KonMari 2017 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

MMF007

This morning I was trying to belp a neighbour sort through and deal with a pile of papers that she had abandoned on her dining table. I have tried to help with this before, several times. I recognise some of the items from previously
This time I seperated them into categories while she made various excuses why she needed to keep old receipts for food shopping (ie, nothing relating to warranties or suchlike), and i handed her a small pile of old lists she had written and were clearly no use any longer and asked her to deal with those first. She managed 3 or 4, reading through them, crossing through each page, then passing to me to put in recycling bag. Then she put them down and said she wanted to do the banking stuff. I suggested she finish the entire pile of lists as it was a quick win that would clear a space within minutes because I knew none would need filing:A It took my best firm tone of voice to convince her to concentrate for another 4 or 5 minutes to finish that particular mini category..

She then flitted through several items, picking them up, talking about them, putting them down, picking them up again but never dealing with them[/U.]
I recall being told, many years ago, that it was common for people to do this in offices, putting off tasks but keeping handling the same letter or file without progressing it. I asked her not to put the last item down but to deal with it while she still held it, otherwise, I pointed out, I would be seeing it again next time we cleared this table, and that was a bad thing :rotfl:

After some progress was made she turned to me in despair because she knew I had to leave in about 40 minutes and 'we couldn't possible finish it all'. Of course we can, says I.
Well almost! I left her at the designated time with just 3 small piles left, categorised and just needing filing in her filing cabinet.
On the downside, I am fairly certain that they won't get filed before i next go

It did make me more determined than ever to just put things awayand not let them pile up!

On a more fun note - I visited a client this afto and helped ber hang some new-to-her clothes. She had bought a lovely cardi which is sort of peach/salmon coloured which i thought would go well with one of her skirts. When we looked through the wardrobe she had 5 skrits with hints of the same colour in, all very different but all will look lovely with this cardi. She then pulled out several sets of beads and several tops and had a lovely 'trying on session', co-ordinating outfits from her CS gleanings and her wardrobe. It was great to see her getting so much joy from the clothes and accessories. MK would be proud!

Oh, sorry, I have rambled on! Must go and put my work supplies away, like a good girl :rotfl:

MMF007

GoingToDoIt wrote: »

I really need to Kondo my knee-jerk "what can I buy" thoughts. I really have everything I need. The less I have the easier it is to see...

Like GQ, I have been asked twice this week what I want for xmas. A friend offered to knit wooly socks or gloves but I have plenty of each and the ones I have are exactly the ones i want (can't wear wool either!).

I said that actually I have most things I need but I would absolutely love either of the following -
A meal out with friends
A bunch of flowers

So, in the spirit of MK, what would be your ideal pressie, other than several more mushroom punnets (!)?

Picklepot

Actually MMF007 i noticed field mushrooms were on a special for 49p at local alldee and considered getting matching punnets! I cant be normal :rotfl:

GreyQueen

MMF007 wrote: »

So, in the spirit of MK, what would be your ideal pressie, other than several more mushroom punnets (!)?

I'm collecting mushroom punnets to use in my cold frame when I start runner beans off next spring - if I grow them in open ground, about 75 % get chewed up by slugs and snails. So more of them would be helpful.

I also like empty ferrer0 roche boxes to store my sewing supplies. One needs to refresh one's collection of these (get me!) as they get brittle after a few years. Empty ones are good. Full ones are a wee bit better, but not for my waistline.:rotfl:

A pal gave me a carrier bag of random lengths of wool leftover from her knitting projects. None were longer than about a foot. All proper wool and gorgeous colours. I spent several happy hours unravelling them and chopping them up into short lengths to incorporate into one of my rugs. That was a great pressie.:j

elona

I have become obsessed with finding containers. My bedroom is a tip but won't take long to sort now I have places to put things.

My dds have just started asking me for a list of what I want for Christmas. The truthful answer would be company and a trip out like cinema, theatre amdram, historic house etc. but they want something they can wrap.

So far I can only think of a nice large purse to go with my new bag I got for my birthday and a few books by my favourite authors. Anyone got any ideas?

GQ

How about sturdy garden boots or good shoes for work? Gardening stuff?

Slinky

Yay, I've got new flooring in my house. Oh it's so lovely, I don't want to be renting it out for someone else to enjoy (mugger up with their furniture marks). Ho hum, it has to be done.


The room of doom is no longer doomy. Gone are the horrid unmatching cupboards. Gone is the old gas fire. Gone are the two hidden vents and national wood louse collection which lurked behind the cupboards. Gone is the ugly ceiling lamp. Gone is the clothes airer hanging from the ceiling in front of the radiator located halfway up the wall (plumbers moved it down to the more conventional level). Gone is the water softener which wasn't working. Gone are the manky curtains. It's now a large, if unconventional wedge shaped room with a oak effect vinyl floor, 3 cream walls and one with my cheerful dots wallpaper and new curtains.


Can you tell I'm a happy Slinky tonight?


OH will be arriving tomorrow night and once we've finished cleaning we'll be off to our real home, neglected as it has been for the past 2 months and in need of a darned good clean. I've had one day off since 3rd September. I'll get another on 29th October....

MMF007

Elona, I gave my mum a HM voucher for afternoon tea at a venue of ber choice. I hand painted the 'voucher' and edged it with (fake) gold leaf and I wrapped it in pretty paper tied up with gorgeous ribbon. It looked great by the xmas tree and she was delighted. She chose somewhere really posh and we had a great day out! So there was 'something to unwrap and there was a gift that did not gather dust

ETA a round of applause for Slinky. That sounds fantastic, now have an hour off, you deserve it . Well done on a great achievment.

Slinky

MMF one of my old bosses told me about a technique with paper that you keep picking up and not dealing with. Every time you handle it you have to make a small tear in the top. It shames you into dealing with it before it ends up looking like the teeth of a comb.


Not that I've ever tried it mind, and I'm bad with paper....

catshark88

Elona, could they give you a voucher for National Trust membership (so they can wrap it) and then take you to one of their houses or gardens?

Picklepot

What would i love for xmas?
Some wellies from my DH,
a 'promise' of car washes from DS1 (he loves doing his),
a bag of potting compost from DS2.
My mum pots me up some lovely spring bulbs or winter planter to go on my doorstep - love it especially if she uses one of my or her pots or a hanging basket