declutter my life

Totally revamped my lists there.
Basically I moved my tasks into the in-box, deleted all of my old lists (which were time-specific and mostly unusable), then added a few lists (mostly themed after my tags), and moved my tasks back into the new lists.
The new format seems much more user-friendly

I have made inroads into this. I have been to the tip many times just for 2 rooms. THere is so much more to get out and some more storage to buy (hello Ikea!) and then I can think about what I actually want the place to look and feel like and stop just fighting fires with the tidying up.

... like tickets from the Leonard Cohen gig we weren’t able to go to last summer.
Today was the first time I heard Road to Hell on the radio and wasn’t saddened by the memory of what happened.
Now that the resentment has gone away, it’s time to lose the little pieces of paper too!

So I’ve been getting rid of some really useless junk lately.

For example, I had two very old George Foreman Grills. Both of these grills are pretty much useless; specifically because the nonstick coating has almost entirely worn off. But did I throw them out…. No. They sat on the shelf for years. Until now. They’re gone.

The George Foreman Grills are just one example of the many useless things that I’ve kept simply because I don’t know what else to do with them – and for some reason I couldn’t seem to throw them out.

I think I do tend to keep some things because they remind of a certain time, place or person…. It’s getting so much easier to declutter.

While decluttering, I found an old notebook listing my resolutions from 02 and 03.

Some of it I have accomplished and moved forward.
Some other items I have not, and they’re holding me back (for example, having another baby).

I need to let go of some and accept the life that I have now

I don’t think I’ll make real progress until I take the encyclopedia downstairs (to the basement), and free up a shelf to stack up the papers from my big current projects (so that the in-tray doesn’t overflow again).
Of course, there’s no room in the basement, so I need to make some…

It’s a riddle, I tell you!

Update: I’m done with this!!!

It’s true.
I can appreciate the things I have, the things I actually like now that I have gotten rid of so much useless crap.
I always felt guilty about getting rid of random things that I had been given as presents (the worst gifts of all time have to been ridiculous figurines and other equally horrific items that you are expected to put on display – or keep hidden in a closet and put out on display when said gift-giver comes over). Now I feel no shame in decluttering all the junk.
Life is good. I love summer.

Moving my desk today, helped me and my husband go through some papers and other things.

I have two vacuums. It’s kind of dumb, but we have these carpeted stairs and an upright is just a bear to clean them. I got fed up and got a canister vacuum that I love for the stairs. I thought it wouldn’t be powerful enough for the rest of the house, but I think if I keep the filter clean and vacuum twice a week, I can downgrade to just one.

GOODBYE GIANT VACUUM!

Somehow getting rid of big clutter is a huge deal. It’s like getting rid of four boxes of junk all at once. My friend is having a garage sale next weekend and I’m happy to give it to her.

I also realized that some storage is not bad. I used to have all my old school binders on the shelf above my desk. They’ve already been gone through…it’s journal articles and things that I want to keep because it can save me digging out articles as I continue to go to school. But do I really need them taking up my limited shelf space above my desk? Probably not. So I’m going to go get a plastic filer just for those binders and stick it in my closet. the rule is that I can only keep as much will fit in there, which is generally how I deal with storage. So Now the shelf I have is actually USABLE because I don’t have 8 inches of old paperwork up there.

I’m feeling a little better about things. I was crying the other day about it, so this is a good step.

same person I helped move last year which sort of got me reinspired to do this…

Hopefully the experience works its magic again. I have loads to do this weekend but maybe I can focus on something….

I think I was before this website, too, but this has made me that much more so. For whatever reason, though, I can’t seem to wrap my life around this concept. It’s the one singular area I continually struggle with, making my home as I want it to be…

I wish I could figure out why this is such a struggle for me.