How quickly Monday seems to come around. I swear the older I get the faster time flies but that might just be because I’m having so much fun. Far be it from me to keep all that fun to myself though so here are this weeks mini missions to keep you amused for a little while. I know I am generous to a fault but that is just the kind of loving and caring person I am. As an old friend of mine likes to say as his farewell salute, ENJOY!

• Monday – What do you have hiding behind the doors of your TV unit? It’s time you took a look and declutter the redundant items.
• Tuesday – Cutlery drawer – Are there any pieces that don’t match or maybe don’t even belong to you? Wipe down the silverware holder while you’re there. (Thanks to Cindy again for this one)
• Wednesday – Sometimes decluttering is just about maintenance so today is the day to clean out your handbag where stuff often accumulates.
• Thursday – Time to revisit the bookcase. Pick too more books that you haven’t looked at for a long time. Consider if you need these books for certain information or whether you could access the same information with a simple google search. Also consider if the information is likely to be out of date.
  
• Friday – Following on from last weeks post about stagnant items in you home go now and choose one items that you know to be stagnant and put in in the donation box. If you hear that little voice saying but but but and stop for a moment and ask yourself which desire is stronger the one to purge or the quilt pang attached to the item. Remember you are doing this for yourself in your home.
  
• Saturday – Also following on from last week – It is your turn to take a look under one of the beds in your home and see what you can find there. Aside from dust bunnies I am sure you can come up with at least one item to declutter.
  
• Sunday – Go through your household cleaners. Start using up the ones that for some reason you don’t like and then put some thought into how you can minimise the rest in the future. Investigate versatile products that can be used for multiple tasks. Go back and have a look at this post on Day 77 for inspiration and also consider adding microfibre products to the mix. See Day 276 and Day 279 for tips on using microfibre.

Good luck and happy decluttering

Today’s Declutter Item

This hammock has been hanging around unused for years (excuse the pun). Maybe someone will be happy to sling the thrift ship a few bucks for it. 😆

Things I am grateful for today

• My refrigerator only cost $177 to replace it’s thermostat and now it is all healthy again – I have had the same one for the entire 24 years of married life. I owed it the dignity of at least one repair job after such good service. Maybe now it will keep on chugging for another 24 years. One more thing saved from landfill ( for now).
• My friend amber and her family who allowed me to transfer my cold stuff to their beer fridge while mine was being repaired.
  
• Liam sent his two written assignments of the University today – Two more steps to returning to his normal routine. He has two other courses to do some prac work for and he will be up to date with what he missed during his recovery time.
• The nice Freecycle lady who picked up the items I left out for her today.
• That glass of wine I am about to go and pour – It is 5:30pm as I write this and I think that makes it wine o’clock. Cheers everyone! 😛
  

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.

Saturday Quick Post – by Cindy

I fought the art closet, and I won. What was removed…

• A velvet art book
• 2 Idea books
• Some origami paper & instruction book
• 2 Set of glitter glue pens
• A package of horse stencils.

All these were donated. I also gathered a bunch of little tidbits for the craft corner of the 2nd grade classroom and threw away a huge number of little bits of dry, dusty and yarn-wrapped junk.

For this week’s favourite five I have done something a little different. I received several comments over the last week or so from people who run their own blogs on the topic of decluttering, minimalism, self improvement or a combination of all three. I decided to combine the comments and the links and showcase what they are writing about. Take a look for yourselves.

Liz’s Blog – A Life Less Cluttered —– Liz’s Comment

Mike’s Blog – Boston Web Crew —– Mike’s Comment

David’s Blog – Listen feel Breathe —– David’s Comment

Marnie’s Blog – The Unblogger —– Marnie’s Comment

Freedom’s Blog – Rethinking the Dream —– Freedom’s Comment

I hope you enjoy these little gems and give them an encouraging comment

Today’s Declutter Item

This item (a water syphon) served it’s purpose but hasn’t been used since perhaps it will come in useful to someone else.

Things I am grateful for today

• A cooler day – We have been sweltering this week
• Another thrift store drop off was accepted with gratitude.
• Having a productive day.
• People who keep there side walks trimmed of grass and overhanging shrubs – it makes walking with my husband holding hands a lot easier.
• Being my own person
  

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.

Cindy mentioned braving the dreaded under bed clutter in her daughter’s room in a comment last week. She likened it to cave exploring. I recently performed the same task on my own bed and seriously, is it any wonder I have been having sinus issues lately. The dust bunnies have been breading like rabbits under there.

I pulled out..

• A souvenir baseball bat from Cooperstown.
• An art satchel containing framing mat board.
• My trusty mat cutter.
• A large picture frame that I bought at a garage sale for $5.
• A box of winter clothes.

I removed all the slats from the bed frame and did a thorough vacuum of the area and the things I had pulled out as they were also had a liberal coating of dust. Then I  thought I had better address the items that I had pulled out.

The Cooperstown Bat

This belongs to my son from when we visited Cooperstown in the summer of 2002. I moved it down to the “shrine to baseball in the corner of our living room where it could be on display like it deserves.

The Mat board and Cutter

I took the opportunity to mat and frame several pieces of my son’s art work  and a couple of other items that my husband had been nagging me about for some time. When I was done I put the satchel and cutter back under the bed because they need to be stored flat or they could warp. Even though I do not use these items often they have more than appreciated their cost over the years. With a budding artist, a mad crafter and everyone in the household keen on one sort of photography or another these items will get used over and over again in the future.  I am glad I bought them, am happy to store them until they are needed again and do not consider them to be clutter.

The Picture Frame

This was a piece of bargain clutter that has now been hiding under my bed for about seven years. I have left this one out to contemplate for now. I see it every time I go to do some crafting or to my bedroom. It is starting to irritate me because it is now in a position that renders it as messy out of place clutter. It is such a great frame though and I hope before I finally give up on it that I will find just the right photo to put in it . One thing is for sure it is not going back under the bed.

Box of Winter Clothes

Mostly this box is full of woolly knitted scarves and beanies better known as obligation clutter because my mother made them for me but in all honesty I rarely find the need to use them. There are a couple of pashminas that I do use that could be stored somewhere else but since my husband’s leather overcoat is in there they may as well stay  together. My husband did remove one other overcoat that really is excess to his needs now that we no longer live in a cold climate  and he is considering the best option for finding a new owner. All in all this box is OK for now but it is now on my radar for future decluttering.

As you can see I didn’t actually declutter any items but I am certainly going to consider some of the things that came to light during this clean up. As you know I am not one for rushing into things and would rather contemplate them for a while and decide what should stay and what could go. I dare say the scarves and beanies will be the first things to find their way to the thrift store donation pile but this can wait until winter when they will be most useful to someone. They are not harming anyone under my bed  and are not cluttering up valuable storage space at the thrift store.

Today’s Declutter Item

This camera was one that I used to have on me at all times but it’s display screen mysteriously got broken. 🙁 . That didn’t stop it from selling on eBay for $12.50.

Things I am grateful for today

• Public holidays – Even though I don’t work it is nice to have hubby home for one extra day in the week.
• Getting together with the neighbours – Yesterday was Australia Day and I arranged a get-together for our little neighbourhood in the form of a BBQ in the evening. It was a good chance for the new neighbours to meet everyone and to welcome back some old neighbours who have moved back into the area.
• Having fun with my husband and children – even if we are just taking the mickey out of each other.
• Feeling free to do things my way no matter what other people think.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.

Before we begin reading today’s wonderful post by Cindy I just wanted to wish all my fellow Aussies a Happy Australia Day

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

I just started reading Gretchen Rubin’s book The Happiness Project. I was attracted to it because, well, who wouldn’t want to be happier, and also because I read that Ms. Rubin’s first task in pursuit of happiness was decluttering her closet. Now there’s an idea I can get behind!

Here’s how she describes her first adventure: “When I had finished…I could see huge patches of the back of my closet. I no longer felt drained; instead, I felt exhilarated. No more being confronted with my mistakes! No more searching in frustration for a particular white button-down shirt!” Doesn’t that make you want to run straight to your own closet?

In thinking about her own clutter, Ms. Rubin breaks it apart into categories, and I like her divisions. They are

1. Nostalgic clutter – “Relics I clung to from my earlier life.” Sports trophies and my husband’s college lecture notes fall into this category.
2. Conservation clutter – Things which have been hung onto to because they’re useful, even though they are not (or are no longer) useful to you. Winter coats and sweaters when you no longer live in a cold climate or a bunch of bud vases that have built up over time are conservation clutter.
3. Bargain clutter and its twin Freebie clutter – Deal too good to be true? Or, better yet, free? That’s where bargain and freebie clutter come from.  (You can read a post on freebies here http://www.365lessthings.com/?p=597.)
4. Crutch clutter – Items that are worn out and should have been replaced, possibly years ago, but you continue on with them. You love them! You need them! . . . No, really, you don’t.
5. Aspirational clutter – I love this category. This is the things that you own that you aspire to use, but don’t. Craft and hobby clutter or a fabulous evening gown could fall into this category.
6. Outgrown clutter – Ms. Rubin sees this as the flip side of aspirational clutter. This is the stuff that you aspired to use, then did use, and now no longer use, but still have.
7. Buyer’s remorse clutter – I think this is a tough category for a lot of people. It’s hard to admit that you made a bad purchase but hanging onto it is not going to improve the situation.

When you declutter today, ask yourself, What category of clutter is this?

Today’s Declutter Item

It was my stupid idea to buy this video camera years ago. I soon realised I didn’t want to see every event in our lives through a camera lens. Needless to say it hardly got used but now it has a new home thanks to the wonders of eBay. It sold be a mere $51.00. That’s one more piece of guilt clutter eliminated from my life.

Things I am grateful for today

• Bridget (my daughter) made it to the next round of interviews with the defence recruiters today – She is hoping to follow in her fathers footsteps.
• Realising a task was easier than I expected it to be – I thought it was going to be a pain making a pavlova for Australia Day was going to be more of a bother than it turned out to be.
• Living in a country full of opportunity, abundance and freedom of choice – Not everyone can enjoy such liberty.
  
• Lots of good responses to yesterday’s post
• Receiving an invitation – Even if I couldn’t make it, it is still nice to be asked.
  

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.

I received a comment from a new reader that other day and I like the way he described clutter. Here is what Mike wrote (keeping in mind that this comment was in response to my natural progression decluttering post)…

I think cans of soup more than bottles of shampoo. Make a conscious effort to become aware of what sits stashed on the shelves and work your way through it.

As for keeping things I don’t want or like, forget it. They go to Goodwill or Boomerangs and I repent, but I will not prolong the stagnation of clutter.

The words “prolong the stagnation of clutter” really spoke to me and inspired today’s post.

Is your stuff alive or stagnant?

I looked up the word stagnant before writing this post it felt like the right word to use but I thought I had better check. After reading some of the definitions on the Web I decided that I liked it even better to describe clutter. Here is a collection of those definitions…

Not circulating or flowing;  not growing or changing; without force or vitality; lacking freshness, motion, flow, progress, or change; stale; motionless; still; a state of inactivity; Something that is suffering from not being active or moving forward such as polluted water or a person stuck in a situation.

Does that sound like some of the stuff you have stashed away around your house. I know it sounds just like a lot of the stuff that I have discarded over the last thirteen months. It is not that these items are bad or useless it is just that we are not using them to their potential. They are lying around stagnant, unused, unloved and unneeded by us.

Identifying the stagnant items really isn’t that hard. We usually only have to look at them to know we would rather they go, even though we try to justify their existence in our home. If the bad feeling about an item such as guilt, obligation or fear of needing it in the future overshadows the good feeling it emanates then there is a good chance this is just a stagnant object in your home.

On the other hand, there are many things around our homes that are alive, figuratively speaking. There are three basic ways in which these  items are alive to us…

• Items that have a use and are being used regularly whether for their intended purpose or otherwise.
• Items of beauty that are out on display and being appreciated for their beauty.
• Items that are alive with history that you refer to on occasion and save for future generations.

Granted there are plenty of things that fall into all of these categories that could be considered clutter to some. But we are not talking about the general consensus of what is clutter but what is alive or stagnant in your home. If it is alive to you when you see this item and know at a glance that it is useful to you or its presence fills you with happiness. Then it is unlikely to be considered clutter by you and is something you are likely to keep.

As I said to Lyn in a reply to her comment the other day – Once the clutter is gone the organising almost takes care of itself.  When all you have left in your home are items of beauty or purpose their position in the home becomes logical. It would be impractical to place them anywhere else except where they are most useful, which makes organising redundant.

Today’s Declutter Item

This is a classic case of outdated clutter. 2 megapixels just doesn’t cut it these days but someone was happy to take it off our hands for $10 on eBay.

Things I am grateful for today

• It was a crazy day but everything ran like clockwork
• That I was too busy today to notice until about 4pm that it was so hot – my thermometer read 38°C when I looked at it at 4:30pm (that’s 100.4°F).
• Liam was given clearance at the Brain Injury Clinic today- he passed his physical, neuro psych and speech testing and the Doctor in charge of his case gave him clearance to remove the medical restriction on his licence.
  
• Contentment – this can be fleeting at time even though I feel I live a privileged life but today I am feeling content.
• Once again enjoying my crafting – there is hope I will get through all those supplies yet.
  

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.

It’s Monday again and you know what that means…you guessed it it’s your favourite day of the week Mini Mission Monday. I believe it has been the cure of Mondayitis throughout the world for all my faithful readers.  Ok so I exaggerate a little but trust me when I say that I get no perverse pleasure out of setting these missions knowing full well they may morph into total clean-outs of the areas mentioned. Ok so I am lying again but believe me it is for your own good and I am proud of each and every one of you who jump in enthusiastically with donation box in hand. With that being said here are your mini missions for the week…

• Monday – Look in your jewellery box – Are you really going to wear all of those earrings again? Time to cull a few don’t you think? (Thanks to Cindy for this one)
• Tuesday – Open one of your digital photo sub-folder and delete any not so great photos. Computer clutter is still clutter. (I did say one sub-folder not the whole twenty years of digital memories. Don’t blame me if you get carried away.) 😉
  
• Wednesday – Find one electrical device in your home that you never use and sell it or give it away. It will be slowly dying from lack of use.
• Thursday – It happens nearly every year, I overlook one decoration while packing up after the holidays. If this is you too, take it out to the storage area and add it to the box where it belongs. Don’t stash it in a drawer somewhere because trust me you won’t remember it’s there next year. (Another inspired by Cindy)
  
• Friday – Declutter one item of aspiration clutter – something you own that you have been meaning to learn to use for years but haven’t. If you can’t part with it then start to use it either way it won’t be clutter any more.
• Saturday – Go through your spice collection and declutter any that you know have been there a long time or that you never use.
  
• Sunday – If you have picnic items such as a basket of utensils and the like, a Thermos flask, blanket etc check to see if they are in good working order or if you are ever likely to use them again. If not it is time to purge the items that are of no use to you.
  

Good luck and happy decluttering

Today’s Declutter Item

Just a little more silverware that I have no desire to keep cleaning. I am sure the person from Freecycle (if they ever get around to picking them up) will love them.

Things I am grateful for today

• I decided to get rid of my cook books – It is so easy to find any recipe I could want on the Internet and to top it off I can cut and paste them straight into my family cookbook file on my computer that I use all the time and share with my family.
• A restful weekend which included dinner out with friends.
• Ironing that only takes about 45minutes to do once every three weeks – I am not sure how this came about but I am very grateful it did.
• Finding out the my local trophy shop will take my old trophies and use the parts to make new ones when organisations ask for donations – Now all I have to do is get of my butt and do something about it.
• Always finding the motivation to begin a new decluttering tasks – sometimes it may take a while to convince myself to tackle some tasks but in the meantime there is always another less challenging one to contend with.
  

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.

Sometimes to declutter an item means to make it useful again.

This pair of much loved Keens just needed a new lease on life.

So I bought some Suede/Nubuck dye and revived them.

At $90 a pair a person really wants to get as much use out of these as possible.

This weeks favourite five comments have a similar theme – Mini Missions – I am getting some positive feedback and I wanted to share it with those who normally wouldn’t read all the comments.

Anne – It’s Saturday night and this week’s Mini Missions are done! Yippii!!!… Read more

Daisy – Does it count if I did the mini mission all in one day (basically?)… Read more

Marilyn in NM – I’ve written out my mini missions on my to-do list…Read more

Jo – Hmm . . . did five of seven mini-missions last week . . . Read more

Rebecca – I’ve noticed that the mini-missions take longer than I expect… Read more

This week’s favourite five post were a delight to read I hope you enjoy them too.

Small Notebook – The-perpetual-giveaway-box

Be More With Less – What-it-really-takes-to-live-with-less

Lunch Breath.com – Cartoons -how-to-describe-your-used-furniture-on-craigslist-2 This one is just for a bit of a laugh although…

My Zero Waste – Decluttering-sans-waste

There ally good life.com – My-low-spend-11-buy-less-than-12-items-of-clothing-in-2011 I am getting on board with this I am sure I can manage to buy less than 12 items of clothing for myself this year. I am not even sure I would have bought that many last year.

Today’s Declutter Item

It’s like the Tour De France of Freecycling this week well maybe it is more of a Sunday ride down the Fernleigh track but either way today’s item is this slide projector that I think we may have used once in the last 10 years or. It has found a new owner and will be collected on Friday.

Things I am grateful for today

• Admitting something will probably never get used and decluttering it.
• Know when I do the laundry that I am lucky to have clothes in the first place.
• Having a lovely day out with a friend.
• International foods – wouldn’t life be boring without them.
• Honesty – I like to be honest with others and I prefer them to be that way with me. It takes the guess work out of a relationship.
  

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.

In Australia for the last couple of weeks news stories have focused mostly on the terrible flood situation in Queensland and the aftermath now that the waters have receded.

One particular news story really caught our eye last Saturday night and I wanted to share it with you. In fact I want to share two stories with you because if a person ever had reason to be proud of their fellow citizens, this is it. It just makes me want to shout Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi!

The first story is about how the wonderful folk of Brisbane and surrounds who weren’t personally effected by the flood quickly volunteered to help complete strangers to clean up their homes. I needed a tissue for this one. Click on the link below to view the ABC news video story…

Thousands volunteer for Brisbane flood clean-up

The second story and my personal favourite is about the mammoth task of transporting the mountains of flood destroyed personal and household belonging heading to landfill sites around Brissy (which is Aussie for Brisbane). In the middle of it at 1min 10 sec is a lady with a terrific attitude and the inspiration behind today’s post. Please click on the following link to view the video news story…

Brisbane begins massive waste disposal operation

Now what did you think of that attitude? Talk about looking on the bright side of life. Instead of being devastated by the loss of her household items she saw it as an opportunity to  declutter her life and move on to a new phase of living with less. I have to say I can relate to this. During one of our moves from city to city I found myself wishing that the container would fall off the truck and roll down an embankment causing no harm to anyone but destroying my entire shipment of belongings. Maybe this lady considers this more of a stoke of luck rather than a misfortune. Like the lady in the video suggested, it sure removes the difficult decision to dispose of those items around your home that you keep “just in case”.

If this is the attitude to your belongings then maybe it is time to let go of the strings that bind you to them and purge. If you have been at your decluttering for some time and still having trouble separating through obligation to some things now is the time to forget the slow and steady approach and just bite the bullet and get them out of there. You are the one who has to live in your home and it should be under your terms not dictated to my friends, family or general consensus. You only get one chance at this life, live it your way. As the lady said “Less is more”.

Today’s Declutter Item

Nobody wanted these goblets when we put them up for sale on ebay but they snapped them up in and instant when I was giving them away on Freecycle. Have I mentioned before how I hate cleaning silver, well that is why they’re gone.

Things I am grateful for today

• Getting to the end on my long to-do list today
• The beauty of the human spirit – Sometimes it is more illusive than others but when the chips are down it is amazing what can shine through.
• Having the opportunity to help out a friend today – the giver always gets as much out of it as the receiver. It’s a good feeling to help.
• That my husband rode his motorbike to work even though it was threatening to rain – I had so much I needed the car for today.
• Freecycle – It is good to know someone will love the stuff I don’t.
  

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow.