Tag Archives: clutter

Putting your house in order

24 Monday May 2021

Posted by in Health, philosophy, reading

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Thank goodness for extra long weekends. Since I don’t have a cottage to travel to during a pandemic, I invested my time continuing to organize our new home.

  • Yesterday I unpacked three suitcases from the move; two contained the remainder of my seasonal wardrobe. It feels like I am clothes shopping in my closet after cycling through four basic outfits for the past month. Bonus!
  • I spent the sticky, humid half of the long weekend sorting through boxes of books, finding appropriate spots for them in the limited supply of bookcases. You can read about it in this blog post written by the Tabby Cat.
  • The excess boxes with questionable historical value have been tucked away for later inventory. They may have to come with me during the next move to an even smaller rental. Either that or my adult children will have to deal with them after I die.

This may sound morbid but I think it’s important for adults to consider the eventuality of one’s death and make preparations to alleviate the burden on others.

It becomes more of a consideration during a pandemic.

Thanks for dropping by. Stay safe. Be kind.

T

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Dilemmas and distractions

26 Sunday Jul 2015

Posted by in libraries, reading, therapy, writing

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As I sort through the books in the library of le petit apartment, I feel emotionally drained. 

books on bookcase and in boxes

One section of the personal library, sorted, categorized and tagged for potential purging.

In addition to supporting a family, performing full time work and nestling into a new volunteer role, I have let this project take over a month and will likely let it drag on through the summer. I am letting it prepare me for a quest that is doubly draining and has suffered from my procrastination.

It’s a daunting task to sort and justify keeping or discarding books. Some brought joy, inspiration and comfort. They are like old friends.

Some brought knowledge and helped build skills. Some skills are transferable; some are no longer applicable in today’s job markets.

I think back to 20 years ago, to my foray into dialup connectivity, HTML web design and website usability. While I balanced family, work and survival, these books challenged my creativity, nurtured my fascination with hyperlinks and supported my appreciation of online communities.

Books about web design misc.

Favourite oldies, books about web design, usability and succinctness of Twitter

The concepts in some of these books could still apply while some have been left in the dust due to fast-paced development and evolution of technology. Do I keep them out of nostalgia or donate to the community? Will they even be of value to somebody else?

Then there are the books that reinforced my love of nature, justified a moderately paced life style, and encouraged one to take action in preserving this earth for future generations. We can’t give up.


Next time:  We look at Biographies and Poetry.

Thanks for dropping by.  What are you struggling with in your personal library or de-cluttering projects these days?

If you need a distraction from your projects, you can read the novel I wrote under my pen name. Flo is old school but she’s getting hip to the ways of Twitter. Please visit Smashwords to download a sample of the e-book for The Year of the Rabbit. You could choose to purchase a copy. It’s only 99 cents or you can pay what you feel is a fair price. It’s okay, I wrote it mainly to share a story. Some people liked reading it. If you enjoyed the novel, please mention it to others.

Although it is not quite the same, may you be spared the emotions of sorting through your e-book libraries one day.

T

The cleanse

03 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by in Health, Mythology, reading, therapy, writing

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Do you cringe when people say they’re going on “a cleanse”? 

And when did it become a noun?

One dictionary reference defines the verb cleanse “to rid (a person, place or thing) of something seen as unpleasant, unwanted, or defiling.”

During a whirlwind weekend of cooking, laundry and other domestic duties, I also performed some volunteer work and Feng Shui’d my bedroom.  With help from one of the young folk, I moved furniture around then I swept, dusted and sorted through boxes.

Is it okay to call those clumps under furniture “dust bunnies” if they consist mostly of cat fur? 

According to the Year of the Sheep workshop instructor, I needed to move my bed back to an “auspicious direction” with my head facing East.  Last year it was West.  That’s okay.  Some change is good.  I’m willing to explore a 5,000 year-old tradition about balancing energy and maintaining harmony in one’s space and lifestyle.

I’m also on a two-month “cleanse” to re-assess the need for boxes of books and other things I’ve kept, clothes shrinking in my closet and unnecessary thoughts cluttering my mind.

tabby cat in closet

Tabby cat in my closet

My little writing desk will stay in the same spot. Some things don’t need to change –  mostly for practical and sentimental reasons.

desk and books

Thanks for dropping by. Permit me to lead you to The Year of the Rabbit domain for a sampling of my fiction writing. If you decide to purchase a copy of the novel, it won’t collect dust.

T