Declutter Mind and Declutter home

BarbCh

@KxMx
You sound like you have a good plan going on and getting there!
Try:  we buy books, ziffit and music magpie who all buy books.... I  would have all 3 open in tabs and put the book ISBN into all of them to compare who will pay the most... and it's  free to send them 
Good luck and keep up the good work.... you're certainly cleaning up with all of those vacuum cleaners ! 

BarbCh

OMG... 3 times I've tried to write a post and keep pressing the wrong key.... then I  lose it and have to start again!! 
@helensbiggestfan sorry, I meant to acknowledge your post yesterday, but got sidetracked! Love the image of you dancing round to some banging tunes.... and pleased it lifted your spirits. 💃
Get writing those desires down and sending them to the universe! 

Yesterday was the 3rd anniversary of my step father's passing and so I  did a lot of thinking about him.
About 6 months before he died he was diagnosed with dementia, and I  was remembering some of the things he had begun to do.
 Much of it revolved around cleaning!

He was always walking around the house with a damp cloth, looking for marks on paintwork etc... and he would be scouring the floor for any bit of fluff to pick up off the carpet. Harmless until he began to do it out in the street and a neighbour caught him in the middle of the road picking up bits and pieces! Fortunately the road was a quiet one.
At my nephews wedding a few months before he died.... another guest came to me to tell me that Dad was outside the hotel lobby picking up confetti.... and there was a lot of it!!
As a family, we do laugh and become amused at some of it.... although it is sad what happened.

It got me thinking about overwhelming clutter and how we see it as 'the whole' but like the confetti it can be, and often is, just a lot of small pieces..... removing one doesn't look like much....but each and every piece that is moved, used, thrown, etc.... it is one piece less to sort.... one piece less in the pile.... and eventually, the effort can be seen.
Like @KxMx... moving stuff from a big shed to a smaller one.... the task is becoming smaller and more manageable. 

So today, I  am going to concentrate on the little bits..... 
Have a great day everyone 

helensbiggestfan

Great news today......all adults to be vaccinated by end of July.  Wahoo. 💃🥂

The end is almost in sight.....

thankfully I feel a lot better today, still have no voice but as I live alone anyway I guess it doesn't really matter that much.  Ha ha. Throat  is less painful now so it's obviously getting better.

I have just managed an hour (see below about my 1 hr rule) doing some decluttering in the garden, pruned an overgrown shrub and removed some old dead summer bedding plants, and of course some cat poo (I don't have a cat😂). It was lovely and mild out there and so nice to get out and enjoy some fresh air and commune with nature.  Ooh get me.  

BarbCh.  You are so right each small piece or item removed may not seem much but it's a step forward on our journey.   It's the cumulative effect that works and gives results. 

I have what I call the "1 hr rule".  If ever I am faced with a task which threatens to overwhelm me or which I just don't fancy doing then I commit to doing it for 1 hr each day.  I can manage 1 hr and those 1 hr blocks soon mount up to a chunk of time.  

Success in any endeavour comes from discipline, consistent effort and perseverance.  It's no good having the occasional flash of brilliance and then sitting on our laurels - that doesn't get things done.  What counts is constancy.  

Oh dear I'm sounding so preachy. 😂🤣.  

But it's true, I have found that small daily habits really do mount up and ultimately it's consistency of effort that achieves results.  So, even when I don't really want to do something, if I jolly myself along and Just Do It!!!!  - even for just an hr -  not only do I get one step closer to my goal but I also get a glow of smug satisfaction and a rush of feel good endorphins. 

Win-win. 😉

BarbCh

@helensbiggestfan.. pleased to hear you are getting better. You are absolutely  right in what you say...   consistency is the key.
The 1 hour rule  is a great way to tackle things, and can often turn into 2 hours if you enjoy what you are achieving.

I've just been pottering about here and there, so my 'confetti ' piles aren't  showing a great difference... but I  know that they are one step  closer.
Yesterday I  made a large pan of soup and just had one bowl for lunch, so today I've put the rest into food boxes and put in the freezer..... 

I keep looking at using up some of my fabric stash and covering my dining chairs.... but it's  one of those jobs that I  need to summon up a bit more energy for! 

It's fantastic news that all adults will be vaccinated at least once by end of July.... I  have had my 1st and hope to get the 2nd in early May...... but I  think I will still be showing caution.
Here's looking forward to getting back to some form of normality 

KxMx

Bonus declutter today, saw a wanted post on immediate area fb group for something I wanted to get rid of, a very large rug, and it was collected super quick.
I've been hesitant to advertise everything I want rid of due to current restrictions, so am waiting on wanted ads for some stuff and today I got lucky. 

candygirl

I love the 1 hour idea LL.When I'm feeling particularly crap, like now, I get up n do bits n pieces while tv ads are on .Little n often for Me at the mo 🤣
Great news re the jabs .I can't wait to get mine done 😉

helensbiggestfan

Hi everyone

Well after listening to Boris and his "roadmap" I decided I would set out my own roadmap for the next three months. Plans I want to put into action. So I sat and wrote it all down in my journal so I can't forget any of it.  

 This included a money sort out. 😱😂.  I have been burying my head in the sand this last couple of weeks. I knew I needed to work out my budget but I kept procrastinating.  I will use being poorly this last few days as a valid excuse. 😂

Anyway today I used my 1 hr a day rule and spent an hour or so trawling through my statements, working out the next three months anticipated expenditure and planning my budget.  Actually once I get going I do actually enjoy it and, if I say so myself I'm quite good at managing my money,  perhaps as well because I'm by no means rich.   I have to really s t r e e e t c h those pennies.  😂

Now......about that wish list.  Once I've done some much needed housework and tidying up I'll get down to it.  

Hope you all well and happy.  

BarbCh

@helensbiggestfan... great idea...   I  think I will follow suit and do my own road plan. 
I might get some post it notes (one for each day until 21st June) and write something on each one that I want to achieve.....
I will stick them all up somewhere.... maybe on the  inside of wardrobe door..... then pick off one each day.

I've over done it a bit over the last few days and have hurt my back, so need to rest up a bit!

TC77

Behind with reading all the posts. Like the idea of the post its and a road map for the next 3 months. I'm feeling very lethargic and abit overwhelmed. I have alot of leave to take before march as now not allowed to carry over, and feel an opportunity to really sort out the house as little else to do but don't feel up to do it. I've been chipping away on things except clothes as I gained weight over the last couple of years and wanted to lose weight before deciding what to keep. Abit depressing as know comfort eating and can't see my way of getting back into clothes (can wear about 10% of clothes). Need to get some get up and go!

BarbCh

@TC77 sorry to hear that your are feeling a bit depressed... I  get that now and again, so know how it will be affecting you.... but pleased you posted how you feel, because that means we can try and perk you up!!
I recognise a few things that you say about weight gain, clothes not fitting and waiting to lose weight before sorting out what fits etc.... or not buying new ones until weight has gone! 
All that in itself is depressing! 
It's great that you have some leave to take and are going to get a few things done.....

Motivation or lack of it..... can be the deciding factor as to whether we do something or not! 

Just remember that every thousand mile journey begins with just one step....
Feeling lethargic doesn't  help either.... and hence the feeling of being overwhelmed.
Don't  worry about it!!!

I sometimes think that we start to feel guilty about things and then this leads to a downward spiral ....

On Mrs SD's thread. Most people count and record their decluttering, but this doesn't  work for me, however, I write lists of varying sizes depending on how I feel..... and try to achieve as many of them as I can that day. ... but I  never have more than 10 on the list, and if I  do anything that wasn't  on the list....... I  add it and cross it off! 
On a bad day my list is broken down into bite size pieces.
But whatever your way, just see the small achievements and not the big picture!!
Hope you are feeling brighter soon.... and keep coming back here for some moral support 💜