So I tend to bite off more than I can chew. A few months ago the opportunity to have everyone out of the house for a weekend seemed like the perfect time to do some major cleaning up. I had high hopes. I was going to tackle the worst room in the house. It was filled floor to ceiling with boxes from the move and just had enough floor space to walk a thin path around it. Since the move had taken place some five years before I had the brilliant idea that it would be no sweat to clear out that area.

But where to start? I mean of course you wanted to start near the door so you could make sure you had room to actually get things in and out but What then? Well, I started out at the door. To the right of the door was a large bookshelf filled with odds and ends and stacked on top of the shelf were old boxes. I managed to get a step ladder and started from the top. The boxes were very heavy and I barely made it safely to the floor with them. I imagined they were books or something equally as hefty. As I opened them I discovered they were VHS tapes. Boxes and boxes of VHS tapes.

The hoarder in me wanted to save them as I had invested a lot of money completing my collection but I was reminded of my vow to stop collecting things. Things are not important. People and memories are. If I really wanted to remember a particular video I could just take a photo of it and remind myself to look it up later. I did, however, go through the boxes and take out the recordings of my family. I did not want to toss out memories, just junk. That took me some time and I hauled the boxes down the stairs and out to the street.

Moving on, I went through the rest of the bookshelf. I had three boxes with me. One was marked Goodwill, one was Trash and the last, smallest box was Keep. I went through those shelves ruthlessly tossing almost all of the junk into the goodwill pile. Broken dishes, bits of paper and so on went into the trash. That went quickly and I was relieved. Beyond the bookshelf was a walk in closet. It wasn’t the biggest closet, about the size of a twin bed. However it was packed with old clothes and more boxes, big ones.

I got the boxes down one by one. The first few largest ones were filled with blankets. Twin, King, Queen, quilts and throws and everything in between. Some I recognized as belonging to my great-grandmother and I set them aside. Others were down and were perfect for winter. The rest I threw in the Goodwill box. Although it is good to have extra blankets on hand I though three large boxes full was going a bit overboard. Especially when we had not used the in five years. Throw pillows, stuffed animals and other small soft things were in the next box. Then I got to the hard part. Boxes of photos and papers.

The photos had to be kept, of course, although I was not going to volunteer to sort through them and create an album. The papers were old enough that they could be tossed safely and I tossed as quickly as I could. A box of my old things from college was next and I couldn’t help but hold on to a relic or two. A small box of old comics went into a pile for eBay along with a few collectable toys.

All the dust was really starting to make my eyes water and I dragged some things downstairs for a break. Gathering a mask and washing my hands I ventured back into the never ending closet. The clothes were next on my list. I brought up trash bags and just started to go through the clothes one by one. Easter dresses, graduation gowns, old sweaters, Halloween costumes and anything else you probably would not miss packed the closet. The packed bags filled the floor of the closet and I was forced to drag everything out to my car before continuing. Exhausted and only halfway through with the closet I called it a night.

The next day I started up again. I finished the clothing leaving only a few outfits to decorate the bare walls. Before I could move on however I had to address the growing pile of bags and boxes in my living room. Far more than could fit in the trunk of my car I had to figure out a way to get them to Goodwill. I finally got my neighbor to drive a load up in the back of his pickup and we managed to get the whole thing done in one go.

When I returned to finish up the room I felt defeated. I had barely scratched the surface in a day and a half of steady work. On top of that the break from the family had been cut short and they were due back any minute. I forced myself to straighten up and make sure the walking path was navigable again. Thoroughly disgusted I felt like I had wasted my time. But then I thought about how much I had gotten rid of. Hundreds of pounds of junk was no longer in my house. Even though it might not look like much, it was that much less I would have to deal with in the future.

The experience also inspired me to tackle my own closet. It was much smaller and less daunting then the one I had already done. With only an hour or two of work I was able to get my closet in great shape and feel like I had accomplished something.

Beyond just cleaning up that closet I also learned a valuable lesson. Even good stuff that is stored away becomes bad stuff eventually. There is no sense in keeping things you are not going to use. It only makes it that much harder on you later. Now I have started to just throw away things that do not have to be kept. I try to get at least one bag a week in my trunk and off to Goodwill. This helps me to keep the clutter from building up again. Hopefully one day I can get the clutter in my home under control, but until that point I will try my best to not add to it.

I have started to think of clutter like the chains in Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol. Every day we build a new link in the chains that bind us when we continue to let junk build up in our lives. The only way to break free is to stop building the chains and start working to undo them.

Author Bio:

This post is contributed by Linda Bailey from housekeeping.org. She is a Texas-based writer who loves to write on the topics of housekeeping, green living, home décor, and more. She welcomes your comments which can be sent to b.lindahousekeeping @ gmail.com.

Today’s Mini Mission

Repair something that has been sitting useless so it can become useful again.

Eco Tip for the Day

Take a few lesson on sewing and/or simple handyman tasks. This way you can repair things rather than throwing them out and buying a new one. My local hardware store give free lessons or repairing and repurposing, maybe yours does too.

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

Right now I am working on our inventory of possessions, which is a task we have to do for insurance purposes when we are moving to a new location. This is in case something gets damaged during the moving process. If it isn’t listed on the inventory it isn’t compensated for as loss or damage.

This task gives me the opportunity to identify every item in our home and either add it to the inventory or make the decision to eliminate it. It is nice to know that I have been through the entire kitchen this week and have only felt inclined to declutter four little things. I am very happy knowing that this area is as I want it to be. For now anyway.

We are working off the previous inventory from our last move. The first thing I do is go through the existing list and delete the items that I know we no longer own. I have to admit that this action reduced the value of items in my craft area by $2500. Yikes. And that doesn’t include doing a recount on scrapbook paper of which I know I have sold or given away quite a bit of.

Since writing that last paragraph I have been working on the craft area inventory and am a little disappointed with the small quantity of things I have decided to part with. It seems I have not recovered completely from the I-might-want-it-some-day attitude in this area of my belongings. Mind you when you look at the comparison photos of my craft area now and what it looked like when I began decluttering, the reduction is certainly impressive. There is nothing wrong with maintaining the opportunities to be creative I guess. For now I will continue with the inventory and reduce where I feel comfortable. Then I will wait to explore what outlets for creativity there are in our new location, next year, before I make any more reductions in this area.

What I do know is that this is the only time I have actually enjoyed compiling the inventory of our belongings. In the past the list was extensive and took in inordinate amount of time to read through and update. This time around it is a joy in its simplicity. I tackle one area of the house at a time. I get great pleasure in the first step of crossing off all the things we no longer own. The next task is to add items to the list that we didn’t own when it was last compiled. Step three is to reduce the item count on the things that we now own fewer of. Then there are slight adjustments to be made on the replacement cost field. After those tasks I usually have enough enthusiasm remaining to rename items in the database so that they are easier to search for when doing future adjustments.

As I mentioned in the first paragraph, doing the inventory is an opportunity to go over everything we own with a fine tooth comb, so to speak, and decide whether we want it or not. It is also a good chance to make sure that all items are stored in the most logical positions in the home. I am glad to say that so far, in the kitchen, all I have reshuffled are a few storage items and the craft area required a little reshuffling as I found items to declutter. Which just goes to prove that once the clutter is removed the organising takes care of itself, because things naturally find their logical position within the home.

This exercise will also give us a definite value of our home contents for insurance purposes. I have my fingers crossed that we can reduce and adjust that and get ourselves a small refund on our current policy. My husband however thinks that we may have gotten a little over zealous when we reduced the value when we last renewed the policy. Time will tell.

One thing is for sure, the pre-pack day for our move should be short and sweet, as should uplift day and the set down and unpack at the other end. Yay for living a more minimalist lifestyle. 

Today’s Mini Mission

Return something, whether that be to another person or to a store.

Eco Tip for the Day

If you use a printer in your workplace, only print what really needs printing and print double sided if you can.

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 Cindy’s post yesterday she talked a little about staging a home for selling purposes. This got me thinking two things ~ 1.) Why wait until you are about to sell before making your home look good. 2.) A home can look good without being impersonal such as they suggest in this staging process.

How nice would it be were your home in a state where it looks good enough to show people through at the drop of a hat while still having those personal touches that make it feel like home? Keeping in mind that people viewing a home, with the intent to buy, will look in your storage areas to see how they are configured.

Why wait to make your home look good for complete strangers while you live day to day in the inferior version of what your home could be? Don’t you deserve that much from yourself?

I have viewed a lot of homes in the last year with the intension that if we found one that was just right we would consider taking the plunge into actually buying a home to live in. Some of these homes have had occupants  whether owners or renters, who clearly weren’t too house proud, and I can tell you that among these I have seen some pretty scary examples of how not to present a home to the public eye.* There have also been some examples of homes that don’t appear to have been professionally staged but are uncluttered with enough personal possessions on display to give the property a peaceful homely feel. And we have also viewed homes that have been newly renovated and not lived in but have clearly been professionally staged for the viewing public.

What I have notice about these three examples is that one has to look past the mess to see the potential in the unkempt homes, while with the professionally staged homes it is very easy to see any shoddy workmanship in such a sterile environment. The homely, uncluttered, lived in, homes give you such an feeling of warmth that it is easy to miss the little imperfections because you could so see yourself living there. Which says to me that a uncluttered home with a reasonable amount of personal items is the ideal atmosphere for any family.

Does this kind of home sound like something you can aspire to? If so why not make that your ultimate declutter goal.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter small hardware items that have accumulated. Excess screws, nails, drywall plugs, used sandpaper, multiple allen keys, washers… .

Eco Tip for the Day

Get familiar with your local bus timetable because it is cheaper and better for the environment to take a bus rather than a taxi when necessary.

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

Mini Mission Monday is about finding ten minutes a day to declutter. To make it easy for you, each Monday I set seven declutter missions, one for each day of the week for you to follow. It takes the guess work out of decluttering and makes it easy and “fun” for you to achieve some quick decluttering.

There are definitely specific items that, in excess, make your home harder to keep tidy, organised and efficient. For today’s mini missions I will make some suggestions of items to declutter and why they can have a negative effect in your home when in over-abundance. Most of the items I mention can be cleaned up and donated to charity.

Monday – Having too many kitchen items makes it difficult to access items when you need them and you blasé about cleaning them quickly. Declutter a few items you don’t need or are in over abundance.

Tuesday – Reading materials are another thing that end up accumulating around the house, in racks and on benches, tables and floors. Magazines, newspapers, specials catalogues… There is no reason why most of these can’t immediately go in the recycling bin once read.

Wednesday – Aside from all the picking up and wasted storage space, indulging your children with too many toys teaches them the habit of excess and can also stifle their imagination. Have your children choose three toys each to donate to charity this week.

Thursday– Décor items can certainly warm up a room and make it feel homely but too many can have a detrimental effect. They can clutter the space, make it appear untidy and harbour dust mite among other things. Declutter one or two dust collecting décor items this week. Scatter cushions, rugs, throw rugs, wall hangings, drapes…

Friday - Having too many items of clothing to choose from can lead to baskets of unwashed and/or unfolded washing laying around. This can also cause wasted time making choices on what to wear. Declutter some excess clothing. Think about whether the number of clothing items you own represents the amount you really need or how often you can be bothered washing and ironing them. I DO NOT mean for you to consider washing small loads more frequently (that would be bad for the environment). What I am saying is do you still have several weeks worth of this seasons clothes in your wardrobe at the time you are doing a full load of laundry. If that is the case perhaps you are overstocked.

Saturday – Last but not least I am once again going to harp on about those tchotchkes collecting dust around the home. They have to be cleaned, they have to be housed and they take up valuable space that could be used for something useful. I am not saying get rid of them all, I certainly won’t be. Just do yourself a favour and lighten your space and your work load. Declutter a few more this week.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

Good luck and happy decluttering

Eco Tip for the Day

Next time you are in the shops and are tempted to buy some item that you just don’t need, stop and give some thought  to the mentality behind this compulsion. That moment of instant gratification comes at a cost to you, your home and the environment.

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

Some of the first items I decluttered

In order to write this post today I took a look back to Day 64 of my declutter mission. This was the day that I first began to blog about my resolution to declutter 365 things. Since then I have often written that the simplest way to begin decluttering is to start with the easy things. Looking back on the photos and list of items I had decluttered prior to blogging proves that this is exactly what I did.

Many of these items had never been used, hadn’t been used for a long time, I didn’t like for one reason or another or I had too many of. The items came from places all over the house, from drawers, closets, cupboards, cabinets, open shelves and even the garage. I dare say to begin with I would not have been able to tell by looking around that I had even decluttered much, but that did not deter me. I knew the stuff was gone and that was all that mattered.

I then looked a little further along in my photo archives and found that I continued on in this way for quite a while until I added a degree of difficulty by beginning to sell on ebay. Then it seems I began my first use-it-up challenges with toiletries, pantry and craft items. Next larger items, from outside, that required dismantling began to appear in the photo archives. Then obligation items began to show up, things given to us by friends and family that we no longer wanted. And by now my husband was well and truly involved in the decluttering effort.

By this point furniture began to be decluttered, furniture that was finally emptied and no longer required. This was all before day 200. It was easy to see from the following photos that I was really becoming ruthless. Sentimental items were heading out the door, as were useful items from my kitchen that I had decided I had too many of. Items that at the start I wouldn’t have thought I would declutter were also now fair game.

I won’t bore you with over two more years of my decluttered inventory. However I do hope that you can see the point of this post by now. Choosing the easy things first really is the less painful way to enter into this hopefully life changing mission. No matter how many things you have or how attached you are to some of them, if you begin with the easy stuff you will make a difference. You may not notice the difference at first but it will become obvious soon enough. Just be grateful that you are making progress and that it isn’t so hard.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter A Guilt item. Something you feel guilty about acquiring in the first place.

Eco Tip for the Day

Think twice about buying anything that you don’t need. Whether your use for it will last, whether it is just a novelty or whether it even adds anything to your life.

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

Since I have brought us back to the subject of being open minded, now seems as good a time as any to write a post about our state of mind when it comes to stuff. I was reading a post this morning, which I will link to on Friday, and one quote really stood out for me…

“Most of us have so much – much more than the majority of the world at least (and more than our primal ancestors ever dreamed of), yet we live with a misplaced sense of deprivation.” ~ MARK SISSON

This statement puts into words something I wonder about often. I think about it from all aspects. There is the “Have” side where, as Mark mentions, people seemingly have much more than they need but are forever wanting more, so feel deprived. And then there is the “Less Privileged” side where people can’t afford all the trappings of life and naturally feel deprived. Then there is the minimalist who chooses and is happy to live a life like the less privileged and doesn’t feel deprived at all. What is different about his state of mind.

It is understandable to feel deprived when one works hard but struggles to provide the necessities in life ~ food, clothing, shelter and medical care. But when one feels deprived when they can afford this an more, then perhaps something else is wrong.  Or perhaps we are simply duped about what it is we should be striving for. When one comes to terms with the idea that what they give and what they have in life is enough, then stuff no longer matters.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter a kitchen item that you have simply because everyone else does. If you don’t find it helpful on a regular basis then it isn’t necessary to you. ~ Examples:- Garlic press, potato peeler, cake pans, blender, turkey baster, meat thermometer, deep fryer…

Eco Tip for the Day

Be conservative about how many dishes you use when cooking and eating. The less there are to wash the less water and electricity is wasted. And in my case ~ my dishwasher is out of service at the moment ~ this tip saves on dishpan hands. I realised, while preparing ingredients for dinner last night, that it would save me on washing up if I just left all the chopped veggies on the cutting board rather than putting them in bowls. I have also discovered that washing plastic bowls, that have had greasy leftovers in, is a real pain. Which for me is another good reason to declutter more plastic.

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 to declutter something because it requires dusting and you don’t like it all that much anyway. Have you ever considered how much time you spend cleaning things in your home that aren’t even necessary to your happiness or survival. Or perhaps you avoid this task until the dust is causing hay-fever, someone is coming to visit and it looks embarrassing or the humidity is turning that seemingly innocent dust into a breeding ground for mould or mildew. Or perhaps you don’t even realise that this dust could be causing health problems.

My son’s bedroom used to be a huge dust collector. Needless to say I often made a lackadaisical effort of cleaning this space. I didn’t want to deal with the difficulty factor of cleaning it properly. There were various reasons why this job kept getting relegated to the too hard basket.

Firstly he had a large desk in his room which caused bad placement of his other furniture. His bed was placed in a corner and over a window. Making it difficult to change the sheets and flip the mattress. And also the window sill was half covered by the bed head making it difficult to dust. Also only about two metres of his skirting boards were exposed for dusting and only about one third of his carpet was accessible to vacuum.

My Son’s Room

This large desk, intended for him to execute his university art assignments, was mostly covered with numerous dust collecting sentimental items making it an enormous task to keep it dust free and tidy.

Then there were the two guitars resting on their stands in the corner and a small ottoman he had a habit of “hanging’ his half soiled clothing on.

All and all this was an uninspiring room to entice me to keep clean. As a result quite often I would  wipe down the skirting boards I could see, change the sheets, run the vacuum over the carpet I could get at, and walk away. I would perhaps once a month make a bigger effort but only out of sufferance. Less often I would insist the desk be cleared off so I could give everything a good dusting. Usually at the end of a school term.

My difficulties with this room were somewhat unavoidable simply because he needed the furniture that was in it. Also it is his room, his domain, and I felt that he was entitled to adorn it with what ever personal items he liked. A mother often doesn’t get much say in how tidy a 21 year old keeps his room either. One can merely guide not force. Well my son has moved out now and you should see his room. In fact you can in the photo below. It is vacant except for a bed.

My Son’s Room Now

Do you have a room in your home that is too hard to keep clean because of the clutter collecting dust, resting on dust collecting furniture that isn’t necessary, which covers walls, floor and skirting boards that rarely see the light of day that could do with a good clean. Do you really need or want all this stuff getting in the way of a clean and tidy home or is it just there out of habit. Give it some serious thought because as I mentioned above it may be less harmless than it appears.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something because it requires dusting and you don’t like it all that much anyway

Eco Tip for the Day

Embrace your real hair colour, even if it’s grey. The environment could do without all those nasty chemicals and wasted water going down the drain in an attempt for you to be something other than the beautiful creature nature made you.

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

I brought this blog post up from the archives to once again make the point of what need really is as that is the theme for today’s mini mission.

I mentioned many time how little we really do need as opposed to what we “think” we need. We really only need food, water, shelter and love, it is a little more complicated than that but not as complicated as we tend to make it for ourselves.

You only have to look at the photos of all the things I have decluttered from my home to see how much stuff we had that we thought we needed or wanted, only to find that sooner or later we discovered we didn’t need it after all. Somethings took longer to get rid of than others and that was often due to not being quite ready to part with them because we though maybe we still need them. Here are some examples…

• Some we haven’t used for sometime but maybe one day we just might.
• Some had been in use until recently but even though they were useful we really weren’t going to need them.
• At least one was something I thought would be so useful when I acquired it and I used it once in about seven years.
• One just didn’t really fit in the house anywhere anymore.
• One got used once a year to cut leg ham at Christmas.
• Two never did perform the job well that they were designed for.
• Changes of diet, climate and dwelling had a hand in some of them not being used anymore.

They all look useful enough right? It could be very easy to hang on to all of these things with the idea that our circumstances might change and we will “need” them again. Circumstances such as lifestyle, living arrangements, interests, returning to old habits and the like. But please take another look at all of that stuff. What among it is necessary to survival. None, thats how much. And there is still plenty more where that lot came from like the crutches in the garage cupboard that have come in handy three times in five years, the spice chest that only half the drawers hold items that could easily be stored elsewhere, the wine glasses we really have too many of, lots of craft supplies etc etc.

How many items such as this do you hold on to because you think you might “need” them some day. As Lena said in a comment once “Everyone chooses their own games.” The beauty is you can change the game rules if you want to or even the game itself if you like. Take a chance and play the declutter game instead of the clinging to things of limited use

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something of little value that you think you might have a use for some day. If you haven’t used it for some time the chances are you never will have a need for it and if you do you could either borrow or buy one. Hint ~ Be realistic about the difference between need and want.

Today’s Decluttered Item 

Earring I no longer wear

Eco Tip for the Day

Another workplace eco tip ~ Instigate a recycling bin in the lunch room for cans etc. Even if you have to bring the contents home and dispose of them in your own recycling bin, at least you will know they aren’t going to landfill.

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

We all know there are only so many hours in the day. How many of them do you want to spend…

1. …looking for things you need but can’t find among your excess stuff.
2. …looking for things you didn’t put away where they belong.
3. …choosing what to use or wear among an overabundance of stuff.
4. …moving things in order to clean your home.
5. …running around like a mad thing cleaning up every time someone is coming to your home for a brief or long visit.
6. …dusting trinkets that aren’t even really that special to you.
7. …struggling to make things fit into, what ought to be, your more than adequate size home.
8. …shopping for more stuff that you will have to cram in somewhere just for the thrill of having something new.
9. …feeling ashamed of how your home looks.
10. …procrastinating about doing something about it.

What could you spend your precious time doing instead?

1. Relaxing
2. Feeling less stressed.
3. Spending time with friends and loved ones.
4. Creating beautiful things.
5. Exercising
6. Living in the knowledge that anyone could drop in anytime and your home will be tidy and inviting.
7. Enjoy some time in nature, a walk by the beach, hiking or watching your garden grow.
8. Volunteering in your community, This can be very satisfying.
9. Having extra time to focus intently on one task at a time so you get the best result
10. Getting your home in order so you can feel content there.

It may take a little time to get from list A to List B but it will be totally worth it.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter an item of clothing that you don’t feel good in. Be that because of  fit, visual or comfort reasons.

Today’s Declutter Item

South Park Character Costume

Eco Tip for the Day

Organise your weekly menu prior to grocery shopping. This will help avoid extra trips in the car to the grocery store.

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

Cindy’s Weekly Wisdom

Cindy

I live in a neighborhood where the houses are all about 50 years old and are between 1500 and 2000 square feet. Most have 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and a 2 car garage or carport. Almost all are one-story houses. The house just around the corner was a bit smaller than most and had been poorly maintained. When the original owner decided to move last year, it wasn’t long before the new owners knocked the house down to the ground and scraped away the foundation.  A few months passed and contruction began on the new home. The architect left the house plans in the permit box, and being a curious person, of course I checked them out: 3700 square feet of heated/cooled space, plus 2000 more square feet of un-heated/cooled space including a three car garage plus a pool. Three stories; 5700 square feet of house.

As you can imagine, there was immediate chatter in amongst the neighbors. Those who thought is was a bad idea were concerned about its looming massiveness and its lack of appropriate style and balance with the rest of the neighborhood. Others thought it was a waste of resources – to build, to maintain, to fill. Other people though said, “If they can afford it, good for them.”

That last response gave me pause.

Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.

Do four people (two adults, two children) need a 5,700 square foot home? What about the costs to build, maintain, heat, cool, and fill this home? The resources that will be used for all the lumber, furniture, appliance, etc. Can you imagine the dusting and vacuuming? The clutter?

When it comes to clutter, we all know how easy it is to do and how difficult it can be to un-do. While my future neighbors are providing a rather extreme example, we’ve all done things we should not: purchased more than is necessary, purchased a new thing when the old thing was perfectly functional still, bought new things to make ourselves feel good / be fashionable / because they were such a great bargain / because we felt we needed to keep up.  And, on the other hand, we’ve all failed to get rid of things when we should: things that were broken that we could not or would not repair, tools or craft supplies that might be useful someday, items that we received as gifts and stuck in a drawer, forgotten, clothing that will never again fit no matter how much we exercise, pieces of paper that became obsolete as time passed.

Before you buy or when you don’t feel like decluttering, remind yourself: Just because I can, doesn’t mean I should.

Today’s Mini Mission

Declutter something made from paper.

Today’s Declutter Item

I didn’t have any paper items to declutter today but here are some mechanical pencils and a fountain pen that Liam doesn’t want. They are all off to the thrift store.

3 Mechanical Pencils and a Fountain Pen

Eco Tip for the Day

When buying bars of soap, by ones without wrappers or multipacks that come in a simple cardboard box. Every little bit of plastic saved from landfill counts.

“In daily life we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy.” Brother David Steindl-Rast

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