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Jenny, I am with you. Flylady is really helping. I am not too far past the shining of the sink, and it is hard to actually DO all the things they say, but it does help.
I now have my kids clean a little portion of their room each day, and I write them a checklist. It was a dresser drawer a day, then under the bed, etc. They are just as overwhelmed as I am.
I like this Feng Shui idea, I think. I did Goole it, smarty-pants Tom, but most of the things that come up are sites that assume you already know what the heck it is. Basically, it seems to be that the clutter in your life becomes the clutter in your head.
Jenny, even my garden is in disarray now, and that is unacceoptable to me! it always used to be my place of peace and organization.
Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003
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Right now, I am focusing on the Triumvirate of Trash - the kitchen, my bedroom, and the office. I figure if I can get a handle on these three areas, the rest of the house will be a piece of cake.
Elizabeth, it's okay to feel crazy about the house. When you need a bit of peace and calm, go look at nature for a while. Then come back. Claim one teensy area of the house as your sacred space, and keep it so. Then, start expanding that space.
I'll try to take my own advice, too.
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Well it depends who is cleaning as to what happens with the box. Steve does these cleaning sprees when I'm gone at a dog show, and the house looks wonderful when I get back. However I realized that a lot of the stuff that he "decluttered" went in boxes in the garage. But the fact I didn't see it for a while actually helped a lot. If you have some space to put it OUT of that room, and not look at it for a while that is your best deal. Then when you look at it a month or two later you can be more heartless about pitching stuff.
I just did that this weekend. Was looking for one item that I haven't seen in a while and went to the garage. Some of the boxes still haven't been unpacked from our move almost a year ago, and I realized that Steve has been decluttering into another couple of the boxes. So I took a trashbag and started sorting stuff. I pitched a good third to half of the stuff, and the rest was clearly obvious where to put away now. Found a lot of miscellaneous pens too. Only saved the really important paperwork and trashed everything else.
And I cleaned the bathroom sink and the kitchen sink AND the stove. Go me!
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I'm even worse than a clutterer... I tend to have a hard time just getting the dirty dishes and food wrappers into the sink and trash can from where we eat in the living room. Mark laid down some ground rules for the new apartment, but what's really helped this past week is my new stainless steel step can in the kitchen. I've wanted it for the past year, but only recently has it been on a big enough sale at Target that I could afford it. It's a lot more fun to use than the grimy small plastic can we had at the last place.
But then, you all probably throw garbage away just fine. Posts: 2220 | Registered: Jun 1999
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We have a garbage can IN the living room where we eat, to solve this problem Though we often eat in front of our computers, but there are two trash cans in the computer room to solve that problem.
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At my house I keep the public areas clean but my room is a disaster area. Several people have cursed me as a slob because of my room. I point out that I keep 90% of the house clean but they say it's only my room that counts. Since that's messy that means I'm a lazy bum who can't be trusted with responsibility.
I see it as that's my room, that's my inner sanctum and I can do with it as I please. No one should be in my room anyway so why do they care?
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Anna -- of course if you never go look in the garage (or basement in my case) it is awfully messy when you do! We need some major cleaning ourselves, but I figure as long as the basement can contain the mess and I don't have to see it, it must still be okay. *grin* And, I think you're right, too, all the stuff you don't necessarily need gets filtered there and you just have one major mess to clean up.
I am definitely a sanctuary believer. When my living room and bedroom are messy, I am depressed, but as soon as they are clean it doesn't matter what the rest of the house looks like, I can have someplace to relax and be happy.
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"We have a garbage can IN the living room where we eat, to solve this problem"
Yes, I am getting one today or tomorrow. the table next to the couch is a pile-up area for the kids and us. So, Ayelar, I understand the terribly long walk to the kitchen garbage problem. Sad, but I do.
After a nice clean-up of the kitchen this weekend, it feels so much better. Good golly, though, does laundry heap up fast!
Edit: Does anyone have a really good site about Feng Shui? One that explains the basic philosophy? I am still trying to find one. Is it that inner sanctum idea, Christy?
[ May 24, 2004, 05:32 PM: Message edited by: Elizabeth ]
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Feng Shui and Geomancy in general are areas I've been reading bits about. Something about the design arts and mysticism (and regardless of what most people or sites might say, at their roots both of these are Mysticism) fascinates me. I suppose I'll have to go back and read the entire thread now to see if I can offer any pointers off the top of my head, but until then here are some decentFengShui sites. I think the second one in particular actually hits upon the philosophy.
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Thank you! That was exactly what I needed. i think it is pretty fascinating.
A friend and were talking about it today. She went to China, and there was a building which had a giant hole in the center of it to "let the energy flow through."
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