Way back on the 5th of March when we got this blog up and running I wrote the “about” page to introduce my new adventure to anyone who cared to read it. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then and I thought it was about time that I updated the “about” page to better reflect the current personality of the blog. Here is what I have come up with…
About 365lessthings Part II
At the start of this journey my intention was to journal about the physical and psychological aspects of my daily decluttering efforts. I immediately starting reading other decluttering blogs for inspiration and these sites and forums alerted me to the existence of the minimalist movement. One link lead to another and the next thing you know I realised there is more to this than just cleaning out my house.
First there was learning to resist the temptation of the materialistic desire to go out and buy more “stuff”. Although I knew shopping was a big no no if I wanted to actually achieve anything with my decluttering efforts it is another thing to act upon it. Or not act upon it as the case may be. I am happy to say that I was amazed at how quickly I adapted to this key law of decluttering. Minimalist blogs soon alerted me to how much pollution and waste is produced by adding to the supply and demand of unnecessary items purchased day in day in by consumers just like me. If that doesn’t put you of shopping nothing will.
Then there was the mental ties that had to be broken to objects around my home that I thought meant something to me on a personal level. Very soon I realised that it was the memories these object provoked that were of importance to me and that I didn’t need “stuff” in order to keep these memories alive.
One thing you may have noticed that I don’t write about is organisation. Even though I am a bit of a natural at this (even if I say so myself) and a neat freak to boot I soon came to the conclusion that I don’t want to encourage people to keep stuff because I gave them a good storage solution. I figure that if we all do this job properly there should be so little left that their position in the home should be logical so no organization skills would be required.
I have also become interested in the idea of less stuff requires a smaller space to keep it in therefore a smaller home should be enough to satisfy our needs in the future. We had actually downsized before all this started which was the catalyst for the decluttering in the first place but I am sure that once both our children have left home we will be keen to downsize once again. This concept also has great advantages for the environment.
So as you can see I have learned a lot so far on this journey I am on and I dare say there are many more lessons to come before it is finished but I am very open to the experience.
I will cut and paste this to my About 365lessthings page the next time I have access to the internet.
ITEM 263 OF 365 LESS THINGS
Some bits and pieces I found in my camphor wood chest that are pretty much useless to anyone
I like this ‘reassessment’ of 365lessthings. I think many people have gone through the same process of realizing that there is so much more to decluttering than getting rid of the clutter. Thanks for sharing your journey to encourage and inspire us all.
When my kids left home, we did downsize our home. It’s a great time to re evaluate how you want the rest of your life to be like.
Hi Willow,
I felt it was time I reassessed what 365lessthings was about or at least how it has progressed from when I first got started. My journey has been interesting and informative and mostly due to wonderful people like yourself who have so much great input in your comments. I have learned a lot from my readers. The regular commenters like yourself really keep me going at it day in day out. Thanks.
This is an excellent reassessment and new About post. You’ve exactly described the changes that occur when you really start to think about what you’re doing, why, and how it’s connected to a larger world. Pretty amazing stuff, isn’t it? And yes, it really does put you off of shopping in a big way. Onwards and upwards!
Hi Meg,
On the subject of shopping, my vacation in Italy is coming to it’s conclusion and my suitcase will be no heavier when I get home than what it was when I left. Yes I have bought a few small things but I have used up some things that I brought with me so I am about even. I did notice the commercialism here more this time but that might be because it is the third time I have been here and you notice more of the everyday stuff when the amazing stuff is more familiar. I am looking forward to having more time for my blog again when I get home.
hey, listen i really like your blog. a lot. it is inspiring me. a lot. one thing if i may… please have someone read your posts before posting. i almost stopped reading it, due to misspelled words and grammar mistakes. i am not being rude, i have someone do it for me and it is crucial, they catch things each post. i would shorten it a lot as well, just too long for a larger audience.you have a good thing here. seriously, i am a fan. thanks for the great ideas. with caring intent- rachelle
Hi Rachelle,
I usually get my husband to check all my posts but because I had to put a whole months worth together before going on vacation he didn’t have time to read them and check them for me so please forgive all the mistakes lately. Things will be back to normal when I get home so please be patient. Thanks for reading though and welcome to my blog I am glad you are overlooking my mistakes and enjoying what you are reading in between them.
Your updated ‘about’ page is lovely! It helped us to re-define minimalism for our family.
RE: Travel…enjoy the few days you have left in Italy! We recently traveled to northern France and we came home the same weight as when we left.
What fun it is to have JUST THE MEMORIES, and some photos, to show for our adventures. There were ‘temptations’, but I’m so happy I didn’t give in (’cause I’d end up decluttering the item(s) eventually, anyway!).
This is really good. I keep trying to envision my home where I just have the things I want and need and nothing extra. What would that be like?
The other day I thought I was close to this ideal but then opened a junk drawer and realized I’ve got a journey to still go through and not just because of that drawer either.
Thanks, Colleen. This really is a good site.
Hi Ron B, I always think the one good goal is to have no junk drawer. Anything with a purpose ought to have a proper home.