Some of you might remember the TLC hit series “Clean Sweep.” It was a lightweight version of “Hoarders” and a little more intense than Niecy Nash on “Clean House.” Peter Walsh, an organizational consultant, was the host and he is the author of “How to Organize (Just About) Everything and It’s All Too Much.” I was reminded of his books when I was watching a recent trifecta of “Hoarders.”
I’m not at hoarder status, but I like stuff. On a recent business trip I picked up a fabulous pair of black skinny jeans knowing that I just bought a similar pair a week ago and that another pair of leggings was in the drawer at home. I then looked at my 2014 calendar for the day, here is what it said, “once you recognize that you are operating at full capacity, what you need to do is make a vow that as one new item is brought into the home, something else must go.” Ok the leggings will go, they didn’t fit too well any way and I never wore them.
The next day the calendar drove home the topic again. “Buy something new, let something go: the rationale for this concept is derived from the almost universal tendency to fill our homes to the brim. The problem is that overcrowding can create a great deal of stress and frustration in terms of knowing where to put things and where to find them. Feeling closed in can also have a negative impact on your psyche, making it easier to feel stressed and irritable.” Is this a calendar or a crystal ball? And it is sitting on my desk looking at me every day… this is spooky.
As I was preparing for this column I looked through my bookshelf and found several books that needed to go. I love books and magazines; they always have a home in my house, but the purpose is to read it not just let it sit. I guess the buy one, get rid of one should apply to my books and magazines as well. I found an unread copy of the “6 Minute Morning to a Flat Stomach,” “2 Week Total Body Turnaround” and more magazines than you can imagine on working out and losing weight. Yes I have lost a few pounds but I have not reached my goal. Seems like I did it without these books, the books are being posted on eBay as soon as I hit send on this column.
Walsh gives such good advice, on the subject of clothes, my weakness. He says since clothes can be so cheap, we tend to buy them spontaneously without a lot of thought. You see a bargain or a sale and you “have to have it” because it is such a great deal. Walsh says you should only have clothes in your closet that you love, that fit NOW and make you feel good when you wear it and garner positive compliments.
Ok people get moving, get rid of that stuff, let something go.
(Email the columnist at debbienorrell@aol.com)
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