Spring Cleaning.....

Less is More?

I like the concept. Less is more which actually provides me more space by having less "things". "Things!" I would like to help ensure that the "things" don't own me, or keep me in a rut where I need to spend time maintaining "things" or trying to earn the almighty buck to acquire "things". "Things, and things, and more things." It can be a vicious cycle but I would rather be out doing "things". Sorry, I couldn't resist the final temptation of how many ways the word "things" can be used. Hopefully, I've endeared one English teacher out there? Nah, probably not!

Yes, it's that time of year when I find myself going through the closets and evaluating what to keep, and what to get rid of. And with the rainy weather we've been having it seems the perfect thing to do. I just wish our emotional lives were this easy to clean up sometimes. Living in a one room bedroom apartment I find this yearly chore a necessity. The rule of thumb that I try to stick with is... "if I haven't used it in a year it goes!" Well, I should say I start with that rule, and eventually, I arrive at a piles of doubt and maybes, and those ever terrifying piles of "what if I may need it?"

Well, the obvious one for the "definitely get rid of" pile were all the VHS tapes. The VCR died a slow and tape eating death at the hands of movie "Dogma" which in a way I saw as fitting, I guess. It was a lot cleaner than dieing at the hands of a peanut butter sandwich, which happened to a friend awhile back --- I really think he was looking for an excuse for his wife to buy a DVD/DVR, and tend to wonder if he bribed one of the kids to do it. So here I am with a good pile of VHS tapes, a good start!

Then I look at the empty shelf areas around the TV. Hey, I can move books to here! It's amazing how one thing leads to another. So, I decided to move books and while I'm moving my books I decide to go through them. After all, I am Spring cleaning! There's the rule of thumb--"if I haven't used it in a year" and I decide to but a bit of a spin on it. If I haven't loaned the book out in a year, or re-read it in a year, I figured that I would put it in the "maybe" pile and then if I had room on the shelves I would save a few more. That would work.

Wow! Before I know it I've almost managed to empty all the books off the leaning dollar special of a bookcase in my bedroom. I think to myself, I could get rid of that shelf and have more space in my bedroom floor plan! Okay, I take jewelry and other nick-knacks and move them to other places in my apartment. Yes, I did it! I empty off the entire bookcase! Yahoo! (Gee, I really need to get a life!) But now I have an extra 1' x 3' space in my bedroom. A little more room so hopefully now I won't stub my toe in the dark on the way to the restroom in the middle of the night. A MAJOR accomplishment--- who said sarcasm is dead?

Then, next to the now empty bookcase is the closet. I'm a bit of a clothes horse, some of you may call this an understatement. But , this is where the challenge is for me. So, first off are all the winter clothes that I will eventually need to put up and away on my top shelf in the closet. Okay, did I wear it this last winter? If no, then into the pile. Then as I'm bringing down the summer clothes I look at them, and decide if they were just too trendy to try again for this year. Sometimes, I buy thrift items that are of a spur of the moment that I wear once and Ugh! What WAS I ever thinking?! Those items go into the "definitely get rid of " pile.

Shoes are next. Most of them I purchase at the thrift store I will admit. I'm cheap when it comes to footwear. I just never got into the status and style of expensive and trendy footwear. I guess I just don't like the idea of people staring at my feet. Sorry I think that the foot IS the ugliest part of the human body, and WHY would you want someone to stare at them? Okay, so I'm going to finally get rid of the brown pair of high heels that I've glued the heel back on at least 10 times in the last year. I'm also getting rid of the two pairs of summer sandals that are just collecting dust. Yes, they were on sale for REAL cheap but I discovered that I hate having a cord between my toes to keep a shoe on. SILLY, I know! I also managed to get rid of two pairs where the soles are about falling off. It's funny but I find a comfortable pair of shoes and I just don't want to let them go.

Next, is the hall closet. This has turned into a collective of the scary B movie victims of miscellaneous items that I'm not sure what to do with and have been cluttered together in hiding here in the hall closet. Now comes the day of reckoning! Oh my! What will it be? If these items had feeling I'm sure they would be shivering in their shoes. Some of the items are easy, and are even off to the garbage can. Old finger nail polish, lip sticks that I bought and for some reason only used twice, and other makeup products that you are supposed to throw out if older than a year. Others like tools and plastic cake holder covers, I struggle with.... Oh, these are the 'what if I need them" items. That bring my Spring cleaning to a slow staggering stop!

Boy, that pile is getting awfully large, and I think I'm going to be making at least a few runs to the D.I. (Dessert Industries--the Utah LDS version of the Salvation Army) with the station wagon, minus my bicycle that's usually riding in the back. Why would I want to continue on? Besides, I've spent enough time on this "Spring cleaning". So thus, I talk myself out of continuing on with the whole project, and only half of the hall closet gets processed through.

And that's how you do "Spring cleaning".... ;-)