After applying my de-cluttering Rules of Engagement, my husband and I took to the various portals of junk around the house with bin-bags and boxes. It was quite an exercise. Remember Mary Poppin's bag, that can hold anything? Turns out my wardrobe was kind of like that. Who knew?
The process of decluttering went like this: Stage one - this is fun! Stage two - this is boring and dusty, can I stop now? No I can't, because the house is a mess. Must ... keep ... going .... Stage three - all done. Yay!
I love how less cluttered our house is now*. We sent over a car full of stuff to a charity shop, and filled three bin bags with rubbish. I also found some very odd things and totally useless things in the process. Here's a sample:
The process of decluttering went like this: Stage one - this is fun! Stage two - this is boring and dusty, can I stop now? No I can't, because the house is a mess. Must ... keep ... going .... Stage three - all done. Yay!
I love how less cluttered our house is now*. We sent over a car full of stuff to a charity shop, and filled three bin bags with rubbish. I also found some very odd things and totally useless things in the process. Here's a sample:
1. Four broken handbags. Why I kept them I do not know; they were all too broken to use. Note to self: do not hoard broken handbags in future. Second note to self: look into buying better quality handbags so first note to self can be ignored.
2. A ticket to the Great Wall of China, kept from a visit I took there in 2010. This was hard to get rid of, but it's not like I need a ticket to remember how totally amazing the Great Wall was.
3. A giant umbrella someone gave me 5 years ago that was still in its plastic. Hard to throw out, as the inner hoarder whispered: "But what if you neeeed it?" Be silent, inner hoarder, I thought. If I decide I need an umbrella (unlikely, Wellington is far too windy for those), I can always buy one.
4. My son's first shoes. So little, so cute! I am totally keeping those. How could I not?
5. A onesey my son wore a few times, although I can't actually conjure up a specific memory of him in it as it was during the Foggy Time of Newborn-ness. One for the charity shop.
6. Some cooking oil two years past its expiry. Sigh. Third note to self: use foodstuffs that I buy.
7. My dad's hand written speech that he delivered at his sister's funeral. One for a wee cry, then keeping in the forever box.
8. A self-published novel written by someone I don't know about a topic I have no interest in. Another one for the charity shop, although based on the quality of writing on the blurb I don't expect it to fly off the shelf.
9. Four containers of unused moisturizer or the like, all gifts from people I don't know well. Fourth note to self: probe into why they all think I need nice smelling things and try not to get paranoid.
10. The back of my wardrobe. Yay!
Now my house is less cluttered (almost)*. What I need to do now is think about how best to use the wardrobe that is like Mary Poppin's bag for good rather than (cluttered) evil. And think about note to self number five: never, ever let it get so cluttered again.
*Except for one cupboard of cluttered doom. That can wait for another day.
3. A giant umbrella someone gave me 5 years ago that was still in its plastic. Hard to throw out, as the inner hoarder whispered: "But what if you neeeed it?" Be silent, inner hoarder, I thought. If I decide I need an umbrella (unlikely, Wellington is far too windy for those), I can always buy one.
4. My son's first shoes. So little, so cute! I am totally keeping those. How could I not?
5. A onesey my son wore a few times, although I can't actually conjure up a specific memory of him in it as it was during the Foggy Time of Newborn-ness. One for the charity shop.
6. Some cooking oil two years past its expiry. Sigh. Third note to self: use foodstuffs that I buy.
7. My dad's hand written speech that he delivered at his sister's funeral. One for a wee cry, then keeping in the forever box.
8. A self-published novel written by someone I don't know about a topic I have no interest in. Another one for the charity shop, although based on the quality of writing on the blurb I don't expect it to fly off the shelf.
9. Four containers of unused moisturizer or the like, all gifts from people I don't know well. Fourth note to self: probe into why they all think I need nice smelling things and try not to get paranoid.
10. The back of my wardrobe. Yay!
Now my house is less cluttered (almost)*. What I need to do now is think about how best to use the wardrobe that is like Mary Poppin's bag for good rather than (cluttered) evil. And think about note to self number five: never, ever let it get so cluttered again.
*Except for one cupboard of cluttered doom. That can wait for another day.
No comments:
Post a Comment