Blog

Purging and Pausing

Maggie

Day 102

I know I said I would write something positive about Medicare today, but I have had a change of heart. Maybe tomorrow.

The other day I mentioned I watched the Netflix show Tidying Up on the suggestion of our daughter. Today I seriously started to purge and reorganize some things so I suppose I was somewhat inspired by watching her show and a few of her YouTube videos.

img_8409I’m not much of a follower though, I have to be honest. There are a few things she suggests that appeal to my organized side and a few things I know will not work for me. With that being said, I did reorganize two of my bathrooms and the linen closet in the hallway. I have a stack of towels, a nice cranberry throw, and a few other odds and ends  I plan to donate. They are all in good condition and I know someone else can use them rather than keeping them in the back of my linen closet.

I Beg You

I ran across a few articles today about this ‘tidying storm’ that Marie has started. I was shocked to see a concern being raised because some people are just throwing everything away–off to the landfill! I cringed when I read that.

First of all, if you have items that are in good shape and usable, please donate them. Even some of the less than appealing clothing items can be sold for rags which raises money for the organization. The alternative is to throw it away or hide it in a donation so the receiving organization must pay to discard it. Not nice.

I once worked for a non-profit who depended a lot on community donations. Unfortunately, people would sometimes drive by after hours and unload ‘junk’ on our doorstep. They were totally unusable items which meant we had to sort through them and then bear the brunt of paying for them to be taken to the landfill.

She Could Go a Step Further

I wish in this show she would go a step further and encourage people to stop buying things they do not need. Many of us, myself included, are guilty of that. How many coffee cups do we need? Or t-shirts? Or…?

I have my weaknesses when it comes to buying unnecessary things. Two of my major weaknesses are art and jewelry supplies and writing materials and journals. Yikes. I have SO many journals. I am thinking about gifting them to some of my friends that I know write. Of course, I have several precious ones that were gifts from friends and family which I will never part with–they spark JOY!

Pausing

Purging can take a long time. The temptation to go out and buy new things is tempting because you may have empty space to fill. Try not to do that. Pause. Enjoy the space and see what you need. I know we will go buy a few items of clothing to replace some of what we discard but that should have been done long ago–when the holes first appeared! 😉

I will never need another dish as long as I live. My kitchen is fully stocked. I love pretty things, but I want to resist the urge to buy things I do not need.

The Minimal Mindset

One of the benefits of watching this show is finding myself evaluating a lot of items tucked away in the recesses and corners of my home. Even my husband did a little purging in the garage today.

Tomorrow I may tackle a few things in the kitchen. I know I have items in my cabinets that have not been touched since we moved in two years ago. All quite lovely items, but things that no longer serve me in this life we lead. If someone else can enjoy it, why not?

Think before you buy and purge responsibly!

 

 

 

Advertisement

6 thoughts on “Purging and Pausing”

  1. Love this post, Maggie– I’m totally with you. I have more journals and art supplies than I need, and now with a second house, that we never imagined that we’d have, I’m totally trying not to add anything more than necessary. We really have already most everything we need; I just want to swap odd plastic containers for glass ones with lids. Surely that’s a good thing, I tell myself…..

    Liked by 1 person

  2. I agree that in our culture we over buy and overspend all the time. It stresses me out when every cabinet is filled with things that I am not sure I ever use.
    It is funny but it never occurred to me to dump stuff in the trash. (unless of course it is trash) Friends have let me know where to drop off things like towels, sheets, and blankets that are too far gone for thrift stores. I never even knew that animal shelters needed them or used them.
    I first try to ask friends and family if they know someone who can use items I am discarding. That makes me the happiest. I check with preschools and churches to see if they need books and/or toys. Then useful items go to thrift stores. There was a time when every week we would take a trunk load of items.
    I still have the kitchen and bathrooms to do. I have been purging any plastic without lids. I am now working on replacing the plastic with Pyrex with lids. I don’t know why I didn’t do this long ago.
    Keep on keeping things you love and saying goodbye to those you don’t.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I am taking my time with this process. I want to do it in earnest and really say goodbye to things I have carried along with me for years! I am taking my first load to the local Hospice thrift store today. And I am recycling what I hope will be the last plastic grocery bags to come into my home. 😍

      Like

  3. You have such a giving… sentimented nature Maggie… maybe donate those journaling books to a schools end of year prize day…
    Or donate them to a retirement home with a short verse written in each to inspire a curiosity… formulateing a treasured write.
    Xx

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I like those ideas, Tanya. When I taught, I often bought inexpensive journals for our students. They were never pretty, just functional. Pretty might be nice. 💕

      Like

Comments are closed.