Out, out, out

[flexagon]

Those crazy minimalists have some things right. I'm not sure what's changed in my thinking, but I've been continuing to get rid of stuff and organize what remains, and it hasn't been lame. It's been continually interesting to see what I have (and where it's been hiding). Much more like a treasure hunt than a continuous chore. Everywhere I look, I find either great things I'd forgotten I had or else I find I can free up some space. :D Anyway, here is some lame-sounding but actually not lame stuff I'm observing.

• One item sitting in a weird place can easily hide two or three other items that also don't belong there.


• Organizers can make things worse and can even be clutter themselves. I got rid of the plastic drawer organizers in my bathroom drawer... not only does everything now fit (I mean in a single layer, with room left over) but I found a pair of really nice $20 tweezers that had fallen between the containers.


• It's not just me. Even heisenbug was doing a little bit of going through old T-shirts and found some shockingly nice socks he didn't know he owned.


• A box in the closet for things destined to go to Goodwill is an essential tool for incremental... what's a good word? I don't like "purging". Maybe I like "clarification". I also need a place to put the things I intend to give away as gifts one day, so that they'll be in one place next time I rummage for a gift.


• If I buy expensive skirts from Athleta using my Old Navy card, I get gift cards that basically let me have tank tops for free.

Okay, that last item was more on the "greedy acquisition" side of things.

Comments

[bluechromis.livejournal.com]

Alright, you've inspired me...I've set aside an hour to get started on this tomorrow. I so hope the process isn't as scary as it sometimes feels.

One question though - what makes a pair of socks shockingly nice? Handwoven from baby unicorn wool?

[flexagon]

So sweet! I know you already have been wanting to go for it -- happy to have tipped you over the edge.

Some categories of things are less scary than others and I bet you have enough to go for an hour without much pain. Personally, I recommend: giant tubs of moisturizer that are past their expiration date and make you sad when you look at them anyway; duplicate books or books you didn't like; your least favorite three cat brushes out of the seven that you have; anything that smells like mold; any games you haven't played in years; anything you don't like and have only been keeping because it was a gift.

Big things, not papers. Papers are the devil to get rid of. Let me know how it goes! :D

[bluechromis.livejournal.com]

Hmm...so, I did get rid of a little bit of expired cosmetics, and a few books, but then I had to move onto the papers, because that is where the clutter lies. And because that's where the clutter lies, it's where the clutter grows. And since there are occasionally important things buried in there, I've got to face it eventually. I threw out a full-size trash bag of paper, mostly shredded. AMAZINGNESS.

I think I do have some pet crap I can hit next week, and you're right about the gifty stuff.

[flexagon]

WOW. I guess you've gotta do what you've gotta do. I'm truly impressed! :-D

Yesterday I got rid of a lava lamp, an old dish-drying rack, and a small space heater, all functional but none of which had been used in years. Today I mailed off that painting (snicker) and gave a couple of very old humor Tech issues to the Tech people for their archives. I won't be able to continue the party for long, though -- I'm traveling for at least part of the next two weekends. You'll have to keep it going without me.