KonMari 2016 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

tibawo

I am in wide awake club.. And have been for more than two hours. Luckily we've not much planned for today so if I need a cat nap later then, for a change, I might have one! DD1 has asked if we go on another walk this week after her sisters netball match. TBH I am glad as although I know she is a busy bee during the week but I worry that she doesn't get much fresh air and would hibernate all weekend otherwise. Her friends live too far away but they all seem to snapchat etc so although arrange things now and again it can't be practical to do all the time.

I seem to be KDing a lot of extra cash at the moment. Luckily been given more hours this week. Eldest is on school trip so needs a few bits. We actually need a suitcase so have decided to get one that is hers and kept in her room. I have been trying to get her to see sense in getting things equivalent to a 'bottom drawer'

Dd2 is pleased with my extra hours too as she desperately wants her Guinea pig and has been told possibly at half term... We have some of the bits just not the animal! And I have refused to get until one off trips etc are sorted/deposits paid e.g her guide cooking , Disney trip!

The house KD has seems to be stuck at a red traffic light. I think half term will see the next meeting with Justin. The money from DVDs has come in, I am still finding CDs and putting them in the old DVD drawer ready. DD has taken one single as she kept singing a song and wouldn't believe we had the original, even her friends were impressed!

Glad to read other people's tales and KD journeys. It's nice to feel you are not alone and I think not being pressurised into finishing it all by yesterday makes it a much more realistic, successful and sustainable change in lifestyle.

GreyQueen

Righty, the suitcase is loaded and labelled and the contents are listed in the brand-new inventory book, which I have created from an A4 notebook which was loitering with intent.

We've had the kitchen balance scales out and weighed all the yarn in both metric and imperial (there are some very old knitting patterns in this household) and each colour is now in labelled sandwich bags. These bags have been consolidated in a appliance box (the shredder's box so not huge) which is one of the two I chucked out of the loft yesterday and which is now going back. Being a tall rectangular box, it's an efficient way of consolidating these smallish bags of yarn and keeping them grouped together, tidy and accessible.

There are some cones which don't fit into the suitcase and they will go back in the big box in the loft, the handy one near the hatch. But this will mean that all the cones are now accounted for and very accessible and will be listed in the inventory book. The quantity of cones have gone down overall by one large tartan laundry bag.

Another cone has been evicted to go bootsaling (ice blue to add to the pinks- 4 reject in total) and another part cone has been wound off, so that's another cardboard cone in the recycling bin to leave tomorrow. The cones for the next 4 knitting projects have been bagged and labelled with who they're for and placed front-and-centre in the BCofD.

After luncheon I will, with assistance, get that case up into the loft and also the stray cones corralled into the big box and may, according to how I feel, have another tidy up/ rootle around. Have already found a carrier bag of stuff which can be sent booting in April (weather permitting).

I've explained to Mum that my ideal plan would be that she looks at the inventory book to see what she has for her next project then sends one of the menfolk or me up to retrieve it - she smiled wryly at the thought that such organisation could ever be possible.

I know, but I have a dream, and the Bedroom Cupboard of Doom hasn't lapsed into chaos and the mould problem I fixed last year hasn't come back (mainly because of threatening dire retribution on anyone who put anything in there touching the outside wall, lol. So, some dreams are achieveable.:rotfl:

Kid Bruv has turfed out a small appliance which will come home with me and be offered on freegle (not good enough for a chazzer) and if it doesn't go, can go to the tip in my city.

Slinky

Argghh, I've been doing battle with paper. There doesn't seem to be a single room in our house that doesn't have issues with paper accumulating in it in one form or another. Shredded some, filed some, decided to thin out my business books again. They don't give me joy. They just remind me of all the things people advise I 'should' be doing in my business, but I am not. I don't have the energy or inclination anymore. I have my eyes fixed on the horizon for the day when I can 'retire' or at least go and try my hand at something else if I feel inclined.

These books survived the cull last year. I read them on holiday, would you believe, with all good intentions of implementing changes, and then I carry on as before when I get home....... so I think I need to accept the fact that I am what I am, the business is what it is, and I don't have the energy to change it.

Ship the books out for somebody else to benefit from. I may see if the library would like them rather than the CS.

I've also ditched some placemats. Got some new ones a couple of weeks ago, these have sat in the kitchen waiting to be wiped over and boxed for the CS, but in reality I know it's unlikely the CS will be able to get good money for them, so the correct thing is to bin them. OH said, just as I was about to put them in the bin, 'they may find a use in the garage' 'what for' 'when I'm cutting things' 'you've already got an old chopping board, if these weren't in the garage you'd find something else to use' and so they have escaped Justin.

I am finding paper very depressing though, I've never really got past it successfully.

loocyloo

I have just gone through my childrens coats/jackets ... DD had 4 that were too small, and 1 she has decided she doesn't like (!!! despite being DESPERATE for it a few months ago! ), DS had 3 he had grown out of. DH wanted to keep them for DD for 'Justin' but I said no, as she although she said she wanted them, she doesn't need and wont wear them! DH then said they needed them as 'garden coats' ... seeing as how they don't 'garden' I don't think they do!


I have found one of mine too, that I loved and wore for years, but haven't worn for ages and have thanked and will move on. ( its still got plenty of wear in it )


I was going to pass them onto friends children, but having checked; no one is in need of a coat/wanting a coat for later in the year/next year, so I was then going to put them on ebay, but actually, I've decided I can't be bothered, so they will all be going to the charity shop, once they have been washed.
my dilemma is, I usually donate to a local 'independent' charity shop, but as these coats are mainly teenage coats, I just don't think they will sell particularly, so will have to wait till I am going to a 'nearby' town.

[Deleted User]

what the heck would we do without each other and the oh so brilliant support? I am reading about your struggles with paper and with clothes and so empathise. I absolutely cannot do this category by category wrt my clothes. I don`t have mounds on the floor but they do fill a few wardrobes and they are neat, I cannot let any go yet, I will be able to start at the change of season, I am sure of it

I come home lately and my house looks so organised, not a neat and tidy showhome but eg it would be relatively easy to move house now, not that I am going to. This morning I dumped a huge jar of peanut butter powder, an impulse buy, what a `good` idea to add protein to my soups. Haha. So I am still doing a few impulse buys but not a lot. Had another today, the new green MK book but for £5 it will be worth the read

Knitting wool at some stage and GQ knows how difficult that will be, unless I grow two more pairs of arms, then I will never get through it fast enough, then again, maybe I will try but again that would be adding to my clothes. Maybe I will take the wool to the cs, I will wait a few days and then decide, I think

camelot1001

Sshhhh, I have to speak quietly. I am in Dutch land at DS2s and this morning he asked if the charity shop took quilts. I don't know the answer but will find out tomorrow. This has led to a major sort out so I'm sat in quietly while he does his stuff!

Slinky

One other thing I forgot to mention, I've decided to part with the adult colouring in book and coloured pencils I bought last year. I thought I may enjoy doing them, and I did for a little while, but haven't picked them up for ages and don't think I will again, so off to the CS they go. I do hope somebody will want a book with probably 80 images still to be coloured in.

Edit, for one thing, I spend most of my working day using a computer mouse, I don't think evenings spent colouring in were doing my wrist any favours.

grunnie

I KMed 3 colouring books and pencils a few weeks ago as I felt it was a waste of my time. I prefer crocheting or knitting to relax.

[Deleted User]

oh yes!! colouring books, another couple of things that can go out. I`ll give the pencils to a dgd, books into recycling I bought them after dh died and they did relax me for a couple of weeks, that was 19 months ago

Theres a frys turkish delight in the fridge, I spotted it yesterday, think I need to kondo it now, into the bin, before I am tempted by all that pink sugar. I`ll take the cover off and pull it into bits first, so I can`t go fishing for it later as I am easily tempted

Did it, binned out of harms way

GreyQueen

Morning all.

What a palaver last night, the coach which was supposed to be bringing me home was a no-show and after 2 hrs standing around in the perishing cold, my lovely Dad ran me back home (well, I drove here, he drove back). Round trip of 70 miles.

The coach company will be hearing from me via email later today, bygorry.:mad: The plus side is that he's taken my sewing machine back and the folks will get that into the repair shop for me, it's awkward lugging such things about without a car. The minus side is that if we'd intended to bring the car up to the city, as opposed to running me a mile to the bus stop, we could have brought some Stuff which I will be re-homing via the greater resources available here.

Ne'mind. I'm exhausted but have stuck Kid Bruv's discarded appliance up on freegle and hope to come home from w*rk and find someone wants it.

Mum and I wound the wool off the cones which will be used for the stripy sweater so that's another two cardboard cones going out in their recycling today, bringing it up to nine, I think. They manage to nearly fill a recycling bin each fortnight but barely produce one sack of refuse between the five of them (3 humans, 2 cats).