Wednesday, June 1, 2016

The Start of a New Month

Today's 10 Items to be Decluttered
I love the start of a new month.  It's an opportunity for a new beginning!  I am also feeling very happy because this is the month in which I'll finish my chemotherapy!  It's been awhile since I've felt so full of enthusiasm to start new things!

When I posted my monthly goals, I mentioned going back to decluttering, deep cleaning, and organizing one room per month.  I have decided to work on my bedroom, this month.  It is the first room I see when I wake up and the last room I see when I go to sleep.  Ideally, it should be a serene space, a peaceful haven.  In reality, it is rather cluttered with stuff tossed on the desk and on top of the dressing table.  My strategy is to work for 15 minutes a day until I have cleaned and organized the room.  I will do what are known as "baby steps" - one shelf or one drawer at a time.  I kind of got a head start, actually, and dusted the headboard and the bedside table on Monday and the top of the chest of drawers, yesterday.

Today, I started on the desk.  There was a bunch of stuff piled on the desk and I put away a few items.  I gathered the pile of paperwork and put them all into a bag to be dealt with over the next few days.  I put all the files in another pile.  Then, I dusted the top of the desk and the two wall shelves above it.  The desk hasn't been decluttered and organized, yet, but it looks a lot better than it did before I started.

Tomorrow, I want to do something similar with the dressing table.  The top of the dresser is piled with stuff!  I want to tidy it and dust it.

The other thing I wanted to start doing this month was declutter 10 items a day.  The items decluttered can be donated, recycled (if recyclable), or tossed in the trash.  I won't count the things I recycle as a matter of course (such as empty cans and soda bottles), but if it is an item I had kept intending to reuse later (such as empty boxes and jars) I will include them in my count.

Today, I decluttered what is pictured above:
3 empty cardboard boxes (I always keep them thinking I could reuse them for storage)
Foam inserts from one of the boxes which contained fruit (3 inserts, but I am counting them as 1 item)
1 old purse (peeling and too shabby to use)
3 magazines from the auto club
1 votive candle holder (party favor from my neighbor's daughter's 16th birthday, 9+ years ago!)
1 foam cone-shaped squeeze toy from the gas company      

The boxes, foam inserts, and magazines will be recylced.  The votive candle holder will be donated.  The purse and squeeze toy will be tossed in the trash.

I've had a relatively good day, today.  I worked on my office work most of the day.  In between, I had a nice chat with a cousin who called, cleaned my desk, decluttered 10 items, paid some bills, and did a load of laundry.

I also found a package on my doorstep that I had not ordered!  It had been delivered to the wrong address by FedEx!  It was meant for someone who lived two street down from me (but the same house number).  Fortunately, the address label had the name and phone number of the person it was meant for, so I took the initiative to call the number.  I spoke with the lady who came to my house to pick it up.  She thanked me for being so kind as to call her.  I was happy to be able to make sure she received her package.  My good deed for the day.  :)

Today, I am grateful for:
- I was able to help someone receive her package.
- Daughter started her new job and had a good 1st day.
- Completing a couple of baby steps in cleaning my environment.
- Being able to book daughter's flight home for Thanksgiving.
- Phone calls from cousin and neighbor across the street.

I had intended to go for a 30 minute walk, today, but never did.  Need to make more of an effort to walk, tomorrow.

Plans for tomorrow include going for my blood test in the morning.

How was your day?  Did you have a good start to your month?



12 comments:

  1. That's FedEx alright. I'm glad you were honest enough to return it since we know that isn't always the case :-)

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    1. I was thinking of you and your experience when I called the lady!

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  2. You're doing such a good job of decluttering! I like your idea of getting rid of 10 things a day. My decluttering involves taking care of papers. I tend to make piles everywhere and just move them around every few weeks. There are things I do need to file but others that I really should just shred/pitch. Like the hundreds of recipes that I clipped and stuffed in a drawer or the several more hundreds that I put under the coffee table. I don't even know what's under the coffee table, I just realized so I should add that to my to-do list. Oh thanks, Bless *grumble*, ha!

    Fedex... good grief. In this day and age of GPS, you'd think they would be able to locate the proper house! Were the street names similar? It was kind of you to call the other lady. I confess I would have called Fedex and let them deal with it. Also the driver would have probably gotten a demerit or something. I'm kind of vindictive. However, it might have been something your neighbor needed urgently so it was very kind of you to go through the trouble of doing this.

    My June 1st went well, I did a lot more than I thought I would do/had done, looking back. I never did make a list of goals for the month although I do plan on painting the master bedroom. I might follow you in a decluttering project. Can I count each piece of paper that I get rid off as 1 thing? LOL.

    I hope you have a good blood test result this morning!

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    1. How about you count one pile of papers as 1 item? Or, maybe 10 pieces of paper as 1 item? :) I generally only count magazines and brochures/annual reports, although I might count a full brown grocery bag of papers as 1 item, especially if I've been cleaning out my files.

      No, the street names aren't similar; I guess the driver just turned down the wrong street? I debated calling FedEx, but then thought it might be better to just call the person directly. Who knows where FedEx might have delivered it next? The lady who picked up the package said it was a replacement mat for her trampoline. :)

      I would like to paint my bedroom, too, but I can't do it yet - have to wait until I feel better. Maybe next year?

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  3. I love the 15 minute increments of cleaning.. It is amazing what can be done in that time frame. Since moving and trying to organize things , I to that each day.. If I have more than 15 minutes, I will use 30 minutes.. Much has been accomplished.

    You take it easy and don't over do.. I was so happy to hear that June is your last month of chemo. Proud you have most of them over.

    Proud daughter had a good day yesterday..

    The 10 item declutter, is a good idea to. I follow another you tube lady.. She did a 30day challenge and did 10 items a day and covered every room in her house..It was amazing how much decluttering she did. It really encouraged me to do that.

    Hope you have a good day..

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    1. Yes, 15 minutes are manageable. One can talk oneself into doing anything for "just 15 minutes".

      Yes, I'm taking it easy. That's why I started with the bedroom. The room I really want to declutter and organize is the 3rd bedroom/spare room, but I am not quite up to it, yet. The bedroom is not too bad, in comparison.

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  4. The other day I did some decluttering of a box of stuff that had been taken out of a closet when one room was painted, and left in another room to be sorted. I would be embarrassed to say how long it sat waiting! But I got some stuff reshuffled (that is not a good word for a de-cluttering session) and I sorted some greeting cards and old letters ready for further action. These are things I really feel I should be firm about, as it is one thing if our son has to clear out regular stuff from our house one day, and quite another if he has to go through unnecessary paperwork. So I'm thinking to get rid of some photos and letters from people that he never knew, who are now even deceased. Of course, if I live to be 100 like my grandmother, I will have a lot of years to hang on to sentimental stuff, LOL.
    Bushlady

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    1. Good of you to go through the box and sort things out. Sometimes, it takes several rounds to declutter. It's the sentimental things that I have a hard time decluttering. I still have a box of cards my mother kept (old cards that I sent her from college, cards my daughter made for her, etc.) that I still can't toss and she's been dead 10 years. Don't get me started on everything I saved of daughter's...

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  5. Has it really been ten years since your mother passed away? Seems just yesterday you were going home after work and visiting with her ... Before you had to leave to take your dear daughter to dance classes. Was such fun "listening" to you describe all the activities daughter was involved in back then. Great memories!

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    1. Carolyn, that's so nice of you to remember! Yes, she was a busy girl back then! I was a busy woman, too! Life is much slower now, compared to then, but busy enough! :)

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  6. I was so delighted to see some interest expressed in 'going for a walk.' What is the opinion of your medical team?
    I am debating whether to mention Marie Kondo's book... life changing magic of tidying up, [available in digital format, free, in many libraries] which many enjoy since GON ceased. Do you like to read for leisure?

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    1. Hi Hon. My medical team would like to see me exercise (and they recommend walking) for 30 mins. a day, 6 days a week. Some days, I am successful; other days, not.

      I have read the Marie Kondo book and while I can see the logic behind some of her methods, I don't agree with it all. I spent a lot of time mentally arguing with her when I read her book! Maybe I wasn't ready to hear what she had to say?

      I do like to read for leisure and I read on a daily basis. Reading is something I just do, like showering and getting dressed. I am currently reading the Oxford Companion to the Bible.

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