A Bagful of Europe

I've fully embraced the minimalist lifestyle. I don't buy much and I get more joy out of getting rid of material goods than out of acquiring them.  My philosophy is that if I don't need it, I won't buy it (and I really don't need much). I used to shop as a hobby, to fill time or to fill a void. Now I only go to a store when I have a need that can only be met by making a purchase. 

Okay okay, I confess I'm prone to wander Goodwill. I'm not a perfect minimalist. 

Soon I'll be making a move that includes crossing an ocean. I don't want to take more than the absolute necessities when I go so I've already started the elimination process. The clothes I'll be taking fit into three drawers. I've designated where much of the household items are going and I've started the Craigslist posting.

Oh but those sentimental items. They sneak up on us don't they? We are just about to put that hat in the donate pile and it nearly screams out like the sorting hat in Harry Potter, "Wait not me! Your dad gave me to you last year for your birthday!". I've found it easier and easier to let go of material things even if they have a considerable amount of sentiment attached to them. I try to remember that the love and memories remain in my heart even if the item is gone. 

Until yesterday...

I tackled the photo albums and boxes. For the first few hours I was doing great. I threw out all the needless doubles I've been carting around for years and even trashed pictures I never wanted to look at in the first place! Why did I have two copies of a fuzzy picture with a finger taking up half the shot? My new plan is to own only the very best pictures and keep them all in one box, no heavy albums to lug around.  I was totally in a groove tossing and stacking and organizing. 

Until I opened the last box...

There it was. A Bagful of Europe. What is a Bagful of Europe? Oh it's a magical bag full of wrinkled maps, ticket stubs, journal entries, hotel soaps and other various bits and pieces picked up from a month spent traveling with my sister. I looked at that bag and knew I'd met my match. It almost laughed at me in all my minimalist cockiness. The gloves I'd worn during those cold days in Paris weren't worried for a second that they'd join the other winter items in the donation pile. I gently pulled out a few scraps of paper thinking surely I could eliminate something! I was wrong. 

And so I leave it at that. I met my match in a Bagful of Europe. It doesn't matter that the memories are all safe in my heart and I have pictures to prove my sister and I created four weeks of unforgettable adventure. I'll be giving away handmade gifts and saying goodbye to books I call friends, but the Bagful of Europe is exempt. 

Sometimes right when we think we've mastered a new life skill, the universe puts us to the test. Even the universe would have to give me a B+ on this one. 

Spring Cleaning Fever

Spring has sprung in my new neck of the woods and I've suddenly caught that spring cleaning fever.  However, I have nothing of my own to clean unless I go clean my stuff in storage and that just doesn't seem as fun(okay it sounds a little fun but I refuse to be the crazy cleaning lady doing a spring cleaning in the storage units). Organizing is like therapy for me. I know, I'm a little crazy. Lucky for me, my lovely hostess says I can organize her home to my hearts content! Let the therapy begin...


This morning I did a quick mini refrigerator make-over. It only took me about 25 minutes. You don't have to spend an hour deep cleaning the monster, just take it all out and quickly dump the things that are bad, combine a few things that are taking up space (I combined two half full ketchup bottles and three bottles of partially used Ranch dressing). The shelves got a quick soapy water wipe down before I put everything back in.  I tried to group "like" things together as much as I could.  

BEFORE

AFTER

(okay admittedly the pictures don't show the huge difference but TRUST ME it's there)

Now I feel like I've exercised the demons and can go about my day. I might need to go for a bike ride soon just to breathe in all that springy air.  I hope you find time to take a nice deep breath of fresh air today too.


Air is free and free is cheap.

Toss It !!

The Toss It Game

We all have Stuff.  Look around you right now.  If you're at home, almost everything your eyes rest on belongs to you.  Does it bring you joy?  Do you see the coffee mug on your desk and remember an afternoon spent with a friend in the best coffee shop you've ever been inside? Do you love the framed print of your nephew's hand that he made you in pre-school? What about the collection of books tumbling out of a basket in the living room? Are they all full of words you would devour over and over again? These are the types of questions you should ask yourself as we play a little game my friend Ashley so aptly calls the "Toss It" game.  It can be played anytime you feel the need to rid yourself of unwanted things that have found their way into your life.  I'm currently playing this game daily as I pack up for my big move, but I've been known to play it randomly throughout the year as I see that my clothes need weeding or my knick knacks are slowly building an army that would surely overthrow me as queen of the house.


First things first.  Put on awesome music that puts you in a frame of mind that is energetic and happy.  If you feel like making yourself a delightful beverage, do so before you get started.  Keep in mind that during this game things get thrown around and drinks that could spill and stain should be kept out of the way.


Next, pick the category of "stuff" you would like to go through. Now you must look at every item in this category and ask yourself some hard questions.  Some good ones to ask..


Do I use/wear/look at this item often?
Will I use/wear/look at it within the next few months?
Is it in good condition?
Do I love it?
Could someone else get more joy and use out of it?
Could I sell it?

That shirt you've been holding onto because it was such a great deal but frankly makes you look ridiculous? TOSS IT!  The book that was a gift from a co-worker that is full of pictures of cats in silly costumes? TOSS IT! The shoes that pinch your toes if you have to actually walk in them? TOSS IT! The sixteen different candle holders that have made their way to the top of your television but are not your style at all?  TOSS IT!  Are you getting the hang of it? You have to be pretty brutal and cutthroat about it.  Sometimes it helps to have a friend near to tell you that the shirt does, in fact, look ridiculous, that the book is horrible and the shoes are not worth the pain.  This friend may want to take some of these things off your hands too!


Oh ya, the biggest rule of the "Toss It" game is that you yell "TOSS IT" every time something gets tossed into the pile.


Once you've purged yourself of all the unwanted, unneeded, unloved, unworthy items and they are all looking at you so forlornly in a big pile you may wonder what to do with it all.  My suggestion is that you let your friends have first dibs, then re-sell anything you think will make you a few dollars.  Take clothing to a store like Buffalo Exchange or a consignment shop of some sort.  Everything else should be donated to your local Goodwill or Salvation Army store.  This week I've taken books to donate to my library, a load of knick knacks and such to the GoodWill and loaded up a few bags of things I know my good friend (self named hoarder)(you know who you are) wants.


Have fun playing and remember that the winner is always you! 


Playing is free and free is cheap.