Save time! Get this info sent directly to you by subscribing to my RSS feed for free. You know you want to!
Hello, tossers! Now, I know that means something completely different in the UK than it does here… And though I don’t know exactly what it means, I know it’s not complimentary. So if we have any Brits in the audience, I apologize in advance (and you can enlighten me with regard to UK slang in the comments section).
ANYWHO… today, Gail Blanke took us to the kitchen in our quest to toss 50 things. This stop proved a little harder than the others on the tour. I guess I typically do a pretty good job of keeping the cupboards organized, and the two moves in the past year have helped me purge the culinary supplies.
In the book, she focused heavily on “that” drawer. You know, the one with all the leftover bobby pins, used batteries, screwdrivers, and other odds and ends. I took a look in ours and found a few things that could go on to a new home, but it wasn’t momentous.
To be honest, this chapter in the book kind of annoyed me. She is very conversational in her writing, almost too much so. She takes us through the purging of her own junk drawer, and she was able to locate a pile of trash that was pretty amazing. I guess I was thinking, “If SHE can’t keep her kitchen junk-free, what hope do we mere mortals have for the future?” After all, she’s a professional! It’s sort of like finding out Jillian Michaels has a secret stash of Ho-Hos in her gym locker. Boo.
All the same, I’m progressing. Here’s the scoop:
7 slightly sketchy items from our refrigerator
1 old set of chopsticks
A half-dozen assorted pencils and pens that are past their lifespan
A couple of lousy cookbooks
2 bottomless plastic tub lids
Total from this week: 5
Time for this week: 15 minutes (including wiping down the refrigerator shelves)
Running total: 30 items
…and that was it. Kind of disappointing. But that’s okay.
Upward and onward!
P.S. Did you miss the last post in this series? Catch it here: Decluttering Update #2.
Let me tell you a little story.
In the past 13 months, we have moved three times and relocated cross-country (actually, four, if you count my husband’s four-month stay in temporary housing). The last time we moved was right before Christmas. As in, the week before.
Despite the blizzard conditions and the decking-of-the-halls that needed to be done, I was bound and determined to get our Christmas cards out. I had ordered them BEFORE Thanksgiving in order to have plenty of time to write our patented Ehmann holiday card letter, and hand-address them.
I hate to tell you this, but flash forward 8 months and guess what is still sitting on the shelf in my kitchen? OUR CHRISTMAS CARDS! I never got them done — partly because I lost our address book in the last move, partly because the creative well was completely dry when it came to coming up with a cute and clever letter. (I briefly toyed with writing a holiday haiku but couldn’t even come up with 17 creative syllables.)
After January 1, 2010 came and went, the urgency went, too. What was the big difference between sending out my cards on January or February? Or March or May? Or April or… August?? Late was late. Period. Now, I have to ask if it’s even worth sending them out at all!
I do feel a bit bad about this whole card thing. But let me tell you, if I’d had CardsDirect, I wouldn’t be in this pickle! Haven’t heard of CardsDirect? Well, let me tell you a bit about them. They were custom-made for people like me!!! (In other words, people who mail their Christmas cards in August). Not only do they have Christmas cards, they offer over 2000 designs in categories like Baby Announcements, Birthday Cards, Greeting Cards, Photo Cards, and many more… all personalized, printed and delivered for you! I could have written that Haiku and have it printed right in our Christmas card… how cool is that?
Here’s what’s even cooler… CardsDirect has generously offered one 30-minute Martha reader 25 free cards, a value of $50! All you have to do is leave me a comment telling me about the VERY WORST holiday letter you’ve received. Ours had to be the one where a distant relative outlined — in detail — his recent operations. Ick. I really didn’t want to know!
Contest closes 8/30, and the winner will be announced 8/31. Good luck!
P.S. I know it’s a bit early (or a bit late, as in my case!), and you may not even believe me, but I teach a fun and feisty course at Big Picture Scrapbooking on writing a creative holiday letter. You can check it out here!
