Often someone else will turn on the television while I am in the room but I am not really watching it. It is however hard to ignore news broadcasts about all the natural disasters that keep happening this year. The latest disaster in Japan is horrifying to behold and conjures up a lot of feelings and deep thought.

I don’t know about you but my first reaction was ‘Oh my god, all those people dead, injured and missing!’ Watching the tsunami destroy everything in its path, lives, buildings, cars, ships… The sadness and misery felt by those left behind trying to come to terms with the loss of loved ones while having to deal with their homes being destroyed. Nowhere to go, no place of comfort except hopefully in the arms of other loved ones who survived.

When we witness disasters like these the last thing we think of, if at all, is the trivial stuff in those peoples lives. Stop and think for a minute. If this happened to you, would you really be thinking ‘Oh my God, what has happened to that  unused silver tea set Aunt Maud gave us as a wedding gift.’ No! So why do we have such a hard time parting with such things when times are good? Next time you are having trouble parting with items like this or any such trivial stuff stop and think for a minute how important this item would be in a disaster situation and be realistic about its importance in your life.

Maybe sell off these items and donate the money to someone less fortunate than you. This option would certainly alleviate any guilt you feel about Aunt Maud’s feelings. We really are lucky when we have the time and energy to concern ourselves with such things. Why not share that good fortune with someone else instead of hoarding it in the back of a cupboard somewhere in the comforting home that you share with the people you love.

Now before you get all up in arms about me being cruel, uncaring and insensitive about the fact that we all have crosses to bare in this world. I didn’t write this post to make you feel ashamed, I wrote it to help you let go of those items that you keep clinging on to even though you really don’t want them in your life. If you have items in your home that will never realise their worth, there is always someone out there who may enjoy them more or benefit from the funds they generated. I sincerely hope that this post will help you let go and I am prepared to stick my neck out in order to help you achieve that.

Today’s Declutter Item

Just another item of clothing that wasn’t being used. (Donated to the thrift store)

Things that made me  feel grateful today.

• How privileged I am.
• The joy I get from donating the things I don’t use to others who may use them.
• Feeling safe even though I know anything can happen when you least expect it.
• That in my life I have only ever lost two people close to me from anything other than old age.
• That learning to let go of stuff gets easier the more I realise how little it matters.

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

My father always says there is sheer laziness and there is smart laziness. The first one is not an attractive trait while the other one is about finding the most efficient and effective way to cut down on your work load without neglecting anything. I am all for smart laziness and like Dad, I am pretty good at it. Utilising this ability makes staying organised a much simpler task.

Sometimes the most efficient method is obvious to us while other times we need to be taught, and the best way to learn is to have an open mind. I tend to be the kind of person who having no desire to spend more time on unpleasant tasks than necessary, can usually figure out an efficient method quite quickly. While others whose special talents lie elsewhere might need a little help with this. I have a bad habit of assuming that everyone shares this strange talent and neglect to share this insight believing it is common knowledge.

With that in mind I am going to share with you my weekly housecleaning routine and some photos showing what some areas of my home look like once I done. Don’t get me wrong I do no love housecleaning – I have not gone quite that mad yet – but I do love a clean house.

The first seemingly obvious rule of my household cleaning is – if it isn’t dirty don’t waste time cleaning it. Below is the routine I follow keeping rule one in mind at all times and using my microfibre cloth cleaning methods of course.

Going room by room…

• Put away anything that is out of place
• I dust all surfaces that don’t need wet cleaning not forgetting skirting boards, wall art and door recesses
• Clean all glass surfaces not forgetting TV and computer screens
• Wipe scuff marks off walls, if any.

Kitchen…

• Wipe out microwave.
• Wipe down all surfaces including any marks on cupboard doors and cook top. (I move anything on benches and clean the area under them)
• Clean toaster, kettle and cutting board.
• Clean sink/s including splash back

Bathrooms…

• Clean bath, shower, basin and toilet.
• Dust window sill

Once all these tasks are done I vacuum all floors and then mop the hard floor areas.

You are probably looking at this list and thinking what’s so efficient about that, it sounds like hard work to me. But the trick to this is that aside from wiping down the kitchen benches after preparing food and perhaps a quick sweep of the kitchen and entry floor if they get too messy, I do not repeat any of the above tasks until the next week. And because I hate cleaning the shower so much I only do it every other week. Once the routine has become habit you find you whip through it in no time because you don’t have to think about it. I usually start cleaning my 3 bedroom, 1 study, 2 1/2 bathroom house at about 8am and am done by lunch.

Of course there are chores that need doing constantly like cleaning the dishes (thank God for dishwashers), laundry and cooking but that’s life. I only periodically clean above the fridge and kitchen cupboards, the oven, the objects in the display cabinet, windows and outdoor areas etc.

Of course the key is to stay tidy and organised in the between time. This doesn’t mean slaving everyday. It just means spending that fraction of time it takes to put things away after you have finished using them. It also means knowing where everything is at any given moment, which isn’t hard once you are organised.

Here’s the clincher, the not so common sense moral to this whole story. You will actually waste more time and effort rummaging around in your mess trying to find things and trying to perform tasks amidst a mess than you actually would if you just kept it tidy. Things get lost and broken in a mess, so it can also cost you money and create clutter. I suppose it just depends on what you want to spend your time and money on.

ITEM 289 OF 365 LESS THINGS

One for the donation box. This program is now way out of date and we are mostly an Apple family now. Maybe some else can use it.

5 Things I am grateful for today

1. A visit with my parents – Even though it will be brief it will still be nice to see them.
2. Laptops – Their portability comes in handy when you are trying to get a blog post out and you are running out of time to catch a train for an overnight stay. I may not need to take it but the option is there if I do.
   
3. All that life has given me – I have really had a very fortunate life and I should never take that for granted.
4. I am finally getting over my cold
5. Being Thin – I don’t take any credit if for it I think it is just the way I was made and it actually does simplify life in many ways.

Use this button to link to Day 287 The future of 365lessthings and have your say on what direction you would like my blog to go in once the 365 days are up. Don’t be shy, I really would like your input. Once you are there just leave a comment. Thanks!

Another guest post by my husband.

You’ll never meet a traveller who, after five trips, brags: “Every year I pack heavier.”

Rick Steves – Travel Writer

These words echo in my head every time I pack for trip, whether business or pleasure, reducing the amount of stuff I carry always makes for a more enjoyable time. Whenever I travel with colleagues, they are amazed by my small bag and unable to imagine how they could do it. Packing light is easier than they think and anyone can reduce their luggage to a manageable size with some planning and preparation.

Colleen and I are committed to only take as much stuff as can be carried onto the flight; a 9″ x 22″ x 14″ bag weighing no more than 7 Kilos (15 lbs) plus a smaller bag for personal items like a camera. We use a convertible backpack/suitcase with zip-away shoulder straps that is lighter than your average roller bag, and easy to tote across town to our hotel. How do we do it? Well, my bag contains the following items:

• 2 collared shirts
• 2 t-shirts
• 1 pair of pants
• 1 pair of shorts/swimmers
• 4 sets of underwear
• 4 pair of socks
• 1 jacket
• Vibram Five Fingers
• small toiletries kit
• first aid kit
• 1 small towel
• journal/pens
• sewing kit
• guide book/maps
• phrase book (if needed)

In my camera bag:

• DSLR plus 28-135mm zoom
• 50mm lens
• iPod Touch
• battery charger
• spare battery/compact flash drives
• Archos 604WIFI (used for photo storage and charging the iPod)

I used to carry a laptop but an iPod touch provides me all the computing power I need except for an ability to upload photos from my camera so I carry the Archos 604. Despite carrying two devices, I still save more than half the weight of your average 12-13 inch laptop or netbook.

The main advantage of this small uncluttered travel bag is mobility. While most people are waiting for their bags, we are heading to the hotel. We can easily change planes, trains or buses when a delay occurs because everything is with us. Sure we have to do some washing along the way but it is often no more expensive to use a fluff and fold service than to do the laundry yourself. We also use lightweight wash and wear clothes that can be washed in a sink if necessary, and air dried over night.

Virtually nothing in our bag is there because we might need it, we will use every item continuously throughout our travels and when those one-off occasions arise we just buy what we need at that time. Plan for the best and be prepared to spend a little money if needed, why ruin a vacation lugging a huge bag of stuff you never use to save a few dollars. Travelling light is an awakening that can open your eyes to how little you need in your life, try it on your next vacation.

For those who cannot imagine travelling with one small bag, check out Rolf Potts’ No Baggage trip.

ITEM 250 0F 365 LESS THINGS

I am sure someone will find these fabric scraps useful but I am sure I am not going to use them

You are probably wondering what Photo Deterrent means. It is a idea that just popped into my head yesterday while commenting to Anna at www.whoopsadaisy-anna.blogspot.com/ about her lovely shoes. I am sure this probably isn’t an original plan but I thought I was clever anyway.

Here is the plan…

• Choose an item you have that torments you because you never use it even though you spent quite a bit of your hard earned cash in it.
• It would be best if the item is one you are having a difficult time parting with because it is addictively appealing to you on some level but you know you probably won’t ever use.
• Now take a photo of it
• Print the photo in a wallet size format
• Put it in your purse/wallet in a very prominent position where you can see it every time you go to pay for things (even if you have to cover the photo of your sweetheart/children/husband etc).

At this point I think you clearly understand what Photo Deterrent means. Every time you go to make an ill advised purchase you will see that picture and at least think twice about what you are doing and hopefully put the item back and walk away.

If you find this photo is just causing you a lot of unneeded stress try this approach instead…

• Take a photo depicting a goal you intend saving for. Maybe an overseas trip, starting your own business, paying off your home loan.
• Put that in your wallet in a prominent position
• Hopefully that will inspire you to stop spending and  start saving.

The possibilities are endless. You could use a photo of the last “bargain” you bought that you still haven’t used yet or of  something you have multiples of that are completely un-necessary…

Any one of  these strategies could potentially deter you from acquiring any more un-necessary clutter. If however it is having the opposite effect for goodness sakes get rid of the photo.

Since I can’t for the life of me think of anything to get rid of today that has any relevance to the subject at hand I shall make today’s item this scary looking knife that my husband sold on eBay

Colleen’s Helpful Hint of the Day

To easily clean your microwave oven place a damp microfibre cloth on the plate, heat in microwave on high for about 30 seconds. When timer goes wait a couple of minutes for the steam that is generated from the heated cloth to soften any soiling on the inside of the oven then just wipe away.

The idea behind 365 less things is not only to rid our home of clutter but also not to replace that clutter with new clutter. I like to refer to it as “dematerialise”, that is to stop being a victim to the constant materialistic urge to keep up with the Jones or use “retail therapy” to put joy into my life.

I am now getting lots of joy sending things out to other homes that might need it more than I do and saving my hard earned cash to use where I feel I get more satisfaction, like travelling or going out for a nice meal somewhere special or paying off the mortgage quickly. These things may not appeal to you but maybe your old car isn’t going to last much longer and you keep thinking you can’t afford to replace it but at the same time you just spent $100 on that new blouse at Country Road and picked up the latest Bryce Courtney Novel you had been meaning to read. There goes $135 you won’t get back and you most likely couldn’t fit another item of clothing in your overstuffed closet and you could have borrowed the book from the library for free.

Think before you spend “Need, want, need, want” which is it and make the smart choice.

Today two pair of sneakers found their way to the garbage bin. Soon we won’t have to stack shoes on top of each other in the shoe cupboard.