Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

Cindy

I received this email from my dear friend Natalie: So here is a decluttering task that I am tackling.  Computer clutter.   I went through my saved emails — deleted lots of obsolete ones – including whole folders (eg. Arkansas trip), made new folders for some.  Last night I rearranged my task bar — I took out all of automatic tabs I don’t use (most of them) and added in my own — the elementary school, middle school, middle school band, etc.  Next up I’m tackling my bookmark list.  Guess my desktop will be next — making sure my files are organized (I don’t have too many). 

When Natalie sent me this email, I’d been thinking a lot about electronic clutter myself. There are so many hiding places for e clutter, and it can bog you down as much as physical clutter. Here are some areas that may need improvement in your life:

Your computer desk top: Do you have shortcuts that you don’t use, old programs, or web “favorites” that you no longer access? Are your favorites in alphabetical order, or at least an order that makes sense to you? If appropriate, make use of folders, so you can keep like with like.

Your computer itself: What programs do you have that you don’t need or use? Have you run a spyware program recently to make sure that your computer isn’t full of cookies that you really don’t want tracking your every move? Do you have a cache of emails as long as your arm? Those need to go!

Digital photos: This could be a month’s project, I know, but there’s really no use in keeping multiple, nearly identical photos of the same event. Personally, I recommend deleting them off your camera before you even down load them and then, once they’re on the computer and you can see them more clearly, deleting more, if necessary. As for the ones on the computer already, sort and label, sort and label. I just downloaded all my photos onto Picasa. I was so amazed by its facial recognition abilities; it could tell the difference betwwen my daughers as babies faster than I could. I certainly don’t know all its capabilities, but I’m very impressed at the extra level or organization it’s afforded me so far.

Your iPod or smart phone: Again, what programs do you have that you no longer need or use? My girls and I went through my iPod and eliminated 6 games that no one is playing any more. No, they don’t really take up any room, but they’re still clutter, something that I have to flip through on my way to get to the app I want.

Any phone: Do you have phone numbers that you don’t need or want? Are your phone numbers synchronized between your different devices? When I looked through my phone, I realized that I had a bunch of phone numbers from our remodel that I no longer wanted. I have them stored elsewhere, and I don’t need the roofer, mason, or tile guy in my cell phone.  What about your speed dial numbers? Are these the people you want on speed dial? Should you shift them around?

While it’s true that electronic clutter doesn’t take up any physical room, we all use our computers and electronic devices so much that disorganization and excess that can slow our personal efficiency as well as the speed of our devices.

Today’s Declutter Item

This duvet/doona cover has languished in my linen closet since I replaced it years ago with another. On reflection I can’t imagine why I replaced it with one that was almost the same colour but a different fabric. I hope my memory is fading and that the reason was that I changed size, because that is the only thing that makes sense now. Otherwise it would seem like a waste of money and a resources. It is now going to the thrift shop where hopefully someone will get maximum use out of it.

Duvet / Doona Cover

Something I Am Grateful For Today

My little girl is home from America safe and sound and she never asked for money once. See miracles do happen. 😉

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

Cindy

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about decluttering your pantry, and one of the things I discussed was keeping food for emergencies. I commented that I live in an area that is not affected by many sudden disaster such as being snowed in, flood water, hurricanes, or tornadoes. Well God and nature decided to prove me wrong in short order. Here’s one I had not considered and has suddenly been the only topic of conversation in our town: wildfires.

Texas had its hottest summer ever and, in fact, was the hottest state in the United States this year. It also hasn’t rained more than a tiny bit in months and months. Suddenly fires broke out all around Austin. Did I think I was immune from disaster? Ha! My friends the Jacksons and the Fosters surely didn’t think so as they were evacuated out of their neighborhood, and neither did my friend Jennifer as she watched the Bastrop fire, so close to her house, but always moving away from her. Several of her friends were not so fortunate, and their homes burn to the ground.

We live extremely close to the largest park in the city of Austin, which is intersected by a creek surrounded by a wide, unkempt natural area called the Barton Creek Greenbelt. Because this greenbelt is park of a public park and is located virtually in the center of Austin, it attracts hundreds of visitors every day. Many of these people smoke and some, unfortunately, toss their butts into the dry vegetation. In addition, there are a handful of (illegal) homeless encampments on the greenbelt. These folks often have (illegal) cooking fires. In other words, the fires have acutely reminded us that 1) we’re sitting right next to a tinder box and 2) that its been so dry and windy that a fire that starts on the greenbelt won’t stay on the greenbelt. This 50 second video shows how fast the fire moved through Bastrop State Park.

When we learned that the Fosters and Jacksons had to leave their homes, Dan and I talked about what we would need to take in an evacuation. What does this have to do with decluttering, you may be asking yourself? One: You have to know what you need. Two: You have to be able to find it. Three: You have to be able to pack it. Four: Decluttering and organizing can help you with this.

One: You have to know what you need. This is my own list. It did not come from a Red Cross or other emergency management source. It’s what my family needs to take and what’s important to us.

• All of Clara’s medications and diabetes paraphernalia, of which there is a lot. (The number one reason that evacuees return to their home is because they forgot medication.) In addition, I always have a month’s worth of supplies on hand. Without repeated daily injections of insulin, Clara will die. There’s no way I’d risk that by letting my supplies get too low. Ever.
• The dogs on leashes and wearing their identification
• The cats in their carrier and wearing their identification
• The guinea pig in a box
• All of our important papers in our fire proof safe. There is also $500 in small bills stored in here for emergencies. (And not for household-type “emergencies.” For real emergencies, such as an evacuation.) Our papers include passports, our marriage license and my divorce decree, and our wills. (While we obviously don’t need our martial or divorce papers while we’re fleeing a disaster, they are needed for lots of legal documents, and I certainly don’t want to have to come up with copies later.)
• My laptop
• My purse (with cell phone) and Dan’s wallet and cell phone
• A working vehicle that is not left with an empty gas tank

If we have more time

• Food and water for the animals
• Food and water for people
• Sleeping bags and pillows
• Toiletries
• Clothing

Two: You have to be able to find it.

Do you know where these important things are? Are your keys scattered around the house, not where they belong? Do you know where the cat carrier is? Are your animals properly tagged? You’ll be heartbroken if you get separated. What about those important papers? They really should be in one easily accessible place. The safe we have is a very small suitcase that’s fire proof, water proof, and portable. (Some people in Bastrop have been able to return to their charred homes, and there have been photos of people opening their fireproof safes. Nice to know that they work.)

Three: You have to be able to pack it.

Where are your suitcases or sturdy boxes? Can you access them? Some people were only given 15 minutes to get out of their homes. You don’t want to spend 10 minutes of your 15 digging through your storage shed looking for a suitcase. Clara’s medical supplies are kept in plastic storage drawers. I realized that a box would be the best way to carry these. I got a box from the garage and left it by her supply cabinet. I always keep one or two large moving boxes in my garage. I have room to store them, and they’re just too handy to get rid of.

Four: Decluttering and organizing can help you with this.

Obviously, if you don’t know where things are, if they’re heaped behind other things, if they’re dropped randomly around the house, valuable time will be lost.

You can check this link for a photolog of the drought in Texas and the fires that resulted from it.

If you feel motivated to make a charitable donation to help those affected by the fires, Lutheran Social Services, a wonderful non-profit where I worked for four years, has an active, on-the-ground response. www.lsss.org/disaster-response

Today’s Declutter Item

Better known as hubby’s fat jeans they no longer fit because he has lost about 15kgs since Christmas. He got to that weight several months ago and has managed to maintain it without any problems. Mind you he is not allowed to ever gain it back because clothes are expensive. 😉

Jeans too big for my husband

Something I Am Grateful For Today

Once again it was a glorious day here yesterday. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and there was just enough breeze to dry my linen on the clothesline. I had coffee and a chat with a good friend of mine and then took a walk around my neighbourhood. What’s not be be grateful for in that. 

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

Cindy

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

As if for the first time, last week I noticed that there is a large bulletin board partially tucked between the wall and my dresser. What’s it doing there? Well, I think it’s been for for two years, since we remodeled and it needed a new “temporary” home. That made me wonder what other pockets of cluttered I had squirrel away. For your edification and mine, I grabbed my camera and wandered the house. I found two more areas, and what makes these pockets special is that I had no idea they were there until I went looking for them.

The first pocket, as I said, was my bulletin board. It has greeting cards and photos on it, not things like memos from my daughters’ school or important reminders. I no longer have my own office area and the laundry room doesn’t have wall space, so I don’t know where to put it. Do I really need it? It does have favorite pictures and greeting cards, but really only two of them are truly, truly dear to me. One is a card from my husband of two cats and the inscription “I will love you my whole life, times nine” and the other is a homemade card from a friend who took my full name and wrote a compliment for each letter: C is for Confident, I is for Inquisitive, etc.  (Julia, I’ve had the card for 8 years now, and I still love it. Thank you.) I’m still coming up with a plan for this pocket of clutter.

The next is an area on the front porch. Two cans of stain, a unusable fire extinguisher, a sample of soapstone (remodel remnant again), a piece of wood, a couple of bricks, and a whole lot of leaves. What are they doing there? How did they get there? Again, I bet they’ve been there for at least a year. This morning the weather was fine, rather than the same temperature as the surface of the sun, as it has been for the past two months. I swept the porch and sidewalk and  put everything that was cluttering that corner in its proper place.

The last area was a small pile of photos, a little picture in a frame, and a newspaper clipping that had come to rest half tucked behind the music player on the counter. Except to recycle the newspaper clipping (free summer movies for the kids – didn’t see one and the summer is over), that pile is still there. It’s a random collection of photos, the sort that is the hardest to deal with because the photos are not one theme or event.

How did these pockets of clutter come to be, and why did they stick around for so long? The most recent pocket, the random photo pile, has been there for 3 or 4 months. The other two are probably several years old. In each case, the clutter was “out of sight, out of mind.” The porch clutter was in the far corner, the bulletin board is wedged by my dresser, and the photo pile was half hidden by the music player. If I hadn’t gone looking for them, when would I have noticed them? Next week? Next year? Never?

My challenge for you today is to look through your house in search of pockets of clutter. Like dust bunnies, they’re hiding in the corners or under the furniture. I’ll be curious to know what you find on your search.

Today’s Declutter Item

This is not a pocket of clutter I had overlooked, it is something that has been on my possible declutter list for some time. I store my hand towels under the kitchen sink where they are most handy to where they are used. There are too many to really store there but I have been cramming them all in anyway. I have decided to let this half of them go to the thrift shop because at their rate of wear it could be another ten years before any of them wear out. Someone can buy them secondhand now to save them from buying new and I will just replace mine later when they are too old and shabby to use.

Seven Hand Towels

Something I Am Grateful For Today

Leftover lemon meringue pie. I made it for my husband because it was Father’s Day in Australia on Sunday and it is one of his favourites. My son doesn’t eat it and my husband doesn’t eat sweets during the week. It is not something that can be frozen well so to save it from going to waste I am just going to have to finish it off myself. Life is good!

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

Cindy

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

Except for the garage, my home is mostly decluttered. Well, except for the garage and those few scary areas too intimidating to attack. One of these areas consists of several boxes of photographs and memorabilia. Another is the picnic basket I brought back from my Grandparents’ house after my Grandfather’s death. It is filled with photos and mementos that I had to have but have conveniently stored on the floor of my closet for the past seven years. Last, I have a deep drawer full of art, most of it framed, and some of it quite expensive. It was taken off the wall for the remodel and never rehung.

What happens when I try to approach these areas? In the case of the photos and the basket from my Grandparents, I just swerve around that area like it’s not even there and keep going on my merry way. In the case of the art work, I have twice taken it all out, stacked it all around the room so I could see it all at once, got the feeling of jelly legs, stacked it all back up, and returned it to the drawer. Two other times I have opened the drawer with the sincere desire to tackle it once and for all, squeaked in panic, and slammed it back shut.

Clearly, I am intimidated.

Since it’s been well over 100 degrees (35 C) for more than 70 days, there is no way I am going to work on the garage. I’m going to have to tackle these intimidating areas if I’m going to continue making decluttering progress.

I know how to handle the photos and memorabilia. It’s really the same way I handle everything else: one thing at a time, one decision at a time. I think it can be too hard to make every decision the first time through. On my first pass, I’ll get rid of duplicates (triplicates) of the same event, the same child doing the same thing, people I can’t even remember. If that hasn’t winnowed down the photos enough, then I’ll make a second pass and reevaluate. After that I’ll have to decide how I’m going to store them. Everything doesn’t have to be in a coffee-table worthy scrapbook. Sometimes a well labeled envelope in a box is good enough.

For the artwork, I have decided to get the girls to help me. My plan is to pull out one piece of art per day and with their help, decide 1) if we’re going to keep it and 2) where we’re going to hang it. Having their help and the weight of their often-strong opinions should help bring the fear factor down to a manageable level.

What’s intimidating you, and how do you plan to tackle it?

Today’s Declutter Item

Some more fabric gone to the thrift shop. It is good to be honest with yourself that you aren’t likely to use something and just send it on it’s way. One less thing cluttering up  the place and your mind for that matter.

More Fabric (Aspiration Clutter)

Something I Am Grateful For Today

Some days it is just good to have a day that is just ordinary. Nothing spectacular happening just calm and simple. Yesterday was one of those days and I am grateful for that. It was also a good day for blog comments, that kept me busy most of the day. Lucky Cindy does today’s post or it may not have happened. 😉

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

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

We all have our favorites – favorite laundry soap, favorite hand lotion, favorite beverage, favorite brand of tool. We also all have our second favorites – second favorite lipstick, second favorite pair of black pants, second favorite brand of tea, second favorite bath soap.

How did we accumulate so many seconds? Perhaps the second favorite used to be the favorite, before it was replaced. Or maybe we shopped at a different store than usual, and our favorite item wasn’t available. Or perhaps you just thought that you should branch out some – not just stick to the same old, same old.

But, you always reach around it. You never remember that you have it. It’s pushed too far back in the cabinet to find without a stool. You’ve bought refills of your favorite item (more than once!) and still not used up the second favorite.

What to do?

Well, the most obvious choice is to declutter it – give it to someone else, donate it to the thrift store, throw it away.

Or you could intentionally use it up.

I wasn’t using a type of tea that I like just fine, because I like another kind better. I decided that I would use the second favorite brand when I make ice tea, which I drink in vast quantities in the summer. One more batch of iced tea, and my second favorite tea bags will be no more.

I had a lip gloss in my purse that had fallen out of favor. It goes on a bit sticky, but I’m not really sure why it got downgraded to second place. Instead, I prefer a lightly tinted lip balm. My eldest daughter was leaving on a trip and realized in the car to the airport that she hadn’t packed her lip balm. I gave her mine, and vowed that I wouldn’t replace it until I used all of the lip gloss I’d been carrying around. True, it’s a bit stickier than I would like, but it’s a pretty color on me.

I had a lovely tin of breath mints in my desk, which where given to my children as part of a thank you gift. Rather than the usual peppermint or cinnamon, they’re rose and violet flavored. Odd, I know, but not distasteful, simply not a favorite. I took the tin and put it in the car. There aren’t any other choices in the car. If someone wants a breath mint, rose or violet is what they’re going to get. We’ve been munching our way through them ever since. (As a bonus, the pretty tin looks, well, pretty sitting in the car.)

My friend Holly eats her pantry down to the bare bones once or twice a year. The first time I realized she was doing this, I thought it was odd and unnecessary. Now I see the value of it. There’s always a canned good or special spice that lingers in the cupboard long after everything around it has been eaten. Making sure to clean the cupboards out completely was Holly’s way of forcing herself not to waste food. Plenty of second favorite items, which probably should have stayed on the store shelves, got consumed this way. A similar declutter could easily be performed on the refrigerator or freezer.

In her book The Happiness Project, Gretchen Rubin talks about owning numerous pairs of blacks pants, only one or two of which she really likes. Every time she wants to wear black pants, she has to sort through her closet looking for the favored pair. Why keep multiples of durable goods (clothes, tools, kitchen appliances) when you have a favorite and someone else could use it? Move it along to a friend or to the thrift store, and relieve yourself of the burden of trying to find that favorite thing.

What can you find today that’s your second favorite, and how will you declutter it?

Today’s Declutter Item

This frame is quite cute but I don’t like frames that distract from the picture that is put in them. I am sure someone will love it though so like many other items this one will go with me to the thrift store.

Disney Frame

Something I Am Grateful For Today

You know some days are harder than others to come up with something to be grateful for and that is ridiculous. Everyday there is so much to be thankful for, a roof over my head, a cosy bed to sleep in, a wonderful family around me, food on my table, good friends and good health. And you know, that is all a person really needs to live a happy, comfortable life.

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

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

Last week, I discussed methods for cleaning and decluttering your refrigerator and freezer; this week we’re onto what is usually a larger repository of items that should have moved along long ago, the pantry. Because things in the pantry don’t usually spoil, they can sometimes hang around long enough to become honorary members of your household.

It will probably be helpful to have a pen and paper with you when you start excavating your pantry, especially if you know it’s… let’s politely call it “a goldmine of uneaten potential.”

What do you have, how many do you have, how long has it been in there? Check dates. Put like with like. Anything you have duplicates of may be excessive. I have a dozen little cans of olives, and I use them once a week, so a dozen is a reasonable supply, not an excess. But two cans of garbanzo beans (chick peas) is definitely an excess for me; frankly, one can probably is. Either make a list of what you have that needs to be used up, or put all the extras and duplicates on one shelf, and start using things without replacing them. Alternatively, you can choose to give the extras to the food pantry, rather than consume them yourself.

Some people buy a lot of groceries because they feel uncomfortable about the possibility of running out of food. But remember, it doesn’t all have to be stored at your house; allow the shops to store it for you. Then you can visit your “pantry” whenever you need for whatever you need.

If you live in an area where you might be cut off without access to shopping, for example, in an area that floods or where you get snowed in, I’m sure you need an emergency pantry. I don’t live in that environment, but I would think that having it completely separate from your regular food pantry, or in a specific area of your pantry, and rotating it once a year would be a safe policy. Mark the rotation date on your calendar so you don’t forget. Think carefully and logically about what you really need it in. Just having a bunch of extra canned goods on hand without true consideration to what they are isn’t going to be as helpful as a thought-out plan.

I think cleaning the pantry is a good time to think about healthy eating. Long ago, I talked about decluttering the pantry after my daughter was diagnosed with diabetes. We changed our family’s eating habits literally overnight. Everything that wasn’t part of her healthy, low-carbohydrate diet went directly out the door. I sometimes hear, “Oh I could never do what you do, that must be so hard.” I always say, “It is hard, and you would do it to give someone you love the healthiest and longest life-span possible.”

Don’t we love ourselves? Aren’t we responsible for making sure that we are living the healthiest and longest life-span possible? Then why do you have unhealthy food in your pantry? Get rid of it and don’t buy more. Unhealthy food is just another kind of clutter that you can live without.

How does unhealthy food enter your house? Probably in a grocery sack carried by your own hands. The purchasing of food needs to be a conscious decision like everything else you buy. Shop with a list; don’t vary from it; only buy what furthers your goal of a healthy lifestyle. If you feel you “must” have a treat, buy the smallest container possible (even though that’s likely to be less economical) and don’t buy more until your next shopping trip … or even later than that. Do you spend too much money on alcohol? Again, buy less and don’t buy more until your next shopping trip. For me, beer in the house turns into a beer a day then two beers a day and a couple of pounds a month. It works better for me to only have the occasional beer at a party, not keeping it on hand, is a better choice.

A decluttered pantry will let you have easier access to the foods that you want and will use, without it being cluttered by past mistake purchases, bad-for-you choices, and so much volume that things get lost in a sea of cans and jars.

Next week’s post “Your Second Favorite” addresses using up things that don’t really like … at least not that much.

Today’s Declutter Item

This jar of beads were another craft decluttering effort. The beauty is that I donated them to the thrift store and was there on the day to sell them to a lady for $5. She was happy with her purchase and I was happy to see the charity making money out of my donation.

A jar of beads

Something I Am Grateful For Today

I know that volunteering your time usually evoke gratitude from the organisation that you are giving up your time and energy for. But I am grateful for the opportunity to do my part for the community in which I live. There are a lot of people out there worse off than me and I feel good about helping to provide support for them.

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

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

Pantries, refrigerators, and freezers can be chocked full of clutter. I know, I know, it’s food, so how can it be clutter? Well, if we define clutter as things we don’t need, don’t want, don’t value, and won’t use, then I bet your food storage areas are harboring at least a few bits of clutter.

Let’s Start with the Refrigerator

My top shelf holds condiment, sauces, and jellies. Talk about a potential treasure trove of clutter! The next three shelves are food we’re eating, left overs, and ingredients for use this week. Next is the cheese drawer, then produce, and the bottom of the refrigerator is used for storing large items – trays, my big stock pot, etc. (I removed my bottom drawer, so common in refrigerators, and put it in the garage. I find this area is much more useful not being a drawer.)

Where’s the clutter? Let’s start at the top by taking all the condiments out. Three BBQ sauces that are all still good? Combine them. Some oddball ingredient that you know deep in your heart you’ll never use again? Either toss it or pass it to a friend with different culinary tastes. Maybe you have a little dab of something that would be with another condiment, but you don’t want to combine them (say hoisin sauce and bottled ginger). I sometimes rubber band them together, so I can’t forget to use up when next time I use the other.

Remember to wipe the shelf before you reload. A hot washcloth makes cleaning sticky refrigerator spills easier.

Move down to the next shelf. Are your leftovers and unused ingredients still good? If not, eliminate them. They won’t get yummier sitting in your fridge! If your refrigerator is full of tidbits that you haven’t eaten but feel you should save, think about another system for them. Perhaps you should pack your lunch, or once a week you should have a leftover meal: nothing really goes together, but it all gets eaten. In my house, if there’s enough leftover to feed all four of us, I usually put it away still in the container in which I cooked it. If there’s less than that, I put it away directly into single-serving containers, so Dan or I can grab one when we’re packing up our lunches; if there are leftover sides, too, I’ll package everything and put it directly into a lunch sack before putting it into the refrigerator. The next person who needs a lunch can just grab the prepared sack and head out the door.

Move to the crisper section and the cheese and meat. Get rid of what’s of dubious quality and make a plan – written if necessary – to use what remains before it spoils.

Do you see any trends in your refrigerator? Maybe four or five cheeses you “had to” try that are now moldy, or yogurt that’s been neglected for way too long. Maybe you should admit that you think you like fancy cheese more than you do, or that yogurt may be good for you, but you really don’t like it. Adjust your shopping accordingly. I had to learn the hard way that even though we eat a lot of vegetables, the size that they sell at Costco is way too much for us. Some people think it’s OK to waste food that wasn’t very expensive, but that doesn’t sit right with me; I don’t want the guilt of throwing away what was once perfectly good. I’d rather buy the right size, rather than the cheapest-but-will-be-wasted size.  After all, it would be easier to throw your money straight into the trash can than it is to go to the store, select, buy, and store food that you’re not going to eat.

Now onto the freezer

I’ve discussed freezer organization before. (You can read the specific organization technique I use here.) The most important thing is to make sure you know what’s in there and how to find it. My parents keep a list on the outside of their freezer, defining everything that’s inside. I’m not that organized, but by keeping like with like, I can always see and find what I need.

While you’re doing a clean up, now is the time to unearth those UFOs (unidentified frozen objects). What are they? If you really can’t figure it out, defrost them one at a time with a commitment to use or get rid of each items as it defrosts.

Sometimes in the freezer you’ll find something that you felt you should keep, but in truth, you really don’t like. Now’s the time to be honest with yourself. If you get it out and defrost it, will you eat it this week? If not, shouldn’t you let it go?

Get into the habit of labeling everything you put into the freezer with the name and date. In order for this to be more convenient for you, perhaps you need to put tape and a marker near or on top of the freezer, so you can find it easily when you need it. And don’t bother freezing food that you made but didn’t like. It won’t be better tasting in three months.

Again, evaluate any trends you see: Are you overpurchasing frozen vegetables or single-serving lunches? If you have a free-standing freezer, it is really being utilized? Perhaps you could store everything in the house freezer compartment instead. Afraid to try? Well, you can shift everything over to the house unit and unplug the extra freezer. Live with it for a month and reevaluate whether the extra freezer is worth it. And if you have an extra refrigerator in your garage, what’s it keeping cold? Just drinks? Is this really the best use of electricity? I strongly encourage anyone who doesn’t have at least five family members to eliminate their second refrigerator.

Next week: Tackling the Pantry

Today’s Declutter Item

This was another of those not-so-successful eBay auctions. I decided I would experiment with selling a few handmade craft items on eBay using their fee free 99c starting price option. I figured I had nothing to loose as these cards are one of those aspiration items that I am sick of having cluttering up my craft area. I keep telling myself I am going to open an etsy shop but it never happens. Needless to say each set only sold for the 99c that they started at. The materials probably didn’t actually cost me that much so I suppose I broke even. This result hasn’t deterred me as I am going to put some earrings on there next week and see what happens. In for a penny in for a pound as they say.

Handmade Cards

Something I Am Grateful For Today

For making the most of my time when hubby is away. I had a friend over for a pizza dinner, a bottle of wine and chocolate. I am not so sure my waist is grateful but I had a good time.

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

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

Dan and I were sitting in the living room recently. He looked around with great satisfaction and said, “This is the new messy.” I wasn’t sure what he meant. I looked around too. There were a couple of things on the coffee table that didn’t belong, a stray pair of shoes, the dog beds were sort of tossed to the side, and a project of mine that I had basically abandoned but not put away was sitting on the floor. I said, “It is kind of messy in here. What do you mean?” He replied, “I mean, if we have company, we could have this room completely together in an hour, including dusting and cleaning the floor.”

The new messy. I like it. Believe me, I’d had more than my fill of the old messy, where we couldn’t have company because it would take too long to get the house together.

How did we get there, and more importantly, how can you get to the new messy in your own home?

One day at a time, one item at a time.

Your house didn’t start looking like a toy store, a book shop, a paper factory, or a junk shop in one day, and it won’t be remedied in one day. It’s taken me more than a year to get to the new messy. It may take you six months or three years, but once you get started, eliminate one or two items a day, and you keep after it day after day, your situation will improve.

What will the new messy look like to you? Will it be defined as being able to sit on the sofa without moving a pile of items? Finding something in a drawer the first time you look, in the first drawer you look in? Having company stop by and being able to say without flinching, “Won’t you please come in?” Or maybe it’s being able to downsize to a house half of your current size or being able to actually count the number of items that you own without running out of numbers? Whatever your goal, you can get there one day at a time, one item at a time.

Today’s Declutter Item

I seem to be finding that I need less and less kitchen storage containers these days. Or is it just that they actually haven’t been used for some time and I am only now coming to terms with letting them go. Getting some return on your items can make it a lot easier to part with them. I sold this Tupperware container for $10 on ebay. The lady who bought it lived locally so saved $10 in postage by picking it up. She ended up giving me a tip so I actually got $14.00 for it.(Thank Carmel)

Another Tupperware piece sold on ebay

Something I Am Grateful For Today

Last week and today I have been trying to figure out some link issues that two of my readers have been having. In the process these two lovely ladies have written such beautiful stories and thank yous to me about their declutter missions and how my blog has helped them along the way. It is gratifying to know how my unique approach to decluttering has worked for people that could not find the solution any other way. I have received many lovely stories and thank you messages over the last 18 months and I am grateful for each and every one of them. It is very time consuming to produce a post five days a week and respond to all the wonderful comments I receive. But let me tell you it is a labour of love that is well worth the effort. Thank you all for keeping me company on my journey.

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

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

Recently I spent Sunday looking at open houses. All of the houses were clean and nicely presented, and all of the garages were full of stuff. In some houses, the stuff in the garage was unpacked; in others, it was already in boxes. Boy, oh boy, did all these folks have a lot of stuff. I asked each of the real estate agents why the owners were selling. There was a divorce, a job loss, an unexpected opportunity to buy a nicer house in the same neighborhood, and a new business starting in a different part of the country. For the most part, the need to move took these families somewhat by surprise.

Back in March, when my husband was unexpectedly presented with a new job possibility, I asked if we should have our houses decluttered enough to move at the drop of the hat.  (You can refresh your memory here.) As a group we decided that there was decluttering for everyday life, and even more severe decluttering for moving.

Now I’m reflecting on this again. None of these families saw the move coming more than a month or two in advance.  When Dan and I got married we did have a fair amount of time to plan our move. Later when we moved to our current house, it happened more suddenly. I was pregnant with our second child and thought we needed an additional bedroom. Also, we lived very close to the freeway, and there was talk of expanding the freeway two additional lanes. Dan still says my thinking was addled by hormones, but when I decided we were moving, it happened pretty fast.

You don’t need to add “have a garage sale and get rid of 20 years worth of stuff” to your to-do list if life throws you a curve or a great opportunity.  Getting rid of things that you no longer need, want, or value will allow you to negotiate the still and rough waters of life with more ease and grace.

Today’s Declutter Item

I am not sure why it took so long for this calculator to come to my notice but I am sure glad it did because it fetched a nice $41.00 on eBay.  

Scientific Calculator sold on eBay for $41.00

Something I Am Grateful For Today

My little boy turned 20 today which reminds me how grateful I am that he recovered so well from his accident last year. I am also grateful for how close he and his sister are. They have a lot to bind them together both as sibling and as friends.

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

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

While we advocate slow and steady decluttering at 365lessthings, sometimes that’s just not what happens. Sometimes the Big Power Cleaning is in order. You have the help of your husband, friend, child, or you’re just sick and tired of being sick and tired. It is time to get it done! But how to best proceed?

1. DO NOT BUY ANY CONTAINERS BEFORE YOU BEGIN. You do not start a decluttering process by bringing anything extra into your home.
2. Get several large boxes or trash bags and label them: Trash, recycling, thrift store, sell (maybe), other (these will be things you find that belong to other people, the library, etc.), and elsewhere (in the house that is). Frankly, I just make a couple piles on the ground for these last two categories.
3. Get your label maker or masking tape, a stack of post-it notes, a marker, dust rag, broom, dust pan, scrap paper, a marker and pen. Bring a drink with you and gloves if the job is in a dirty location. Do not bring your phone; that’s what answering machines are for.
4. Get ready, get set, begin!
5. Drawers – I usually unload these, but only one at a time. Shelves – I shove everything over to one side to begin and move the items to the other side as I proceed. Hanging clothes – I examine these one at a time without taking them out. But, my closet isn’t overly stuffed. If you can barely move your clothes, then pull them out and put them on the bed. If you have a really full warbrode, then maybe you should tackle your clothes one type at a time – pants, t-shirts, etc. Folded clothes – I unload the drawer onto the bed. A room full for junk, or a shed, garage, attic, or basement – Take the first box, stack, or item that you can reach. You’re going to have to process these things one at a time.
6. Examine each item one at a time and decide what to do with it – keep, recycle, thrift store, Ebay, belongs to someone else, belongs somewhere else in the house. Put it in its appropriate stack. If necessary, label it (e.g. office). Do not leave the room; do not take anything away.
7. If you have multiples of the same sort of items, put like with like.
8. When you finish the first drawer, shelf or bin, think about whether keeping these items together and in this container is the best use of your storage and the best way to organize these items. Make a note (using the supplies you brought with you) about what you might need to buy or find to make this area work better for you – book ends, a container, more hangers, etc. Again, you will not be abandoning this project to rush to the store. Hopefully, by reducing your belongings and rearranging things, some of the storage devices that you need will be freed up.
9. Dust the drawer or shelf. Sweep the floor.
10. Go ahead and reload your items, dusting, neatly folding, etc. as you go. If you’re putting them into a closed container or drawer, label if necessary. When you come across duplicates, decide which you are keeping and which can go.
11. Check the time. If you can, move onto the next section. You want to keep an eye on the clock so that you don’t end up with too many things out at once. You don’t want to abandon your project and leave a bigger mess than you started with.
12. Repeat as many times as you are able but before you run out of energy or time, STOP. Your project isn’t done until everything you’ve pulled out, piled around, and labeled for elsewhere has been put away.
13. Return the items in your home to their true locations. Don’t know where that is? Well today isn’t the day to declutter the new location, just put like with like and know that’s a project for another day.
14. Decide where your selling items should be kept. I think there are two main strategies for this. The obvious one is having a pile somewhere. The less obvious strategy is to keep the item where it lived before (a toy on your child’s shelf, a handbag in the closet), and make yourself a list of what you want to sell. Be realistic: Will you really sell this, and is it really worth selling?
15. Once the only piles left are the ones that have to leave the house, load your car. If you know that actually taking items to the thrift store is a weak area of yours, then do it now, as a last step of your project. If you have items that belong to other people, think about exactly how and when you will return these items. Should you just take them now? Maybe it would be best for you to make a circuit delivering items to their owners rather than trying to coordinate the delivery of each with a social visit.
16. All done, all cleaned up, all finished. Take a good look at what you’ve done. Celebrate it on Facebook. Call your best friend to cheer. Aren’t you proud of yourself? You should be!

Today’s Declutter Item

I love the local bulk waste pick up days our local council puts on every six months or so. It is a great time to get rid of stuff that is just junk but too big to put in the wheelie bin. I also love that people come along and sort through the junk and sometimes take pieces to be recycled. This time around Liam cleaned out a bunch of his old art stuff from the garage.

Liam's junk on bulk collection day.

Something I Am Grateful For Today

I am grateful that the sun shone long enough yesterday to get my washing mostly dry. It started to get a little overcast as the afternoon wore on but it did it stayed dry and I only had to put a few things in the drying for a short tumble. 

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