Double your pleasure

OK - trick question: what happens when you empty any storage container of its contents? Now think about this carefully! Well, obviously you end up with the contents and the container, both of which require equal space. So, how does one disassemble a bedroom wall unit that has been used for storage - since old houses such a mine have precious little closet space - move everything out of the way to prepare for painting walls, and still know where everything is that you might need, besides moving the actual storage units out of the way? Thankfully the wall unit is modular so it comes apart - but, alas, there is not enough room in the opposite bedroom to store the wall unit pieces AND its contents AND other furniture pieces besides the bed. OK, I am a bit of a cothes horse. Most of my clothes normally reside in the spare bedroom. It is almost impossible to fit all the clothes ALONE in the spare bedroom, to say nothing of other storage pieces. Don't ask about cleaning behind a wall unit that has not been moved in 14 years. Don't ask about ripping up a rug that is almost as large as the room that has never had furniture removed from it for 14 years. Another garbage bag becomes the new receptical for dirty clothes. I need the regular laundry basket to store clean clothes that I can see! My spare bedroom is now a jumble of contractor bags of clothes and wall unit storage pieces. I fear I will forget where everything is in the contractor bags. Double space requirements are rather more than such a small house can take. What would I do if I weren't consigning so much to the trash? Perhaps I shouldn't wait 14 years between bedroom renewal projects.