2020 - banish the clutter

Happy_Kitties

Many thanks for the gold star Mrs SD
General decluttering has slowly resumed
409-410      birthday presents x2 finally given out......slightly late by a month
411    pots x 3 of brand new nesquik DD has left behind going to a friend otherwise it will go out of date.

Aiming for 500 by Christmas

basketcase

PommeVerte said:

I think i wouldve just buried the fox ! 

Not very MSE.  I'm shocked.   Surely it should've been stuck in the freezer - waste of valuable protein in these parlous times.

Oops!  Sorry, this isn't the Prepping thread.

Seriously, I'd probably have buried it too!

basketcase

   I've not been decluttering in any serious way for a while, due to real life.  Firstly DD's operation to have her wisdom teeth removed was rescheduled.  2 weeks' isolation for her (and me, as I was driving her the 40 miles to the hospital) then another 2 while she got back on her feet.  That took care of most of August and the beginning of September.  It doesn't sound as if it should be that serious or much of a decluttering obstacle, but it was combined with causing her anxiety and depression to go through the roof.  (I question the wisdom - no pun intended! - of telling someone in that state that there was a "far higher than average" chance of permanent nerve damage in her mouth and face...)  Lots of 1 to 1 TLC, comforting and morale-rebuilding. Totally unbegrudged.  Also totally draining!  As I told her, on the up-side the pain meant her nerves worked.  (You'd probably have to understand how warped we are as a family to understand why she laughed, then winced, at that...)

  Obviously, I shan't count her teeth - or the painkillers.  (Pity, that'd raise the total a fair bit!)  But she decided to take up knitting again as a distraction, so I shall count 4 pairs of spare needles and 2 balls of yarn.  And I shall be virtuous and say that's 6 items, not 10!   Also what was left of a box of straws will be 1.  ( Which reminds me - off topic handy hint: if you use herbs to add variety to a basic lentil soup DO NOT use rosemary!  It gets stuck in a straw.  And it's the very devil to sieve out!)

   A lot of general clearance has taken place, which I'll list later.  Much work with disappointingly little to show in terms of clearance or numbers.  Mostly, though, I've spent the last month catching up at my allotment.  It's good to be outside, but the inside's a pigsty.  (With apologies to pigs everywhere!)  Given that so much of the stuff I intended to plant had to go on the verandah, a lot of clutter was generated out there.  And, yes, I intend counting each individual plant because I had to plant them individually.  So, eg, 1 tray of 10 celeriac will be 10 items, not 1.  (I may be gone some time.  That verandah got really full...)  For the same reason each miserable piece of carpet I've had/have still to dig out and cut to a size I can lift will count as a separate piece.  Mind you, it was really nicely laid in a way that wouldn't be a disgrace in a hallway.  There was even underlay under the last layer!

   Anyway, enough gabbing.  Even when I've had little to post, I've been watching everyone else's progress with admiration.  I hope I can catch up with you all and still make 2020 items by the end of the year.  I think so...

  

TC77

Had to pop in about the fox. A friend took a dead fox to the tip and was told to read all the signs on the crates, and then asked if he could see ' the dead fox sign' and told to take it away. If found on public land our council have a phone number for dead animals!

Hope to be back with some decluttering news soon

basketcase

TC77 said:

Had to pop in about the fox. A friend took a dead fox to the tip and was told to read all the signs on the crates, and then asked if he could see ' the dead fox sign' and told to take it away. If found on public land our council have a phone number for dead animals!

Hope to be back with some decluttering news soon

So, dump in the middle of a park then?

Ms_Green

had some clothes to get rid of, instead of charity I found someone in need.. which feels more fun, so it turned into a huge "care-package" with anything I could spare (that might not have gone to charity for years, but I knew she could use it) and now everyone is happy...

BUGS etc: most kitchens I've had, have been worn down (renting) so I put anything I can in glass jars, if you have rodents

google: rodents disease and it will be very easy to get rid of anything they have touched...https://www.cdc.gov/rodents/diseases/index.html

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

1. WRITE AND USE “TO DO LISTS” - MINIMUM 30 MINUTE BURSTS OF ACTIVITY AT LEAST TWICE EVERY DAY

2. KITCHEN WILL BE LEFT CLEAN & TIDY EVERY NIGHT

3. I WILL ENDEAVOUR TO BE NICE TO EVERYONE & TRY TO SEE THE FUNNY OR PECULIAR SIDE TO AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE
4. DAY TO DAY DECLUTTERING WILL CONTINUE

Autumn/winter is upon us ☹️ Dark, miserable wet day ☹️ However considerably brightened by the fact that it is our 28th wedding anniversary & DH bought me flowers 💐 (which are now in the only clear glass vase I have left 😱) & he is cooking cheesy pasta for dinner 👏 I bought him a card 😔
Before the rain started DH scarified the lawn & pumped up the Goldwing tyres - using his new toy 😉 a battery operated portable compressor. DSis appears to have finally bitten the bullet & is sorting her clothes - binning undies & hopefully bagging up cs donations 🤞

I have been knitting more hand warmers & watching TV 😔

1788 - 1795 Two large cardboard boxes, newspaper, cardboard packaging, glass bottle, brochure, paper packaging, drinks cans - Recycled
1796 - 1797 Kitchen detritus, plastic packaging - Binned

Nannywindow, I am more than happy with non-decluttering talk 🙂👏 As you have probably noticed 😉 I do use this thread as a sounding board & record of my day - all in one place. I do post on other threads regularly  - Make Do, Mend & Minimise + Love Food, Hate Waste but this is my main thread. Reminiscing about the past is a good way to confirm what is important to us & can make letting go of stuff easier - not the really sentimental stuff but most other things 😉 Really pleased that someone else remembers Betta Bilda 🙂 It is always nice to know a bit about each other as it can inform our decluttering choices & often explains the reasons why a lot of us have trouble decluttering.

PommeVerte, couldn’t bury it as the neighbour had concreted/paved her entire garden. There is also a large population of foxes & occasionally rats - so would have been dug up toute suite 🙁

Good work Happy_Kitties 👏 I have every faith that you will reach 500 by Christmas 🙂

Basketcase, it was a young, skinny fox; no room in freezer & I am a bit squeamish 😉 That aside it is so lovely to see you. I know that medics have to warn you about side effects of operations but in this instance I think the bedside manner was sadly lacking 😡 I had to have mine removed when I was 21 as the roots had curled into my jaw bone 😱 🤕 I appreciate it was a long time ago 🤣 but I definitely don’t remember being frightened to death by the doctor. You will now be known as “Nurse Therapist basketcase“ One Gold Star ⭐️ & one bottle of halo polish coming your way. Perhaps you can set up a new business - training doctors to be compassionate & wise (pun intended 😉) & treating each patient as an individual. Not warped, but pragmatic & rather funny 😉
I must point out that we tend to forget the sheer amount of work involved in some aspects of decluttering. You should definitely be counting the work in the allotment 😉 By the way I think you might be selling yourself short on your numbers - I awarded you a gold star for reaching 1,000 😉

I did have to laugh 🤭 TC77 😂 

That is brilliant Ms_Green 👏 Being able to help a specific person is always so much more heartwarming. Did have a quick look & it is rather terrifying 😬 

BE KIND. STAY SAFE. BREAK THE CHAIN. SAVE LIVES.

MrsSD ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️   🏅

1797/2020

basketcase

   Hi Mrs SD!  I hoped you'd find amusement value in the episode.  Allotment work halted today due to rain - and we're due more tomorrow   So the carpet will be soggy to add to the fun!  Oh goody...

   I'm not exactly selling myself short.  My total should read 1218 (IIRC) but I can't get my signature to accept any changes... 

retiredinfrance

Value decluttering! Two for the work of one!
As I put the above-mentioned cardboard box into the recycling U looked inside and........found an old under the bed bag , too far gone for use so it is now in the bin.
Forgot to mention that now have nothing stored under our beds. Yes, for the first time in decades. Mind you large mirror is sitting on top of the spare room bed. Still, on we go.
Total now 46.
Keep safe, everyone.

Willowtree222

Excitingly I got rid of a big amount of carrier bags. I gave them to a place that packages up food for the vulnerable. They are always needing them.
I have also put 6 batteries in a recycling point. I usually forget to do this. X