The Social Networking/Surfing Dilemma

A Guest Post by Deb J

Even though I only check my email and Facebook 3 times a day, I am finding I spend more time than I would like on both.  I don’t spend much time “surfing the net.”  Texting is not a problem because I only use my cell phone for emergencies.  The emails are few and mostly have to do with business type things.  I have been able to get my name off most email lists other than for those like my doctors, Mom’s doctors, our bank, and my credit card.

I really do not have a huge number of people I keep up with on Facebook, yet I find it takes too much time to skim through it all.  The majority of people are from church as we have a group on FB we use it as a way to keep up with what is going on.  Unfortunately, anyone who is in that group has to be friended and means getting all of their posts not just the ones to our group.  That is where one of my issues is.  Some of them put too many posts on there.  Even though I have tightened things down as tight as I can get them, I still receive all of their shares, comments, etc. because many of them have not tightened things the way I have.  I want to get their group posts but would like to not get all the others. 

It is nice to be able to send a text to fill someone in on something they need to know yet will not interrupt them while at work or in a meeting.  It sure can save making an extra trip if someone can pick up an item at the store on the way home.  It helps to keep track of where your teen is.  Facebook or places like it are a good way to keep everyone up-to-date on your life without sending multiple emails or making multiple phone calls.  It’s a great way to share pictures or invite people to an event.  I find myself sending fewer and fewer emails because I am able to use other ways of “talking” to people.  Email has become a method I use when I have much more to say and only to one person. 

I know that face to face or a phone call is nicer but if the person lives far away you can’t always talk to them face to face and the differences in time may make it hard to connect.   That makes me very glad to have these other methods.  So this brings us to the subject for today.  How much time do we spend on social networking and other online activities?  Is it too much?  Do we really need these things?  There are some really good reasons for having them.  Some of them come in pretty handy.  I know we did without them years ago but does that mean we have to today?  If we are going to use them, how do we become better at decluttering the area of the time we spend on them? 

One thing I am going to do is cut back to checking all of them twice a day.  I am also going to create a couple of personal groups on Facebook so that I will only see what I want from certain people.  I am also going to work on educating people on how to tighten up their accounts.  I think some of these will be a big help.  What are some ways you are decluttering your online life?

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter CDs that you no longer listen to and perhaps are even embarrassed you ever owned.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

Eco Tip for the Day

Investigate product reviews before making purchases in an attempt to get it right the first time and not find yourself back at the store buying a similar but hopefully better alternative soon after. This isn’t foolproof of course but the more armed with information you are the better choice you are likely to make.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

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

Isn’t it baffling that no matter how much you reduce your belongings and simplify your life, there still seems to always be an endless to-do list. I think it is highly possible, at least in my case, that while I am un-complicating one area of my life I am filling that void with something else.

Actually as I write this, I am sure I published a post on this very subject not so long back. Nevertheless I am going to prattle on about it again today. If for no other reason than the fact that I obviously didn’t listen to my own advice the last time. 

Sometimes even the things we enjoy in life can begin to feel like a chore.  The effort of manoeuvring other activities just to fit them in can be exhausting. And then there is the physical clutter that sometimes manifests due to them.

I don’t actually know  where I am going with this post so I am just going to give some examples of things on my to-do list that are just draining me at the moment. Things that I aspire to getting around to doing but are actually just causing clutter in my life that I don’t need.

First Thing: On my balcony I have a louvred cabinet door and three picture frames. I can see the potential in them, which is why I “rescued” them from the gutter in the first place, but I really don’t have the inclination or possibly even the skills to do anything with them. But what they really are is aspirational clutter making my balcony look unattractive and harder to clean. They have to go. Should I find the time and inspiration later I am sure I can acquire replacements  just as easily as I acquired these.

Second Thing: I really enjoy creating my handcrafted cards and using up my supply of craft materials. However there are a lot of materials among them that  I don’t like enough to warrant the space they waste in my home. Allowing those to linger is making the decluttering process far too long winded. At the same time I find it hard to say no to interesting papers etc that I can see potential in.

Solution: On Monday I made a pledge to not bring in any more paper crafting materials for two months and I am going to stick to that pledge no matter what. In fact I hope to stretch that pledge out longer once the two months are up. Also I am going to round up a collection of materials among what I already own and donate them to my local thrift shop.

Third Thing: I have been taking on far too much responsibility and not delegating enough when it comes to my art space since taking it over in April. It is time I stopped being such a control freak and gave myself a break. One of these responsibilities has been to bring the space in line with the new standards of presentation. That is the reason for props such as the picture frames and louvred door mentioned in the first thing above.

Solution: I have started delegating and am resisting any temptation to acquire any more merchandising items. Especially ones that require upcycling.

Forth Thing: There are a few tasks on my to-do list that are unavoidable yet I have been procrastinating over them. Although avoiding them is not causing clutter in my home it sure is causing clutter in my head.  In my experience, doing is usually far less painful than procrastinating, so heaven knows why I still find myself doing it at times.

Solution: I pledge now that these tasks will all be completed by the end of next week.

I love repurposing, I love crafting, I love organising, I love helping others and I love to be thorough… but one needs to know where to draw the line. As it is impossible to be everything to everyone all of the time.

Are there areas in your life that need decluttering? Are you overtaxing yourself, even when it comes to the things you enjoy? If so maybe it is time to cut yourself some slack and take a break from it all.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something that was given to you that you no longer wish to keep.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

Eco Tip for the Day

Don’t accept free promotional products that you have no use for. Accepting these just encourages the continuation of this practice while the environment would be healthier without the manufacture of cheap throwaway or needless items like these usually are.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

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

In my last post I talked about how I had been reading too much and needing to be more intentional with my reading.  This post I want to talk about being intentional about what we do so that we don’t have cluttered lives.

I am so excited about the decluttering progress we are seeing from people who comment on this blog.  While we all have places where we struggle, we are all moving forward and working to break through those struggles.  The majority of this decluttering is that of ridding ourselves of the things we accumulate over the years.  We have talked some about decluttering our lives when we talk about stopping the use of shopping to deal with stressors in our lives.  Today I want to talk a bit more about this type of decluttering. 

In a world where life seems to get busier and busier we have taken on cluttered lifestyles.  Does Junior really need to be on all those after school sports teams?  Does the little Princess need to be so caught up in dance, sports, etc?  Does Mom or Dad need to be so busy after work that they seldom come home until late in the evening?  Does your job really require working long hours or is it a way to climb the ladder and gain more money?  Do you need more money or have you become dissatisfied with what you have because of all you see and all others have?  What are you doing that you NEED to do and what are things that you do because you feel obligated or you want to pass the Joneses?  Are you really obligated or is this a case of following the crowd or using busyness to get out of dealing with life issues?  How much is enough and how much is too much? 

Reading too much isn’t the only place I need to declutter.  I have found that there are some other areas of my life that have become clutter and it’s because I have fallen into the habit of doing them not because they were needful or a real enjoyment.  They were there because I fell into them and didn’t want to spend the energy thinking about them or getting out of them.  We have already talked about the decluttering of scrapbooking that I am doing.  Another area was that of making all the cards I send.  Speaking of that, there is the habit of sending cards to so many where I not only don’t hear back from them but I have little contact in any other way, it is all one sided. 

For some people they need to declutter some of the things they do as individuals in order to do more things as a family.  Some need to come to terms with not keeping up or exceeding the Joneses in what they have or how much they make.  Maybe you need to cut back on the amount of entertaining you do so that you can be home more and get more rest.  Or maybe you need to take walks or bike rides as a family or couple rather than each go their separate way to the gym or to other forms of exercise. 

So, what is cluttering your life and what can you do about it?

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something that hasn’t been used in a long time. After all, if you don’t have a use for it then your home is not the right place for it.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

Eco Tip for the Day

Don’t throw those old sheets, towels, blankets and pillows in the trash donate them to an animal shelter, humane society, wildlife rescue service, kennel or veterinary surgery.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

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

Much of what comes into my home these days is transient. Aside from groceries much of what does come in is free, secondhand, or both. And I have to say it makes it a whole lot easier to pass things on when large sums of money aren’t exchanged to acquire it.  

This week I have decluttered…

• 2 books – one free, one 10c, both secondhand and both not used in a reasonable length of time so both were taken to the thrift shop.
• 3 strips of fabric samples – all free from a friend, but after careful consideration I decided I didn’t have a use for them. One went to the thrift shop to sell as a craft supply. Two went to a fellow Renew Newcastle creative to be used in one of her millinery creations.
• 1 item of clothing – Given to me by a friend, was unused within a reasonable period of time so also was donated to the thrift shop.
• A variety of craft supplies – All either cheap, secondhand or free and all used to make cards to sell at my art space.

I have a rule these days for the stuff that I bring into my house. It is either used within a reasonable length of time or it goes back out the way it came in. I have neither time nor space for anything that isn’t of use to me. That doesn’t stop me from accepting stuff, it just means that it isn’t allowed to linger if unused.

I have to say it feels good not to be attached to stuff that way that I once was.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something that you’ve been keeping but really belongs in the trash.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

Eco Tip for the Day

Don’t leave tasks linger for so long that you have to redo them such as drying the washing or folding it. This can cause you to have to waste more electricity rewashing and ironing. Need I also mention your wasted time and wear and tear on your appliances.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

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

Today’s mini mission is ~ Just declutter something that isn’t “you”.

In reality all of this weeks mini missions have been about getting rid of things that aren’t you. By this I mean things that don’t spark any joy in you. Joy that something fits you. Joy that something works well for you. Joy that you find something beautiful. Joy that brings back happy memories…

Unwanted gifts. Disappointing purchases. Items that feel like they are nagging you to do something you don’t have the time or inclination for right now. Items you accepted from others only because you felt you couldn’t say no. Sentimental items that don’t give you a warm and fuzzy feeling. These are all items that don’t bring joy to your life. Add that lack of joy to resentment and frustration and you don’t have a recipe for a very happy home.

Don’t force yourself to wear the clothing item that makes you feel frumpy. Remove that ugly art piece that you have tolerated for years only because a friend painted for you. Don’t assault your sense of smell with the bottle of perfume that you hate just because it was a gift. Pass the family heirloom onto another relative if it doesn’t suit your taste. Resell that expensive electronic gadget that you never could figure out how to use. And those supplies for that craft project you bought five years ago, but never did master the technique for, really would be better in someone else’s hands.

So be kind to yourself, don’t allow anyone or anything dictate to you what you should keep of your own stuff, and remove the items that torment you from your life.

A box without hinges, key, or lid, yet golden treasure inside is hid. ~ JRR Tolkien

I have a box. Just. One. It contains no treasure but there is something hiding in it. It’s a plastic storage box measuring 60 by 35 by 42cm, which has helped me preserve my sanity, well, sort of preserve my sanity. It lives in the storeroom, sitting to the left of the entrance, looking harmless and, well, um, just like a plastic storage box. What it contains, however, is a Hydra of paper clutter and just like the creature in Greek mythology that grew two heads each time one was chopped off, this monster, I could almost swear, breeds and gives birth to multiple sheets of paper, in an act of defiant revenge, each time I process a batch.

So, how did this creature come to life? Echidna and Typhon played no part in its creation; I did it all by myself and I have been waging war against this paper serpent ever since. You could say that this is the Achilles’ heel in my decluttering battle. After decluttering a good deal of other stuff, I had paper clutter left to weed out. I found it annoying to have stacks of paper lounging around nonchalantly in an otherwise relatively uncluttered home and I corralled these stacks and dumped them unceremoniously into the box, and placed it in the storeroom. It was out of the way and yet in plain sight so that I could not forget its existence. The plan was to process a handful each time, to be filed, shredded or recycled, till the box was empty. But, what often looks good on (sigh!) paper doesn’t always turn out the way you want it to, in reality.

I’m pretty good in handling current incoming paper (I ensure that any junk mail, for instance, has a shorter lifespan than that of an adult mayfly and I try to file necessary papers as soon as I possibly can), it’s the paper from my pre-filing cabinet days that I’m still going through. Having it contained in the box allows me to tackle it a little at a time and if even that gets a bit too much, to take a breather and ignore it for a while, before coming back to it. And as I only remove papers from the box and do not add any, it should only be a matter of time before every single piece of paper is either rehoused or gone for good, right? Yeah, that’s what I used to think … I’m not so sure any more.

I have come across useful information regarding handling and reducing paper clutter, on this blog and elsewhere, and I employ the techniques that I’ve learnt in my ongoing battle. And I know that persistence, will, eventually pay off. And so, with Henry V’s battle cry of ‘Once more unto the breach, … once more;’ ringing in my ears, I will keep going till I finally defeat this monstrosity.

Do you have a clutter nemesis? Is it paper or something else? Do you have a battle plan for fighting it?

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter excess furniture or stuff on your veranda, balcony or patio. Wind blows in leaves and dust which is harder to clear away when stuff needs moving to get at it.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

Eco Tip for the Day

Don’t leave your car idling for unnecessary periods of time such as when you pull over to use your cell phone. 10 seconds of idling uses more fuel than restarting your car.  http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/myths/idling.html

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

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

Níriel jokingly suggested that to complete last Friday’s mission she should eat all the ice cream in her house. It sounded like a good idea to me but then it got me thinking. Along with stuff decluttering one thing most people, in today’s Western culture, could stand to do is declutter their food choices. I know I have written about this before, and annoyed at least one person in the process, but it is worth repeating.

It isn’t aimed towards the idea that everyone ought to be thin, it is about having a healthy diet and an uncluttered pantry and fridge. And the best way I know of to avoid unhealthy foods is to not have stockpiles of it in your home. That isn’t to say you can’t have a little of it to indulge occasionally, but a weeks supply of chocolate bars, a fridge full of soda and a family sized packet of crisps to be gorged on everyday isn’t good for either the waistline, your body health or an efficient use of your pantry and fridge space. And, from experience, the older you get the more one should adhere to this line of thinking.

Ingredients like rice, pasta, potatoes, highly processed cereals, white flours, sugars, syrups… are all best used in moderation unless you are highly active people. Ingredients like this used to take up two shelves in a largish pantry in my home, now they take up one small drawer. Since a whole cake or a batch of cookies, for two people over fifty, should take longer to eat than the shelf life allows, I don’t bother to bake much these days. Therefore, when I do bake, I just purchase the ingredients I need, use them up and carry on as usual.

I know what sort of foods we particularly like and grocery shop for those kinds of ingredients. This doesn’t mean that I don’t experiment with recipes every now and again, it just means that I don’t go nuts buying all sorts of exotic ingredients that end up going out of date in my cupboard. If I do buy an ingredient that is a little different to usual, I will just buy what I need for the meal I am making or creatively use up any excess in another recipe soon after.

The kitchen is one of those areas in my home where I have boundaries for things, and what I stock must be contained within those boundaries. Having limits really does help one think twice about what to buy and what to leave on the shelf.

So what things do you have in the way of ingredients and or junk food in you home that you would be better not to stock or eat?

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something from under a piece of furniture. Stuff on floors make them difficult to vacuum or sweep.

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

I received a comment from Jill which inspired this post. It will probably sound like a confession as well but so be it. Here is Jills comment and I will write my thoughts after it.

“I have been a collector of “stuff” my whole life. Had a major life changing operation last October and since then have been getting rid of lots of stuff. For the past 10+ years, I had been stock piling items for use after retirement (this November). Using “poverty thinking” (after retirement not having enough money to buy craft items, books to read, clothing, i.e…), my small home was piled high! After many trips to Goodwill with bags and bags of items, one or two bags of books donated to our local library for their book sales, I am starting to see the light! Major clean out of old financial papers, sentimental papers, etc… (on the 11th clothes basket for the burner). I feel so different. God has continued to provide anything that I truly need.”

So here is what I thought when I read this, inspired by Jill’s mention of craft supplies but mostly by the last sentence. As you know I wrote a post just recently about the universe providing. Also, as you well know, I have been decluttering craft supplies for the whole five plus years of my declutter mission, and particularly over the last year since having a selling outlet for my craft. However, on a regular basis over the last twelve months I have also stumbled across many opportunities of acquiring craft supplies for free or next to no cost. A temptation, that at times, I didn’t try to resist given how quickly the supplies can end up going back out the door. Yet still I sometimes wonder if I really have less craft stuff now than I did a year ago.

That does sound like a confession, but in fact I am using it as an example of how what you need does usually materialise for you when you need it. Granted I do find myself socialising in circles of people with similar interests, and I do volunteer at a thrift shop and then there is my friend Wendy (my partner in crime) who, like me and with me, loves to check out the piles of stuff left on the sidewalk on bulk waste pickup days. But nevertheless it is proof that one doesn’t need to stockpile stuff for when times are hard.

Books especially don’t need to be stockpiled because one can always borrow them from the library for free. And it is amazing what great craft projects one can do by upcycling “trash”. Clothing might be a little trickier, but then again by just wearing them out, rather than replacing them just because the novelty has worn off, will help get better value out of them. And secondhand clothing is a cheaper option and there is no shame in accepting friends’ cast offs. I have items in my closet that used to belong to Wendy’s daughter.

And lets face it, for most of us, we will never find ourselves in a position where we won’t have at least some luxuries and/or non-necessities in our lives. Another friend Carole, when we find ourselves complaining about the trivial, laughs and says “First world problems”. This is so true, we have had it so good for so long that we don’t realise how spoiled we are and what we could manage to live without.

So long as we have a roof over out heads, food and our bellies and people who love us, then we will be just fine.

Today Mini Mission

Declutter something rough or gritty.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

I’ve been racking my brain today, trying to come up with an idea for a blog post, without success. I thought of a few experiences I have encountered during the week in reference to clutter. However these thoughts didn’t amount to enough content for writing a whole blog post. So I decided I would just put these thoughts to you and see what comments ensue. The conversation in the comments section is often as stimulating and inspiring as a post anyway due to my clever and engaged readers. So here goes.

1. I was thinking of how I hold on to some things longer than I ought to, because I just hate waste. Last week I finally put an old t-shirt in a bag to become rag at the thrift shop. The problem was that, from a distance, the t-shirt looked perfectly good, but get up close and tiny holes were visible in the lower front. I hate this about t-shirts, the way those wholes wear through. The general theory is that it is from being sandwiched between your pants button and hard bench tops. Which for me is very possible because I craft so much at my kitchen bench. But I digress, I felt inclined to continue to wear the t-shirt because it was mostly good, but I had to admit that, up close, I probably looked like a bit of a slob. Who else has trouble parting with things that are mostly good but in reality “mostly” isn’t good enough in public?
2. Another area in which I hate to see waste is when crafting. I like to use up materials until what is left is of no use to anyone. At the same time I find it hard to turn down the offer of free or near to free materials that I know I could use. As a result I have snippets of ribbon, card stock, patterned papers etc just waiting for that little element of a project that will see them used up. Meanwhile more stuff comes in the door. As a result I sometimes feel like I am taking two steps forward one step back. So lately I have been tailoring my projects with the goal to use up lots of little bits and pieces. For example I might make a batch of six cards. While the design is the same, each card will be slightly different than the other due to the fact that I am making the elements for the card from scraps. I have also been expanding my product range, at my retail art space, by creating small items that are perfect for using up scraps. At the same time I refuse to purchase any new materials, it is make do or go without. Now I finally feel I am making inroads into reducing my craft supplies. Do my crafty readers also have issues with lots of little bits and pieces of scrap materials and what do you do to declutter them from your stash.
3. Do what you can to find ways to responsibly declutter items that you think are of no use to anyone. There is always a charity or company out there who has a use for your stuff, by either rejuvenating it or recycling it. Let Google find such places for you or use good old word of mouth. You might be surprised what you can learn from conversations with others. Sometimes it is possible to just stumble on to such information when you least expect it. Today I arrived home to my apartment building to find a folder sitting on the ground near the entrance. It belonged to a bedding recycling/reconditioning company. I looked around and, sure enough, saw two guys loading a mattress into a truck. I thought “Good for you!” and also “Kudos to the people who had the decency and initiative to find a way not to let that mattress go to waste.” Has any of my wonderful readers found great ways to send their unwanted stuff to be repurposed or recycled? If so tell us about it.

So that is what I have been pondering when it comes to decluttering this week. So now I am interested to hear your ideas on the subjects.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something you wear.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

So today I was out and about with Wendy F and we had a wonderful time shopping and checking out the stuff on the sidewalks ready for bulk waste pickup. And yes I know what you are thinking ~ “What is someone, who writes about decluttering and being environmentally friendly, doing shopping and picking up junk off the sidewalks?”

First of all let me tell you that I bought nothing new and of course the stuff on the sidewalk wasn’t new either. So that is the environmentally friendly side taken care of. The items I purchased at the thrift shop were two reels of thread for a friend, some wooden clothes pegs for me to make some product for the art space, some small elastic bands I will use for merchandising at the thrift shop I volunteer at and a photo album to experiment with for a possible storage solution for my cutting dies. I also bought a shop display stand and some baskets for the art space I work at (secondhand from a shop that is closing down). And the items I picked up from the sidewalk were also intended as merchandise displays for the art space.

So as you can see I salvaged lots of stuff for all sorts of reasons other than bringing them home to clutter up my space. If it turns out they aren’t useful for my art space I will donate them to the other art spaces or the thrift shop so someone else can find a use for them. Better that than they get trashed. If there is one thing I enjoy as much as being creative it is repurposing other’s unwanted stuff.

I suppose it could be said that I put myself in a position to make use of things that otherwise might end up unused. And I can tell you that it is uncanny how “the universe provides”, which leads me to another point of this blog post and that is this…

Don’t ever worry about getting rid of things that you think you might need some day. Because, if you are like me, these things will just appear when you need them and for free or for very little cost. Maybe I am just lucky, or maybe I fortunate to have time to seek these things out, but one thing is for sure, they just seem to appear when I have a need for them. Or perhaps I should say a want. So when I feel that something is cluttering up my space, because I have no immediate use for it, it isn’t a hard decision to let it go.

So, as you can tell from my enthusiasm in this post, I had a fun filled day with Wendy F, finding all sorts of treasures that aren’t going to clutter up my home, that will help rather than cause harm to the environment and fill a need I might otherwise have had to spent a lot of money on, or go without. So never fear the old “I might need it some day monster” and let go of all that stuff that is no use to you now or in the near future.

Today’s Mini Mission

See if you can think of an item to declutter that you rarely if ever use, that you keep only because it is a society norm to have one in your home. I don’t have a coffee table, a barbecue, a handbag to match every outfit, eyeshadow or plastic wrap.

“If we do not feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” — Unknown

Eco Tip for the Day

Seek out secondhand items before resorting to buying new. If you have a little patience the thing you need will appear soon enough and much less expensive than buying new.

For a full list of my eco tips so far click here

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