as a dozen ingredients that are phytotoxic (poison to plants)? detergents in these products destroy cuticular waxes (protective wax in leaves' outermost layer) and root lipid membranes? many "neem" products have little or none of the product (azadiractin) that makes neem oil effective? you definitely do not want vegetable oil in the soil, forming a barrier between roots and their oxygen supply, and alcohol in the soil will also destroy roots' lipid membranes? If you don't want to use anything toxic, I would suggest you make sure you're not providing (soil) conditions that ensure large populations of soil pests. Small soil particles that are high in materials that break down quickly (like cellulose) are particularly attractive to soil pests that feed on rotting vegetation, so avoiding things like leaf litter, unfinished compost, or the meals from which organic fertilizers often derive nutrients. Also, avoid fish or seaweed emulsions. For the most part, insect soil pests can be avoided by choosing a medium they find unfavorable and watering appropriately - only when the planting actually NEEDS watering. It's easy to determine when your plantings need water if you use a "tell". Using a 'tell' Over-watering saps vitality and is one of the most common plant assassins, so learning to avoid it is worth the small effort. Plants make and store their own energy source – photosynthate - (sugar/glucose). Functioning roots need energy to drive their metabolic processes, and in order to get it, they use oxygen to burn (oxidize) their food. From this, we can see that terrestrial plants need air (oxygen) in the soil to drive root function. Many off-the-shelf soils hold too much water and not enough air to support good root health, which is a prerequisite to a healthy plant. Watering in small sips leads to a build-up of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil, which limits a plant's ability to absorb water – so watering in sips simply moves us to the other horn of a dilemma. It creates another problem that requires resolution. Better, would be to simply adopt a soil that drains well enough to allow watering to beyond the saturation point, so we're flushing the soil of accumulating dissolved solids whenever we water; this, w/o the plant being forced to pay a tax in the form of reduced vitality, due to prolong periods of soil saturation. Sometimes, though, that's not a course we can immediately steer, which makes controlling how often we water a very important factor. In many cases, we can judge whether or not a planting needs watering by hefting the pot. This is especially true if the pot is made from light material, like plastic, but doesn't work (as) well when the pot is made from heavier material, like clay, or when the size/weight of the pot precludes grabbing it with one hand to judge its weight and gauge the need for water. Fingers stuck an inch or two into the soil work ok for shallow pots, but not for deep pots. Deep pots might have 3 or more inches of soil that feels totally dry, while the lower several inches of the soil is 100% saturated. Obviously, the lack of oxygen in the root zone situation can wreak havoc with root health and cause the loss of a very notable measure of your plant's potential. Inexpensive watering meters don't even measure moisture levels, they measure electrical conductivity. Clean the tip and insert it into a cup of distilled water and witness the fact it reads 'DRY'. One of the most reliable methods of checking a planting's need for water is using a 'tell'. You can use a bamboo skewer in a pinch, but a wooden dowel rod with a diameter of 1/4 or 5/16” (75-85mm) would work better. They're most commonly sold in 48” (120cm) lengths and can usually be cut in half and serve as a pair. Sharpen all 4 ends in a pencil sharpener and slightly blunt the tip so it's about the diameter of the head on a straight pin. Push the wooden tell deep into the soil. Don't worry, it won't harm the root system. If the plant is quite root-bound, you might need to try several places until you find one where you can push it all the way to the pot's bottom. Leave it a few seconds, then withdraw it and inspect the tip for moisture. For most plantings, withhold water until the tell comes out dry or nearly so. If you see signs of wilting, adjust the interval between waterings so drought stress isn't a recurring issue. Al