Enough is enough - the great declutter

missyg_3

Hahaha Pigpen is on a mission again folks

Photo update: One plastic crate to stay exactly as it is, has been filed back in the cupboard. Two other crates have been done - get this - reduced to a small stack of 6x4 inch pictures no more than 7cm high!

Those were the easy pickings however, and the remaining 4 crates will be harder to sort I'm feeling really glad to have got this job underway at last though, I had been putting it off for far too long.

Ebay update: Over £150 in bids now! :j

Lemon_Tree

pigpen, you sound like my sister. Went round one sunday when she was trying to get her boys to tidy their room in the end she stormed up with bin bags, it was like sitting next to the wailing wall for the whole afternoon i can tell you!
i've got a charity bag here and i may just have a look through stuff before OH arrives tomorrow. He always brings stuff, not that i'm not greatful, but sometimes i wish i had somewhere to put it.

missyg_3

I took delivery of a box of envelopes today which I need for my business, and all I can think of is drat, that's going to take up space in the cupboard! I don't like bringing things IN to the house! :rotfl:

Going to have a quick paperwork purge tonight - it's the 2 shelves down to 1 challenge

mary43

missyg - wish my filing system could be so simple.

Two drawer filing cabinet for insurance papers, legal stuff, mortgage/bank etc. plus other personal stuff.

Cupboard with files on kids we've got, minutes of meetings that I have to keep, yet another soc.serv. file we''re told to keep and folder with general household bills in (easier to get at and its all in one place)

Tray with lid - on desk top for papers/letters that I know I'll need to refer to within a short time before they're filed away

Storage boxes - some full of Training material that I have to keep
card making stuff
water colour stuff
Family history stuff

Shelf of files- full of family history stuff I''ve completed and a file for Mum's paperwork. Also on same shelf shoe boxes of Dads bits and pieces, more card making bits.

Still at least now everything has a label on it so I know whats in what file/box etc....................lol You should have seen it before.................lol:rotfl:

missyg_3

Yours sounds very organised Mary! Everyone has different needs and it can take time to find the right system. I still change and tweak things now, but things change over the years anyway and we all need to adapt!

We've been unfortunate enough to have a few bereavements in the family in recent years, and I think part of my desire and motivation to get organised is because I've seen how difficult it is for loved ones left behind to have to deal with everything when it's in a mess and there's loads of stuff. I know that sounds depressing but it isn't meant to be! Does anyone else think about that (or is it just me? )

Ellidee

No you are right missyg. When my dear mil passed away just over two years ago we had a limited time to clear her flat as we ( oh & his bro & sis) all lived some distance away. We all vowed when we got home that we would get rid of 'stuff'. Let's just say it is a work in progress here !

charlies_mum

HI missyg

Yes, I think about it, 18 months ago I had to clear out my Dad's flat - we lost my Mum 3 years before that, and although he had tried to make it easy for us, there was still lots of things to clear and it was really distressing.

My son says that when we go, he will buy a box of matches and set fire to the lot

djbd1973

cat64 wrote: »

Hi everyone! Have managed to condense 3 large boxes of paperwork down to one, sure there is lots more to get through but its a start. Thanks missyg, will look forward to hearing how you manage your filing coz I need to start some sort of system with the stuff I have left. I laughed when I read your post as I too have a 'spare' hoover, donated by my MIL. I will freecycle it when I can find all the bits to it:o.



djbd1973, your wife sounds like me :rotfl:Scanning sounds like a good idea but I'm useless with computers, how exactly does it work? Does it mean you store documents on your computer instead of on paper?? (sorry to be thick).

Hi Cat64 - that is exactly it. Scan each page in. Name it something relevant but keep the name as short as you can and don't forget to check that the scan opens and reads okay before you shred the original! If you have really important documents you may want to keep more than one copy such as on a CD that is kept in a drawer on on an external hard drive so that you have a back up. I am lucky because at work I have a large printer that photocopies too, and the photocopying unit can copy 110 A4 pages (says so in the manual) a minute but can scan these to a computer file rather than to paper.We've copied large manuals in this way at work and its great.Hope this helps.

djbd1973

missyg wrote: »

Djbd1973, your post made me smile, and bless you for being so relaxed about it!

Relaxed?... (he says as the alcohol starts to wear off) You should see me when it comes to completing my tax return towards the end of January after going on about all through the previous summer.I don't relate to 'relax, its in one of these drawers... I think. I'll find it for you tomorrow!' when I am seeking information to add and all I hear on the radio and on the telly is 'the deadline is coming, you'll be fined if its late. Tax doesn't have to be taxing!'Tax doesn't have to be taxing..... the smug goat - he should come and do mine then if its that easy. If it was that easy, the government would still be doing it for us.Anyway - I've learnt the meaning of 'yes dear', and 'I'm sorry' and as my wife tells me - 'she has to put up with me as well'. All good fun and I wouldn't change it. She might but I wouldn't.

kscour

Just reporting in:D
Blitzed garage (still not finished but we had reached the mental fatigue point were we just couldn't make a rational decision about anything - except stopping for a mug of tea!)
Rubbish has gone to tip, old furniture found a good home, loads gone to charity etc. so to date..... big huge drum roll ............

68 stone 1 lb:D
We're having a wiring job done tomorrow which consists of two burly men getting in the attic so it's a good job i was ahead of the game on that one!

I think we'll have a rest tomorrow & Friday and concentrate on tidying up & washing and ironing. And then hit it refreshed at the weeked.

I feel very tired but at the same time very happy and calm. It really helps to come on here and find I'm not alone. My extended family are such clutter nutters that I feel I'm the odd one until I come on here and find fellow floor seekers - thanks everyone:grouphug: