KonMari 2018 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

GreyQueen

I'm in process of cleaning and reorganising in my kitchen (well, taking a rest from it, actually ) and have take the grill pan, and its support off the gas stove to clean them.


Then, had a thought; why are these items even on my stove? I do not use them, they just stay there, get dirty, get cleaned, get dirty, get cleaned ad infinitum.

Soo, they are air-drying for a day or two before being plastic bagged and stashed up the corner of the kitchen where there is an almost inaccessible dead zone formed by the angle of the undersink cupboard and the washing machine. If I need 'em, they're there, if not, they're staying clean.

WeeMidgie

Marvellous, GQ. A very satisfying piece of MK simplification.

I'm hoping for a similar aha moment re where to store bags of cat litter. I keep a few weeks stash in case of difficulties with supplies/lurgy/other untoward events, and currently several bags are stacked in the tiny bathroom. Today I'll be pondering the flat with my MK brain in gear, hoping for a neat and elegant solution.

Later, ETA: solution found, quite easily. Six bags of cat litter are in an under counter cupboard in the kitchen which also holds the cat food. A few casserole dishes which have sentimental value but haven't been used in years have been moved to the pending area in the hall cupboard. If I haven't used them by the New Year, they'll never be, and will go off to the Red Cross shop.

The bathroom looks much better!

GreyQueen

I've been busy this evening resolving some niggly problems and have now turfed out two large bags of yarn for the chazzer which were in a storage stool. I honestly thought I'd got rid of all the yarn in the summer so was pretty surprised to see it there. All in the donation bag and will go out tomorrow after work.


That meant that I had a storage stool which was an ideal solution to the half-sack of HG spuds which has been in the way in the living room. I cropped the sack down to the same height as the stool, nestled in inside and added the spuds. Stool is now under the table but easily accessible.


This then means that the spot where the stool was can take the shopping trolley, which is great.


My home is tiny, which is why some things which more normal households would keep elsewhere are in my living room, it wouldn't be my first choice if there were alternative spaces.


Hope everyone is having a good evening. GQ xx

WeeMidgie

In similar vein to GQ, but with I suspect slightly larger rooms, some of my household items serve more than one purpose. Foremost of these, my humble and versatile shopping trolley

When I moved here in May, I didn't have any hands on help (family all overseas and friends physically not able, but helped in other ways, e.g. meals). So I bought the shopping trolley, which was an absolute godsend for all the smaller loads I did using my car - to keep the removals bill down.

Now the shopping trolley lives in the bedroom and is my laundry basket (laundry room is at the other end of the building so I simply wheel everything along). It's also my towel airer, the towel used for my daily ablutions is draped over the handle, until laundry time when it gets added to the load. The trolley's quite pretty and doesn't look out of place.

And it's still available for wheeling in any heavy loads, e.g. cat litter. I swithered about buying it, it's a Rolser so wasn't cheap but is good looking and sturdy and was a great investment. It really does make life a lot easier and simpler.

GreyQueen

I've had my Rolser serveral years now. Some folk might have thought me daft for spending £70 when you can get one for £15 off the market, but I haven't regretted it for a minute and have moved several very heavy loads with it.


I use it several times a week and it's now loaded with CS donations, it'll go into work with me and then from work to the CS.

Karmacat

Interesting about the trolleys - I bought one when I moved here, and I'm afraid it *was* a £15 from the market (in the next town) ... the frame is fantastically strong, really, really good. The wheels have gone bald but that shouldn't matter since I don't, y'know, drive it but the bag itself is falling to pieces - bits of the patterned outside are literally falling off. It's still capable of holding everything, there are no actual holes in it, but its not good. So that gives me enough time to contemplate my next step.


What do I do? It seems such a shame to throw the frame in the recycling bin. Can new bags be bought, for existing trolleys? I'm seriously wondering about making my own, at some stage in the next year. The materials I have I might use ... hardboard. Thermal curtain lining. I think somewhere I have a spare pvc tablecloth. Vinyl flooring. Paracord Anyone know of an instructables how-to anywhere on the web?

Bigjenny

Karmacat try ebay or amazon for "shopping trolley replacement bag" or look on Pinterest, there may be instructions for making one on there, or even google it.

GreyQueen

I have a standing request at my friendly neighbourhood chazzer that if another R0lser, or a 4 wheeled trolley with the swivelling front wheels comes in, can I have first refusals? I do a lot to support them, including invisible mending on high-value clothes which would otherwise have to be ragged, so they're happy with that.


Had intended to do burger-all this evening, but you know how it is. Moved pushbike away from wall unit to get at the stereo, found that the effing manual for this 2nd hand item is either useless or said item has lost 80% of its functions (use it for playing CDs only) and that I cannot adjust the clock. Thinking laterally, I have turned it off at the mains and will turn it on at a specified point tomorrow morning and then it will be telling the right time.:rotfl:


Then I pumped up rear bike tyre. Front one could do with some wind too but the energy levels never allow x 2 tyres in one day, so will have to do the other one on another day. Then I vac'd and put bike back, and ended up sorting out the hellhole of footwear and misc at the bottom of the water tank cupboard.


Bit of lateral thinking and I managed to re-home a lovely red wicker shopping basket which I bought for almost-nothing from a chazzer because the wicker wrapping one end of the handle on had unravelled. I know a bit about wicker, so soaked it in cold water (bath tub) and re-wrapped the wicker when softened, tied it into place until it dried and job jobbed. Got a kind of basket that's about £30 new for £1.25.


:j Said basket now contains the brush & pan, my sandals and the small quantity of newspapers (about four) which I keep for certain messy cleaning jobs. All neat and tidy and can be lifted out in a second if necessary.


I'm pleased because I love this basket but it was floating around the living room temporarily homeless and getting in the way. A good evening, and most of it still left to play with, yipppee!

Siebrie

Okay, update time. I have been kondoed from work yesterday. I was very glad I had the warning of the found email, because I could stay calm during the short meeting, even though I was still shocked that it was actually happening. It is effective immediately, so I am already home They will pay me 11 months wages, 1 month for every year I worked there, and 60 hours outplacement help.

I spent an hour in the IT office (nice and helpful guys, one is a union member who slipped me some advice) to empty and hand in my laptop. Then, I did a tour of the office saying goodbye to all my colleagues; I got many hugs and everyone was really shocked. One union representative lady gave me some more advice, and even the Scandinavian guys hugged me (they are not big on physical contact, so that was very nice).

When at last I went back to my desk and said goodbye to my team members, my boss came back from lunch with a big smile as if nothing happened, said goodbye and offered that she would always be available to talk. I did not reply, just turned and walked away; that offer to talk came 8 months too late.

I have had the best night's sleep in a long while

This morning I have spent 4 hours on several phonecalls to the union (I am not a member, but everyone kept telling me to cantact them for advice, and they were right), the job seekers' centre, the social security centre (that will pay the unemployment benefit from October 2019), and the outplacement place. What the company offered me in severance has bedn checked 3 times now, and they all agree, so that has put me at rest. This afternoon I have spent on the phone to my parents and a few friends.

Husband agreed with me staying home until New Year, see what the outplacement agency offers, and then start job hunting or educating myself again. I may even go back to uni

I thought I would be more upset, and maybe it hasn't sunk in properly, or maybe I had kondoed work a long time ago already, I just hadn't thrown it out yet :undecided

Karmacat

Bigjenny wrote: »

Karmacat try ebay or amazon for "shopping trolley replacement bag" or look on Pinterest, there may be instructions for making one on there, or even google it.

Thanks for that! It hadn't occurred to me And I love pinterest, I really do :rotfl: