Sunday the 28th

Today's declutter: I deleted 96 emails and emptied the email trash. I also recycled two newspapers.

Saturday June 27th

Today's declutter: I recycled three plastic bags and one newspaper.

Friday June 26th

Tonight I tossed four containers of dead food out of my fridge. This was partly to get in extra items after yesterday, and partly to clean my fridge as I meant to do before my mom came to visit. It was a bonus toss, because the food AND the containers went in the trash. They were cottage cheese containers and I certainly don't need so many of them, although having two or three is handy.

Results: I'm getting better at a trading strategy I've learned. Starting to rack up wins paper trading. When I get ten in a row I get to trade real money!

Oops! Thursday

Well, it's finally happened. There were a few times when I wondered if decluttering after midnight counted for that day, since I was still up. I more or less decided it did. But yesterday, I think I finally missed a day altogether. Unless I remember something later, I didn't declutter on Thursday.

I just have to say, 4 months and a week of getting rid of one item a day is a pretty good run! And I'm getting right back on the horse and going forward as usual. Perfectionism is not what this is about.

Mon - Wed.

Monday: I threw away a pair of pantyhose with a big run right smack in the middle of the leg.

Tuesday: Shredded four sensitive pieces of mail.

Wednesday: Recycled an egg carton and eyedrop box, and the envelope my converter box coupon came in.

I also did a lot more cleaning on Monday morning and Tuesday morning to get ready for my mom's visit. She is here now and we are having fun although she is having some pain in her feet from walking around so much.

Summer Solstice Revisited

Just remembered I also hung up a picture that kept falling off the wall (it was taped up). It hit me that I have duct tape, so it's up and I know it is never coming down again!

And, I put all my loose cans and bottles in a single bag to return, so the entry is neat now.

Summer Solstice

The cleaning and decluttering continued in full force today! I threw out two large sheets of plastic that covered my windows in the winter, and three articles of clothing that were pretty much ruined and unwearable. I recycled 77 old investment newsletters - that was a big deal, cuz I have hung on to these for years. That freed up space in my file cabinet so I'll be able to reorganize my files more easily when my mommy comes to visit! She's very organized and said she'd help.

I also recycled 13 more newspapers and put away (hid) the miscellaneous piles of paper I couldn't deal with now. I put a box in the closet and consolidated the remaining yard sale stuff into two small boxes with lids, then recycled the other three boxes. My friend came to look at the peach baskets and decided she didn't want them, but said she thought I could use them to keep stuff in. She wondered if one would fit on top of the bookcase, but it's too narrow. I showed her a smaller basket and she decided to take it. Later I took a bowl back down to her from a treat she brought me. She suggested again that I use the peach baskets to store the remaining papers. That gave me an idea - I had room on top of the kitchen cabinets! I put the boxes of yard sale stuff and the remaining piles of paper in the baskets and stuck them up there. It looks good and the clutter is hidden for now. I took a picture and showed my friend and she and her husband thought it looked great - a little decorative!

As for cleaning, I did another load of dishes, stripped my bed and flipped the mattress, and then put on clean sheets and got out a green blanket to make it nice and pretty. I hung up my backpack, which was still sitting where I left it after the opera closed, with my character shoes inside. That prompted me to put away several pairs of shoes, and hang up a couple of jackets. I did seven items of hand wash. Didn't get to the laundry cuz it was raining off and on all day and the house needed attention. I took down the remaining piece of plastic on my living room window and put it away. I swept the kitchen, and used a cat hair remover to clean up the couch cover. Also swept around the cat box. I found a home for my plastic wrap and ziploc bags, which had been sitting on the kitchen table. And I cleaned the stove.

The place looks presentable, though still a bit messy. Tomorrow morning I'll do the other load of laundry and sweep and mop. Will also change the catbox sometime tomorrow.

Results: I spoke with my friend who canceled our movie the other day. We needed to discuss some things that were bothering me. All is well now and I am glad we cleared the air. I also got ABC on the converter! I just had to rescan the channels. I thought I had done that, but nope. I talked with my two dads to say Happy Father's Day, and my mom about the trip, and my stepmom cuz it's their anniversary too! It was a good day, and I feel like I got a lot done, even though much of the clutter is just buried now. That's OK, cuz I still got rid of a lot of stuff!

Saturday

Well, my mom is coming to visit on Tuesday, so I'm in "I must clean" mode. The weekend is devoted to getting the place presentable. That said, I didn't get far today. Took a nap for a couple hours. I think it's something I'm eating. I got sleepy at the seminar right after lunch too, and it was the same food I ate today. Annoying.

Anyway, today's decluttering is rather a departure. Since I'm finally cleaning up the mess left by my lack of time during the opera, a lot went out the door. And I also decided to get rid of some of the stuff I was hanging on to for the yard sale, if I ever got back out there. So I recycled nine newspapers and numerous other pieces of random paper, envelopes, inserts, etc. Did most of my filing - two MONTHS worth! Uhhhh! I don't know how I've stood the mess. Got laundry done and bought my converter box! for digital TV. With the coupon it only cost $10! I can't get ABC for some reason, but I kinda hate their shows anyway, so I'll watch my soap online and forget the rest. Also still can't get the other PBS channel in our area. Weird.

ANYWAY. The yard sale stuff. I took the cute little end table down to the lobby, and I'm getting rid of the peach baskets my neighbor gave me to sell. My other neighbor might want them, and if not they are going to the lobby. The table was gone in a couple hours, BTW.

Got some dishes done too. Still more to do, along with another load of laundry. And I took out the huge masses of recycling I'd accumulated. Tomorrow I actually have to CLEAN, which is another thing altogether.

Results: I am breathing a sigh of relief at the sudden sense of space in here. Woof!

Thurs/Fri

I was in a seminar all day Thursday and Friday, and had to get up super early to get there, so I was pretty fried by the time I got home. But, I managed to remember to declutter.

Thursday: Recycled a paper.

Friday: Threw away the container I brought my lunch in. It leaked and I have a couple others anyhow (they leak too).

Results: I got a check in the mail Thursday! Totally forgot it was coming, it's a rebate on products I buy and sell. It was about $10, but still, nice to get money in the mail!

Sunday - Wednesday

Wow, what a week! No time for anything.

Sunday: Uprooted a dead/dying plant and tossed it over the fence into the vacant lot next door. Fertilizer! I also took a pair of cushy house socks down to the lobby, but no one took them so I retrieved them later. There might have been one other item but I've forgotten.

Monday: Recycled a newspaper.

Tuesday: Recycled another newspaper.

Wednesday: Threw away a postcard about a movie I was going to see. I only was interested because I thought it would be nice to see it with a scientifically inclined friend - it was about looking at space through a special telescope. He canceled, and I wasn't that interested - it was more about spending time with him.

Weds - Sat

Wednesday's declutter: When my friend gave me all that cat food and stuff, I found a measuring cup in the bag of food. I use a measuring cup for my cat's food as well. Anyway, I got to thinking the person might not have meant to toss the measuring cup. So when I visited him on Weds., I left the cup in the free area in his building, so the cat food giver could have it back if he/she wanted it.

Thurs: I took a piece of sensitive information to work and shredded it.

Fri: Took care of a billing problem at my gym and shredded the notice that I got about it.

Sat: Left a book in the lobby after reading it for the last time. This was something I bought years ago, written by my then-favorite author, which I now realize was not up to his usual standard of style and wit. I used to like it even so, although I found it a little sappy. But it's just not as good as his older books. His books used to include wit. This one was all goo, and I've outgrown it.

Results: More money coming in. Lots of help with a bout of sciatica, in the form of people massaging and cracking my back during the week and during the performance Friday night. I was having trouble walking cuz my right leg was so sore, and today I was able to put weight on it with no spasm, so those massages were a godsend. Sciatica is new to me - though it was probably the cause of the mysterious hip pain I had in April - and it makes it difficult to get around easily. It was two friends who clued me in to what was wrong with me. Gotta get back to the chiropractor, it's been too long!

Tuesday Again

Correction: Recycled nine newspapers. I'm such a junk collector! I think decluttering is an ongoing process. Yeah, you can get rid of a lot of stuff over time, but the day in, day out stuff like filing, mail, newspapers is always going to be there. Just got to get to the point where that's all the clutter one has, and then it can be dealt with on a daily basis.

Tuesday, June 9th

For some reason June 9th is ringing a bell for me. Oh well! Today's declutter: I deleted 62 emails and recycled a newspaper.

Monday

Today I found a phone info card that I had kept that was obsolete, so it went into the recycle bin.

Results: Holy cow! I got my rent check really early. Yay!

Sunday June 7th

Today's declutter: I took a flashlight belt holster (that's what they call it!) to the lobby. I got it with my flashlight two years ago and didn't think to use it out in the woods. I don't wear a belt anyway.

Also threw away a #5 plastic container that I was going to recycle only I couldn't remember where they accept them.

Results: A packed house for today's performance, and a great show. Lots of fun today! And getting home early is the best part of all!

Friday/Saturday

Friday's declutter: I took an Elizabeth Arden makeup pencil sharpener to the lobby. It only seemed to work with its own brand of pencils. Anyway, I have another one that works with every brand.

Today's declutter: I left a container of catnip on my neighbor's door. My cat doesn't seem to like it, but hers do.

Thursday, Take 2

Just went to the store and recycled 22 plastic bags while there. That is a lot of plastic bags. Most of them were sitting in a drawer for the last two or three or five years, cuz I might need them someday. Never really thought about how many were already in there when I shoved a new one in. Now there are maybe five bags in the drawer, and no new ones going in.

Thursday's Clutter

Having a day off is great - look how on top of this blog I am today!

Today I threw away three pairs of underwear which had holes. I'm very attached to my undies cuz they are so comfy (cotton!), and I get them in pretty colors, so I usually repair small holes a couple times before pitching them. One of these was at that point, the other two were at the point of riding up, which as any woman knows is annoying as hell, so they were no longer wearable.

Results: Like I said, I'm attached. Throwing stuff away takes resolve and courage. I'm developing both as a result of decluttering and doing this blog.

Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday

Monday: I remembered to give my friend the hankies!

Tuesday: I took a piece of mail to work to shred.

Wednesday: Threw away two twist ties and a rubber band. I'm not down on these little items anymore. If it's clutter, it counts.

Results: I got some flirting in this week! It was fun and made me feel good even though there may not be any actual interest on the other party's part.

I also have a day off! Thursdays tend to be short days for me anyway, but after four solid days of rehearsal, two of them very late nights, it's really nice to have a free day to get housekeeping stuff done and not have to go anywhere.

Sunday, May 31st

Sunday's declutter was supposed to be two handkerchiefs I gave to a friend. But I forgot to give them to him! So I got home close to midnight and began looking for something to declutter. I recycled some aluminum foil, but felt like that wasn't really a declutter, so kept looking. It was a few minutes after midnight, but I found an old dental tape container that was empty. I'd saved it so that I could find the tape again cuz I liked it so much. But I had found it and used it and didn't like it anymore looooongggg ago. So it went into the garbage.

I may inadvertently have decluttered something else, though. I was using a jacket a friend gave me for a costume in the opera, and I left it in the seats at the theater. I hope it's still there today or that someone in the show picked it up.

Happy June! TODAY I'll give away those hankies.