View Full Version : 40 Hours Decluttering Using Flylady's Timer Method - Nov. 11, 2021 - Feb. 22, 2022
Hi All,
I'm a teacher who is on a reduced schedule for about four months a year, mid-December through mid-February and mid-June through mid-August. I also have a REALLY cluttered home. In the past, I've had some success with setting myself a goal of doing a certain number of hours of decluttering during my periods of reduced work. I set one overall goal (usually 40 hours), then chip away at it in smaller increments of time. Some days I aim for an hour; others for four hours (with breaks!). I basically use flylady's timer method described here, but with longer periods of time than 15 minutes:
http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-sta...ng-15-minutes/ (http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/flying-lessons/decluttering-15-minutes/)
This past summer, I stumbled a bit and didn't finish that 40 hours until last night, but then I decided to start my winter 40 hours early since I am able to manage some hours right now. So I am just now starting this winter's 40 hours.
Though clutter is still an issue, over the years of focusing on decluttering, I've also discovered I need to spend time on making my home comfortable and pleasant which involves putting in time on things like repotting plants into pretty containers, picking out a nice bureau scarf and a "jewelry tree" to make the bureau in my bedroom pretty, and finding a nice tray for the containers of salt, pepper, and olive oil by my stove. I've learned that decluttering is not all it takes for me to finally enjoy my living spaces - figuring out what's pleasing aesthetically to me is super-important too - and really fun.
In any case, since I started these batches of 40 hours of decluttering in winter of 2017, I've made a lot of progress. My home isn't perfect, but it is MUCH less cluttered and MUCH more comfortable to me than it was five (!!) years ago. And recording my progress here has really helped.
I know for some people setting up a home is kind of second nature, but I've always struggled with it and always lived in cluttered, uncomfortable spaces, so these batches of 40 hours have been a real breakthrough for me.
I started this batch of 40 hours just with one hour last night and 4 hours this morning, so my total so far is 5. I'm hoping to complete them all by the time my spring semester starts on Feb. 22, 2022.
In any case, thanks for "listening" and for the encouragement so many of you have given me over the years. Your support has kept me going and made a tremendous difference in my life and I think in my daughter's too.
And, as always, if anybody else wants to join in with a decluttering/homemaking goal of their own for a certain number of hours, that would be great!
catherine
11-12-21, 8:07pm
So great to hear about your progress! I, too, have lived too cluttered for a long time. I hate to say it, what helped was moving into much smaller house! I was just thinking about this a second ago. I have a wonderful mica lampshade on a bronze floor lamp--it has silhouetted images of NYC on each of 4 sides. It's so unique. I bought the lamp at my favorite consignment shop.
When we moved up here, I brought only my favorite things. I had SO MANY "not-so-favorite-things" but didn't have the heart, or the energy to get rid of them, until we were forced to. I think it's great that the 40 hour system has worked so well for you, without having to move! :)
So great to hear about your progress! I, too, have lived too cluttered for a long time. I hate to say it, what helped was moving into much smaller house! I was just thinking about this a second ago. I have a wonderful mica lampshade on a bronze floor lamp--it has silhouetted images of NYC on each of 4 sides. It's so unique. I bought the lamp at my favorite consignment shop.
When we moved up here, I brought only my favorite things. I had SO MANY "not-so-favorite-things" but didn't have the heart, or the energy to get rid of them, until we were forced to. I think it's great that the 40 hour system has worked so well for you, without having to move! :)
I know what you mean about how having less space helps you declutter! Our house is relatively small, and it has very little storage space and only one full closet among the 3 bedrooms. It's plenty of space for my daughter and me, but just small enough that we can't afford to have much that we don't love or really need, so that's definitely helped me focus.
Just yesterday, I was trying to decide whether or not to keep a wine rack I'd gotten from someone in my Buy Nothing Group. It was a nice rack, but 1) I don't drink much and 2) There's just no space for it in the kitchen at the moment, so I let it go.
I know what you mean about "favorite things." When my daughter and I travel back east at the holidays and in summer to see my family, I always just pack my favorite outfits of mine and hers, and it does make me realize how unnecessary it is to have many more outfits than those!
happystuff
11-13-21, 1:11am
I agree with the other poster (forget who it was) who said you are very motivating! Thank you for sharing your 40 hours.
Though clutter is still an issue, over the years of focusing on decluttering, I've also discovered I need to spend time on making my home comfortable and pleasant ...
I know for some people setting up a home is kind of second nature, but I've always struggled with it...
These two statements are definitely me as well. I've been decluttering for years, but have not moved forward in the "comfort" part of the equation yet. But, I'm trying and, again, your posts are very motivating. Congrats and thanks.
Teacher Terry
11-13-21, 1:46am
Making the move into a condo by myself helped me with having just the right amount of stuff. After I was unpacked I still ended up donating 4 boxes of stuff. I have 3 closets and my son uses one of them. I do have a small storage closet on my balcony that’s only partially full. I love everything I have. I enjoy following your progress and am glad that your house is much more enjoyable 5 years later.
I am definitely in on this new 40 hour plan and will begin today. Thank you for the motivation and inspiration.
Thanks, all!
I am definitely in on this new 40 hour plan and will begin today. Thank you for the motivation and inspiration.
Tybee, I'm glad to have the company! I have four more weeks in my semester so may not do much for a while, but I'll get back to it eventually.
Hi All - well I’m finally getting back to this. I took my first few baby steps yesterday - decluttered the car and took it to the car wash and went through all the clutter on the DR table which is now clear and dealt with other piles of clutter around too. Only 2 hours, but it’s a start. New total: 7.
Congratulations on getting going again. I bet it feels good to have a car that’s clean inside and out. And, oh those flat surfaces that catch the clutter! Good for liberating them again.
Chicken lady
1-8-22, 10:30am
Hi ejchase,
I would like to come back and join you again. The use of my house has changed a lot since we started the addition 7! Years ago. My kids have all moved out permanently, two are married, I have a grandson, the addition has become an attractive and well used gathering space, but there are still slabs of “elephant” throughout my home.
I also am starting to make additions for comfort these days - toddler focused changes, and upgrades to spaces that are now used by visiting adults rather than crashing college students. This week I bought real bedspreads for all of the downstairs beds on super sale. (Personal growth - the downstairs beds are no longer used as storage platforms!) - so it is a mix of downsizing and additions. The elephant has been restricted to certain areas, but I want to keep pushing back its territory.
Thanks for the support, mschrisgo2, and Chicken Lady, it's so great to hear of your progress. Amazing you have nice new bedspreads and that the beds are no longer storage platforms!
I got myself organized to today to return some items to stores and to drop off some items at Goodwill. It all took about 30 minutes.
New total: 7.5.
Teacher Terry
1-16-22, 3:45am
Wow CL that 7 years went fast. Sounds like your addition was a good thing for you guys.
Yesterday I did 2 more hours - mostly just getting rid of Christmas-related clutter - taking down decorations and storing them for next year, breaking down boxes, taking a lot of clutter out to the recycling bin, etc.
I've also over the last few weeks been spending time on getting estimates on and scheduling various home projects which I have put off for years: getting our cracked outdoor cement patio redone (completed!), getting pull-out drawers installed in our narrow deep pantry, getting blinds installed in the bathrooms (I'm embarassed to say for the last ten years, we've been using fabric to cover the windows!). I think finally getting to these projects is a direct result of my decluttering because now that there's isn't clutter everywhere, I can finally "see" what the next priorities are and am somehow a little bit more confident about making decisions about them. And every baby step makes me feel better in our home.
New total: 9.5.
Teacher Terry
1-19-22, 1:57am
Making improvements in my home always makes me feel better. You are doing a great job.
rosarugosa
1-19-22, 6:22am
EJ: That is wonderful that you are able to enjoy your home more and more with each accomplishment!
happystuff
1-19-22, 11:18am
Sort of a declutter, sort of not. One of the kids had loaded up t-shirts for donation about a year ago. I held on to them in the hopes of making a t-shirt quilt. Well, I'm not making it, but did finally get them prepped and sent off to a place that will. Not exactly frugal, but did declutter and will be 1 gift ahead for Christmas this year. LOL.
That's great, happystuff.
I often find a significant part of my decluttering is getting rid of projects I've lost interest in and forgiving myself for that. Keeping things around out of sense of guilt or obligation can be a real obstacle.
iris lilies
1-19-22, 12:45pm
Oh yes, “project” stuff!
i am moving a lot of that out from my basement right now.
happystuff
1-19-22, 1:24pm
Project stuff doesn't bother me so much. But, as discussed in a thread a long while back, I succumb to the "I may need that someday". I'm still working on that. LOL.
I did 2 more hours today. The second hour was weeding out all the catalogues that have inundated my mailbox in the last two months and calling a bunch of the companies who sent them to get me taken off their mailing lists. I'm realizing I should be making these calls as soon as an unwanted catalogue appears, so it doesn't get this bad again!
We now have pretty shades up in both our bathrooms. They are "light-filtering" and can be pulled up from the bottom or down from the top, which I love. It's a big milestone!
New total: 11.5.
iris lilies
1-25-22, 10:23am
Periodically I call catalogs to be removed from mailing lists. They have been good about that, but still seem to send a holiday season catalog.
rosarugosa
1-26-22, 7:05am
DH and I have different last names, so I often have to call and have companies remove one of our names from their list, since it seems like a huge waste to get two of everything. We don't get nearly as many catalogues as we used to. They are now mostly from companies that we do patronize.
Yesterday, I spent most of the day looking for furniture to turn our extremely teeny 3rd bedroom into a guest bedroom/office. I needed to buy a sofa bed with a relatively small footprint and because of the set-up of the room, it had to fold out sideways. I think I have finally found the one I need! I also found a small rug at Target to put in there.
Today, the handyman came, and before his arrival, I decluttered 2 of the 3 cabinets in the upstairs bathroom which was EXTREMELY satisfying. I threw out so much expired medication and other stuff. It made me so happy, and now I keep opening the cupboards to see how lovely they look!
Then the handyman helped me move some furniture around, and he repaired some things around the house.
I don't want really to count all the shopping time I spent yesterday, but I do want to count some of the time because I spent a lot that time measuring and figuring out how to redesign that room now that my daughter has moved into a bigger bedroom. So I'll give myself 30 minutes for that.
And I'll count today as about 2.5 hours between the decluttering I did on my own and the rearranging of things I did with the handyman.
New total: 14.5.
Teacher Terry
1-27-22, 11:36pm
EJ, sounds like you accomplished a lot today.
A very wise friend of mine once said that when looking at the most intractable problems in our lives, we should ask ourselves the question, "How does this problem function for you?"
When I had problems when I was younger with compulsive overeating, it eventually became clear to me that keeping myself overweight was a way of keeping people away and protecting myself. With good therapists and a bunch of good books on intuitive eating, I worked through that.
As I've written here in previous threads on other batches of 40 hours, when I ask the same question about my problems with clutter, I get the same answer: clutter is a way I keep people away (because I can't have them over because I'm too ashamed of my house, etc.).
When I was overweight, I "broke down" the dynamic of using food that way by dressing for the size I was and not letting my "overweight" body keep me from doing anything I wanted to do (wear a bikini, date, etc.).
In order not to let my problems with clutter be another excuse for putting my life on hold, last time I did this I decided my priorities needed to shift from getting every shred of clutter out of my home asap (which results in my house looking like a tornado hit it most of the time because I'm constantly "organizing") to focusing on making my home tidy and presentable first, then continuing the Big Declutter as I am able. That way, I can still "live my life" - have people over without being consumed by waves of shame.
So today, I just focused on making the first floor tidy and presentable. It took 3 hours and it's far from perfect, but it feels SO good! Surfaces are clear, floors swept, and rugs vacuumed. Along the way I decluttered plenty. My daughter is having a sleepover tonight and it was sort of a revelation to feel relatively okay about my home when the other mom showed up to drop my daughter's friend off.
I think I'll keep this focus this week as I focus on making the 2nd floor presentable. Then I just need to focus on the habit of making the house tidy first on a regular basis. I will get to the stashes of remaining clutter when I can, but I really owe it to myself and my daughter to keep things tidy enough on the surface that we can enjoy our home as it is.
Oh! Also: I went through the last stash of clutter in the upstairs bathroom: my daughter's old bath toys. I posted them on Buy Nothing, and another mom will pick them up tomorrow morning. Both bathrooms in our house are now 100% decluttered! Two rooms down - 7 or so to go! :)
Sorry for the long post!
New total: 17.5.
Teacher Terry
1-29-22, 12:28am
You are giving your daughter some very valuable gifts. First that both of you are important enough to do hard things that will improve your lives. Also you value her so much that you made major changes so company can come over. You are setting a great example for your daughter.
Chicken lady
1-29-22, 8:54am
ejchase, you are making really good progress!
I dropped by and then disappeared…
work has been very overwhelming and time consuming. Also farm things and family things. All the things show no sign of letting up in the next few weeks. Carry on!
happystuff
1-29-22, 11:46am
ejchase, you are making really good progress!
I dropped by and then disappeared…
work has been very overwhelming and time consuming. Also farm things and family things. All the things show no sign of letting up in the next few weeks. Carry on!
Hope things settle down for you soon, CL.
rosarugosa
1-29-22, 6:04pm
Good luck, CL. Nice to see you stop in now and again. :)
Chicken lady
1-29-22, 9:10pm
We took the Christmas tree down tonight.
that pretty much says it all.
happystuff
1-29-22, 9:12pm
We took the Christmas tree down tonight.
that pretty much says it all.
I find it so sad to take the Christmas tree down each year. I know a couple people who leave it up year-round. I'm thinking about doing that starting next year.... maybe. LOL
I find it so sad to take the Christmas tree down each year. I know a couple people who leave it up year-round. I'm thinking about doing that starting next year.... maybe. LOL
Please please don't keep your tree. DH has over 42 years as a fire fighter. Left over Christmas trees are a fire hazard. And catching fire is a thing. It becomes a safety for them, you and your neighbors. If you have an artificial tree or a real tree... it still is the same result Thank You
happystuff
1-29-22, 9:22pm
Please please don't keep your tree. DH has over 42 years as a fire fighter. Left over Christmas trees are a fire hazard. And catching fire is a thing. It becomes a safety for them, you and your neighbors. If you have an artificial tree or a real tree... it still is the same result Thank You
It is artificial and I never keep the tree lighted unattended. Fire extinguisher is in a known place and close at hand. Thank you, however, for the warning and reminder!!! I really do appreciate it!
Hi Chicken Lady - I'm sorry work has been tough. It's always nice to see a post from you when you can pop in.
I find it so sad to take the Christmas tree down each year.
Me too. We're thinking of getting an artificial tree next year for the first time because I always cry when we put our real tree out on the curb for collection.
You are giving your daughter some very valuable gifts. First that both of you are important enough to do hard things that will improve your lives. Also you value her so much that you made major changes so company can come over. You are setting a great example for your daughter.
Thanks, Teacher Terry. This means a lot to me. A big part of my motivation is wanting to do better for my daughter.
Chicken lady
1-30-22, 9:28pm
I feed my real tree to the goats. It makes me sad to take it down, but then it is fun to see how excited they are when I bring it in to the barn. They strip it down to a bark free pole that makes a great garden support all summer and firewood in the fall.
I got on a roll today trying to get the 2nd floor "surface clean." It's not completely there yet, but my room, the hallway, and the bathroom are in pretty good shape. Whenever I make my room a priority, I rediscover how important that is. It feels so great to go to bed and wake up in a tidy room, and yet so often I prioritize every other space in the house beside my own! Now my bureau and bedside table are tidied and look so nice. It's a real gift to myself.
I had a LOT of newspapers stacked by my bed, and I recycled about 95% of them. I cancelled my major newspaper subscription this year, which was hard, but it is just too difficult for me to get rid of all the paper consistently, and it just piles up everywhere. So I read it online and give myself permission to buy a physical paper now and again.
All told, I did four hours! It felt great. New total: 21.5.
I'm going out of town for a few days so won't get back to it until next week.
Oh, I forgot to say that I also had an electrician come this morning and fix the wiring so that our outdoor lights in the backyard work. The old lights were only motion detector lights and they seemed to go off and on fairly randomly. After investigating the problem with the help of my handyman, I was able to find new motion sensor lights that will go on automatically when we go out into the backyard but which we can also set to stay on for several hours as needed.
I've been using my backyard to host friends a lot during the pandemic, so it's great to have that finally taken care of!
iris lilies
2-2-22, 10:15am
Echase, that is a lot of decluttering time! It sounds like it paid off.
rosarugosa
2-2-22, 10:19am
EJ: It's great that you are making your home into the great environment that you and your daughter deserve!
Chicken lady
2-6-22, 7:24pm
I am still struggling to get my house back to it’s post-Christmas condition(which honestly wasn’t good, but it’s the baseline for my year)
but I did spend 45 minutes today working on my animal barn (in three fifteen minute stretches while the disbudding iron reheated.)
I am going to go hit the daily accomplishment thread because it might be more my speed right now. Most of the time I’m finding to work is in tiny snatches and doesn’t seem worth reporting.
Hi all,
I have been stalled on this goal for a few weeks because other priorities were more pressing.
But it looks now like I will have family visiting in mid-April, which I'm hopeful will motivate me to make another push and get through the last 20 hours of my goal. A few years ago, a childhood friend and my sister both came to visit from out of town and the sheer terror of having them see my clutter spurred me to deal with a lot of it.
Happily, now that there are no longer 40ish cardboard boxes of clutter in my upstairs hallway (but still those 2 pretty fabric boxes hiding the last little bit), I'm able to focus on other tasks like turning my daughter's old bedroom into a functioning guest room. I realized yesterday that I currently have about 10 pieces of furniture in the house I can get rid of, though 4 are being replaced with other pieces that will work better in the spaces. I found a sofa bed with a relatively small footprint for the guestroom, but I will still need to get rid of other furniture in there so that the room doesn't feel crowded. The more I advance through this process, the easier it gets for me to get rid of stuff.
I'll probably start the next push in about a week. I'll let you know of course when more gets done. :)
Hi all,
I'm finally getting back to chipping away at this goal. Today, I focused on the dining room table which is my worst "hotspot" and also my workspace since I am still working from home. I also reorganized the two new bookcases I bought so that I have space in them to put all my work materials away at night before dinner and "styled" the bookcases so that they look nice. I've made a folder on my phone of some recent photos that "spark joy" and am going to go out to Kinko's later to get them printed out.
Thanks to these batches of 40 hours, I knew I had a box in a closet that was full of unused picture frames that I thought I might use someday, and voila, that day is here. So I'm framing some pictures that I think will be nice to have around the house. I probably could have gotten rid of many of those frames years ago (and maybe I could now?) - I only needed about 3 and there were probably 10 in that box! - but it was still kind of amazing to know exactly where the frames were and to be able to easily access them because of past organizing.
Anyway, I did 2.5 hours today. New total: 24.
Bravo EJ- not only cleaned up but KNOW WHERE you put things!
Teacher Terry
3-12-22, 6:39pm
That’s great EJ! That’s really the pleasure of having a neat and organized house.
That’s great EJ! That’s really the pleasure of having a neat and organized house.
I think this is such a new concept to me: the idea of my home being pleasing and nurturing instead of this space I feel ashamed about and embarassed by. There's still a lot of work to do (and I know it will never be perfect and that I can also enjoy it in its imperfection), but slowly over the last few years, I've been starting to enjoy the house in a way I've never enjoyed any living space in my adult life. It's been a huge positive change for me, and the support here has been so important and helpful along the way.
Rosarugosa, I think often of your mom and how you help her with these issues, and it's a real guide for me. I know my daughter, too, will be understanding (and is understanding) of my struggles, but I am really aiming to leave her relatively little stuff to deal with when I am older or when I pass on. That's such an important gift to your kids if you can manage it.
Teacher Terry
3-15-22, 12:57pm
EJ, so glad you are enjoying your house more. One of my friends in this building struggles with stuff and I have tried to help her but at 77 has trouble letting go and she also rents a storage unit. She literally gasped when I said I threw my yearbooks away and wanted to know if I just did it so she could rescue them. I told her I did it at the house because I didn’t want to bring things that didn’t fit into my condo. I also didn’t want my closets jam packed. I want to open them and be able to easily find things.
rosarugosa
3-15-22, 6:32pm
I think this is such a new concept to me: the idea of my home being pleasing and nurturing instead of this space I feel ashamed about and embarassed by. There's still a lot of work to do (and I know it will never be perfect and that I can also enjoy it in its imperfection), but slowly over the last few years, I've been starting to enjoy the house in a way I've never enjoyed any living space in my adult life. It's been a huge positive change for me, and the support here has been so important and helpful along the way.
Rosarugosa, I think often of your mom and how you help her with these issues, and it's a real guide for me. I know my daughter, too, will be understanding (and is understanding) of my struggles, but I am really aiming to leave her relatively little stuff to deal with when I am older or when I pass on. That's such an important gift to your kids if you can manage it.
That's a great goal, EJ, and I'm so glad our shared experiences have some relevance for you. I guess that's why we are all here!
iris lilies
3-16-22, 8:47am
EJ, so glad you are enjoying your house more. One of my friends in this building struggles with stuff and I have tried to help her but at 77 has trouble letting go and she also rents a storage unit. She literally gasped when I said I threw my yearbooks away and wanted to know if I just did it so she could rescue them. I told her I did it at the house because I didn’t want to bring things that didn’t fit into my condo. I also didn’t want my closets jam packed. I want to open them and be able to easily find things.
High school yearbrooks are now online in several places. And even before the online world, many public libraries collected the high school yearbooks for their immediate regions.
I am so unsentimental about that stuff I sold my high school ring while I was still in my 20s, getting hard cash for it. It was white gold.
ej, Having your home be a cozy nest is important for me. I like to sit and look at things of beauty.p— In my house. In my yard. On my patio. Glad you are reaching that place for you and your house.
I took a little baby step forward yesterday.
As some of you know, my daughter moved from our smallest (teeny) bedroom into a bigger one last summer. With all my clutter issues, helping her move in there and set it all up felt like a big project, but it was a big success. She really loves her new room.
What I didn't deal with when we made that transition was turning the small bedroom she left into a guestroom. For the last six months, it's just been a junk room with a cage for our guinea pigs. In the midst of the pandemic, potential guests were not an imminent concern.
But on April 13, my dad arrives for a visit, which is a very helpful deadline! I ordered a sofa bed that is supposed to arrive April 8, got rid of a bureau and a bookcase from in there which we really didn't have room for, and ordered a smaller bookcase which fits better.
Now the room is just full of boxes and other junk I need to either get rid of or find a place for. And I also need to find a rug for the room. The guinea pigs can be easily moved into my room during guest visits.
So that's the highest priority for the next three weeks, and that was my baby step yesterday: putting some things away in the new bookcase and finding a spot for a few things, putting other things in the box for Goodwill.
I just did 30 minutes, but it was a start. New total: 24.5.
Teacher Terry
3-18-22, 12:55pm
Yesterday I went through my closet to get rid of clothes I don’t wear. I got rid of 15 items. I then got curious how many items I had and counted. I have 17 sweaters and 33 tops which includes long and short sleeve. I only have 4 capris so intend to buy one more. I have 2 pairs of jeans, 2 dressier pants and 2 sweatpants. I also have 2 dresses that I rarely wear. My Fitbit thought I was swimming and recorded a half hour of exercise:)).
Wow, Teacher Terry, you are really keeping it simple! I'm not at the stage yet where I can face counting my clothes. I still have too much.
I did, however, just buy a wardrobe for our very wide upstairs hallway (where now there is space because I decluttered all the boxes that used to be up there!). Our house is an old Victorian which only has one true closet which is in my daughter's room but is full of my clothes. With the new wardrobe, I think I can move half of my stuff and give her half the closet. I've been thinking it might be an interesting experiment to just move into the wardrobe the clothes I love and wear frequently. Then maybe in a few months, I can part with more of the stuff I rarely wear.
Yesterday, I took another baby step: decluttered the car and took it to the car wash. It was just 30 minutes, but it felt good. New total: 25.
Teacher Terry
3-19-22, 2:53pm
I have lived in old houses with no or few closets. We used wardrobes also. Put all your hangers facing the wrong way and when you wear something and wash it hang it the right way. Pretty soon you will see what you don’t wear. The other trick I read is that when you buy something remove something else in the same category. That way you aren’t adding stuff.
I have lived in old houses with no or few closets. We used wardrobes also. Put all your hangers facing the wrong way and when you wear something and wash it hang it the right way. Pretty soon you will see what you don’t wear. The other trick I read is that when you buy something remove something else in the same category. That way you aren’t adding stuff.
I may try this hanger trick!
Well I faced the current junk room/soon-to-be-guestroom for 2 hours today and made a dent.
Some stuff (books I don't have space for currently) just went into labeled boxes (I know, not great, but if I'm a perfectionist about it, I'll freeze up), but I did find a couple stashes of paper (junk mail from 6 months ago?!) that were easy to go through. I have two big grocery bags of recycling ready to go (but the bin is full currently!), a box of stuff to take to work, a box of books for the used bookstore, a box for Goodwill, and 2 boxes of my daughter's stuff to go through with her when she comes home tomorrow night.
It was hard motivating myself today, but I feel good about what I did. I'd really love to finish this 40 hours before my dad arrives on 4/13. We'll see.
New total: 27.
EJ! Super work. You weren't motivated and achieved 3 boxes almost out the door, 2 nearly done, a full recycling bin!!! BRAVO! 2 hours of great work.
Teacher Terry
3-27-22, 11:12am
EJ, wow that’s great! Another tip I read and use is that you never handle mail more than once. So you bring it in and immediately dispose of junk, etc.
EJ, wow that’s great! Another tip I read and use is that you never handle mail more than once. So you bring it in and immediately dispose of junk, etc.
Yes! I've been doing so much better on this the last few years - often I just stand by the recycling bin outside as I go through it - so don't know how I ended up with the pile of junk mail I found yesterday, but I guess I'm less diligent some days.
My daughter and I work on the "touch things once" strategy a lot - take your dirty plate from the dinner table, scrape it off in the trash, rinse it in the sink, and put it right in the dishwasher.
Another tip I read that's been useful is that basically every time you move from one area of your house to another, see what you can carry with you (an empty coffee cup, shoes to put away, etc.) - very helpful, I find, especially with going upstairs or down.
Thanks, nswef and Teacher Terry, for your support.
Teacher Terry
3-27-22, 2:24pm
When I lived in a house with steps I would put stuff there to go upstairs. It’s amazing how men will just walk around or move stuff instead of taking it with them. Now in my condo it’s never to far to put away immediately.
happystuff
3-27-22, 3:05pm
It’s amazing how men will just walk around or move stuff instead of taking it with them.
OMG! I thought this was only in my house! ROFLOL. I also live with someone who will do things - but not "all the way". Example: Will do the dishes, but somehow miss the dirty pots on the stove or at the far end of the counter! Will vacuum up the cat hair, but will NOT empty out the full vacuum canister! (okay - that is my complaining for now. I know... I should be happy that *most* of the dishes are being done and/or that the family room IS being vacuum. Cup half full or cup half empty. ;))
rosarugosa
3-27-22, 5:58pm
When I lived in a house with steps I would put stuff there to go upstairs. It’s amazing how men will just walk around or move stuff instead of taking it with them. Now in my condo it’s never to far to put away immediately.
Although in DH's defense, he has been known to carry something down the stairs in an effort to be helpful, and it was something I had just brought upstairs.
Teacher Terry
3-27-22, 6:21pm
That’s funny Rosa!
When I lived in a house with steps I would put stuff there to go upstairs. It’s amazing how men will just walk around or move stuff instead of taking it with them.
Eleven-year-olds do this as well!
I did 2 more hours on Sunday. If the sofa bed for the guestroom arrived today, we could set it up in there, but there's still more to do.
New total: 29.
My daughter and I did an hour in her room today. My big goal was to keep it light and fun and not be a perfectionist. I succeeded!
New total: 30.
mschrisgo2
4-1-22, 12:04am
Ejchase, congrats! You’ve stuck to your goal for a long time, and now you get the rewards!
Thanks, mschrisgo2!
Today, I got up and did 2 hours of decluttering before our housekeeper arrived to do the monthly cleaning.
I also made appointments to have the windows washed and to have the downstairs rugs, sofa, and armchair steam cleaned and left a message for someone who I hope I can hire to make cushions for two benches in the house.
My handyman says all of us should have houseguests every six months. It certainly helps me to know that my family is arriving in less than two weeks. It really focuses me. :)
New total: 32.
My daughter and I did another hour today - going through two of her drawers in her bureau and weeding out things that are now too small for her, going through some games and puzzles, and cleaning up the backyard a bit.
New total: 33.
I spent 2 more hours yesterday going through all our linens. We have wa-a-y too many sheets!
I found 20 stained/torn or otherwise worn items to give to our local vet (they like old towels and sheets for dog baths and bedding).
Made another box for Goodwill and another for my stepdaughter who just got her own place with friends.
New total: 35.
Teacher Terry
4-9-22, 1:32pm
Great job EJ!!
Thanks, Teacher Terry!
Only one hour today - but it was tackling a big messy pile of old pots and various pieces of gardening equipment that had accumulated in our backyard and about which I've been feeling embarassed for months (years?). I didn't get through all of it (maybe 60% of it?), but I made a big dent and carted a lot of stuff to the trash bin.
New total: 36.
I did 2 more hours today going through an old stash of toys of my daughter's. What was hard about this was that a lot of the stuff couldn't be donated - old games with missing pieces, stuff like that. I just had to put some of it in the trash which I felt really guilty about. I realize this is one of the reasons I hold onto stuff. I just hate sending plastic to the landfill. But I just had to say to myself that I donate a lot of stuff to Goodwill and pass on as much as possible to people in my Buy Nothing Group. And in the end, it was only about half a Hefty bag going into the trash. I just had to keep saying, "Forgive yourself," a mantra I have to use a lot in this process - not just because of what I send to the trash, but because some of the items I end up donating still have tags on them because i never used or wore them, and for other reasons. But I think also facing this guilt is really what makes all this decluttering a pretty important spiritual process for me. I'm facing my regrets and taking responsibility for my past, and that is definitely empowering and meaningful.
And it's definitely the case that all this decluttering makes me SO MUCH more conscious about what I buy or otherwise accumulate.
New total: 38.
Teacher Terry
4-11-22, 11:46am
I think donating items with tags really cements the fact that we all buy too much stuff. Now before I buy something I ask myself if it’s going to be donated in a few years. It actually stops me from buying many things. I don’t feel bad about throwing stuff away that’s missing pieces. If after trying to find the pieces I throw it away knowing I did my best. I went through that when my kids were little. I have always preferred giving items away although we didn’t have thrift stores so I found homes for items. It was a lot more work back than.
I think donating items with tags really cements the fact that we all buy too much stuff. Now before I buy something I ask myself if it’s going to be donated in a few years. It actually stops me from buying many things. I don’t feel bad about throwing stuff away that’s missing pieces. If after trying to find the pieces I throw it away knowing I did my best. I went through that when my kids were little. I have always preferred giving items away although we didn’t have thrift stores so I found homes for items. It was a lot more work back than.
Yes, my Buy Nothing Group has made giving away things so much easier.
Doing all this decluttering has also made me see the relationship between my clutter issues and my money issues - they are so intertwined.
And decluttering has helped me buy less and get much better about returning items.
I was watching an episode of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo the other night, and she was helping a retired couple declutter. They ended up throwing out or donating about 150 bags of stuff, much of it with tags still on. I just kept thinking (as I'm sure they did) how many thousands of dollars they'd spent on things that were never used or else on re-buying things they couldn't find. This week, I've discovered we have more blankets and comforters than we need. I might not have bought some of them if I'd remembered where I stored the others!
mschrisgo2
4-11-22, 11:18pm
Ejchase, you’re doing Great! Congratulations, even on tackling the pile of garden stuff.
I did a pile of garden stuff a few months ago, and I was shocked at how long it took and how much I’d accumulated in 5 years here.
I’m wondering if you might enjoy and find use in some of Dana K White’s YouTubes, or podcasts. I listen to them sometimes while I’m working on a project. I especially like her No Mess Decluttering Method, and One Hour Better. She has a very practical approach, and I love her sense of humor.
Thanks, mschrisgo2, I'll check out those podcasts! It sounds like they will be motivating.
I actually did another hour in the backyard today, organizing my collection of flower pots and setting aside some to give away. I also took a bunch of stuff to the trash and a pile of clippings to the compost bin.
New total: 39.
My son and new DIL are renting a house and moving this weekend - which means son will be taking his fishing and golfing gear!!! Yay - more room in my garage.
Congratulations, beckyliz, on getting the fishing and golfing gear out of your garage!
I did 2 more hours on Tuesday, so I am done with this 40 hours and will start tracking my summer 40 hours now.
New total: 40!
Thanks to all of you for your support!
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