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It's Spring again

There is definitley something about this time of year that motivates me. Here I go again. Still Trying. This time though it is timely as we have had lots of people living here. Three of the over 20 brigade of offspring and one of their partners moved back in for a short while. One came back last August and 3 more in October who were patiently sharing the loft while they got jobs and a new place to live. That happened a couple of weeks ago and watching all of their sorting out has motivated me to get back to my sorting out. Of course the extra space is helpful too. :) I have only managed little bits because of time and busy lives and work and all the regular family scheduled things. But more stuff sorted out for the charity shop and the tip/recycling centre and an actual trip out to get rid of actual sorted out stuff is making me feel productive! I have also gone through the stuff in the window sill in the kitchen which is supposed to be for arts and craft but is so convoluted t

Spring Clean - otherwise known as Still Trying

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So it was last year this time I started trying to have a proper clear out and declutter. I am still trying. The Easter holidays mean I have had time to chill and to get started. I am prompted by moths, and what looks like woodworm, and just plain being fed up. The main problem is that I am not in very good shape physically. I am stiff and tire easy, but am also dealing with all that elsewhere, anaemia, arthritis, whatever. Fun. Martine has been to help. I have been in the eaves to get rid of stuff in storage, mostly fabric and yarn, and hopefully to help deal with the moth problem. Also got rid of old tents which are now unusable.  No sign of woodworm in there! After being in the eaves, the loft looks like this. I have been going through some of the boxes that I left at the end of the last clear out. Ruby and Casey are checking out their stuff, if they want it. I have taken about 5 bin bags worth of stuff to the tip. Much of it old cassette tapes. Eeeek!!! I have f

Drawers

I have a strange relationship with drawers. I love them. I covet them. My knackered old kitchen has no drawers. Although the sideboard we were given does have three, so the cutlery has someplace to go. :) But they are often dead spaces as well. Stuff gets put in them, and then stays there. Clothes, puzzles, games, all sorts of stuff. I have not done much sorting lately. Life is too busy. I have managed a couple of drawers. It started with another job, as it usually does. I was sorting the laundry and needed someplace to put the towels. The chest of drawers I had sorted for the towels and bedding when I sorted the loft was full. But it was full of old towels, torn towels, ones that had shown up in our house by magic and not the ones we actually use. So I sorted it. Binned some and took others downstairs to put in the kitchen drawer which has cleanup cloths and tea towels in.  But I had to sort that drawer as well. The placemats and candles that have been in there unused for over

Not much progress but at least no reversion

I feel like not much has happened since last I posted. Not much in the way of clearing out has happened. But there are things to be pleased about. I look around and things that have been cleared are staying fairly clear. The sideboard is still clear. The laundry is getting put away if not straight away, then fairly soon after drying. :) The living room and study are still relatively nicer rooms to be in then they used to be and they are staying relatively nice and not too full of crap. The crap is usually the Wee One's toys and socks and shoes and Lego and art and you get the idea. But at least when it is time to tidy it up, there is a place for it to go. So it is like we have hit a bit of a plateau for the time being, but it is not a terrible plateau. We need time to make plans, sort storage, and still go through old paperwork that is in boxes waiting to be gone through. We also  need time to train the young one in organising and tidying. It appears to have taken me 50 years t

Change of plans

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Max is back home. So all of this is coming back into the house.  Max's room was junk room number three. We had to do a quick clear up which means I have a boot full of stuff for the tip and lots of boxes of books and more stuff has gone into the formerly cleared loft room. Stuff has had to be dispersed to make room for her stuff. She's had a bit of a shock but she's doing well. We'll just have to take care of each other for a while and see what happens with the house. It's like last year this time when I planned to do ONE room in the house. I arranged for the decorators to come, and then had to postpone them when Ruby moved back in for a while. That room looks nicer now. We still haven't got the curtains sorted though.  But ah well. These were in the garden. 

More is needed

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I am also beginning to realise that in all the photos showing things that I am really happy about, clear floor, organised shelves, etc, there is still peeling paint and woodchip and crumbling plaster and stained  carpets and walls. As well as wanting space and a little bit of order, I now want decorators. I will never be satisfied. And yes. We still listen to cassette tapes. 

What next?

I am feeling lost. I am back to feeling overwhelmed. But I keep trying. I sorted through the lost and found at work and got another bag of stuff to take to the charity shop. I guess I just want to keep sorting and that seemed doable. I don't know what else to do. I did manage to take an old kid's bike to the charity shop at the same time. And I got some photos of things to sell online. Many of the boxes that I have to sort through have been taken upstairs as the state of the living room is depressing me. There is another box that is waiting for the charity shop in the corner. I keep adding bits to it. Mostly of my stuff which seems unfair and makes me sad. All I can do are small things. Sorting a book shelf at a time. I feel like I am just rearranging. And I get cross when see others have shoved things in a space I have cleared. If something doesn't have a space, it should stay in the way until a space is made or we get rid of it. It shouldn't go where it doesn&