2023 Declutter & Organize Your Life

[debthaven]

Same here TheOtherMe . 

Today we got some inexpensive bedding for DD's convertible couch (for guests), and a metal shelving unit for her basement storage unit. We're planning a visit soon. I want to make DD's life easier, but without spending much. I was planning to get a second-hand coffee table, but we got the bedding instead. We pick up the two night tables tomorrow.  

I'm sending her links to inexpensive / inoffensive second-hand coffee tables near her that she can afford. We can help her pick it up when we go. She still needs a rug and curtains, but one thing at a time. At least she has shutters. 

We spent 105 euros. It was 45 for the bedding (duvet and 2 pillows), 20 for the shelving unit, and 40 for the two night tables. The bedding isn't great quality but it's fine for occasional guests. DD's place is cheaper than a hotel, and we don't have to eat every meal out.   

[dannylion]

Feb 21, 2023 19:54:27 GMT -5 saveinla said:

Anyone hear from dannylion ?

Thanks for thinking of me!  I'm really touched.  I didn't anticipate being missed.  I'm fine.  My former employer enticed me to come out of retirement to help out for a bit.  It's been rewarding and even fun, but it was more difficult than I anticipated to navigate the world of work again now that I am learning how to live with chronic pain, so I let everything else slip.  My decluttering project has suffered the most, and I'm just really tired, so I don't think I will sign on again after this contract runs out.  

[debthaven]

So happy to hear from you dannylion ! I'm so relieved that you are (relatively) well! When does this contract end? Do you/could you work PT and/or remotely some of the time? 

[dannylion]

Apr 30, 2023 15:55:33 GMT -5 debthaven said:

So happy to hear from you dannylion ! I'm so relieved that you are (relatively) well! When does this contract end? Do you/could you work PT and/or remotely some of the time? 

Thanks, debthaven!  The contract ends at the end of June.  I might consider part-time, though I'd still have the commute, which is the worst part of the experience.  Traffic was bad when I retired.  In the ensuing 12 years, it has become a horrific nightmare.  Remote work is not an option.  It's a secure facility, which cannot be duplicated in a home environment.  I think I will just fade into the sunset in June and get back to my downsizing/Swedish death cleaning project as I am hoping to move to a continuing-care retirement community in a few years.  A new Ericson community is being built nearby, and that's the one I've pretty much decided will be it.  I have a lot do to before that can happen, though.  

[debthaven]

Bon courage dannylion! June is just around the corner!

[NastyWoman]

Three dozen misc. glasses and one huge casserole dish have left the house. I love our buy nothing group on FB - things I no longer want go somewhere they will be used and I don't even have to go to GW to get rid of them

[debthaven]

DH and I picked up the night tables for DD. We probably paid a bit much for them but they're really nice, and in great condition.  

Back to school tomorrow.

[moneysquirrel]

Quick check in. Cruise is going great. Lots of time spent with friends and seeing areas I have only studied about. Spent today in Tunis and now can say that I have been to Africa. Tomorrow is a sea day and my feet will be very happy 😊

[CCL]

May 2, 2023 16:00:47 GMT -5 moneysquirrel said:

Quick check in. Cruise is going great. Lots of time spent with friends and seeing areas I have only studied about. Spent today in Tunis and now can say that I have been to Africa. Tomorrow is a sea day and my feet will be very happy 😊

How long is your cruise and where are you going?

[debthaven]

Good to hear from you moneysquirrel ! Enjoy!

[NastyWoman]

I just took a nap and, upon waking decided to do a little more decluttering. And just like that five 3" magazine holders became 1.5 magazine holders - so roughly another 10 inches of magazines/books gone. 
I need to take naps more often 

[seriousthistime]

I'm having a hard time getting motivated to declutter the shite pile. 

[Opti]

Apr 30, 2023 15:38:06 GMT -5 dannylion said:

Feb 21, 2023 19:54:27 GMT -5 saveinla said:

Anyone hear from dannylion ?

Thanks for thinking of me!  I'm really touched.  I didn't anticipate being missed.  I'm fine.  My former employer enticed me to come out of retirement to help out for a bit.  It's been rewarding and even fun, but it was more difficult than I anticipated to navigate the world of work again now that I am learning how to live with chronic pain, so I let everything else slip.  My decluttering project has suffered the most, and I'm just really tired, so I don't think I will sign on again after this contract runs out.  

Do you still have your purple car?

[laterbloomer]

1. Redo GW's room for GW2. New flooring and painted. In progress, this has become a lot of smaller projects including redoing the ceiling and fixing gaps in the closet drywall.
2. Fix hairline crack in foundation.

3. Finish laundry room (get drywall finished, paint walls and put in flooring) Still looking for someone to do this
4. Paint downstairs bathroom.

5. Get second set of stairs off back deck which will make back corner of yard usable. I have all the tools to do this, now I just need the risers, wood and good weather
6. VPL flooring upstairs. This has been bumped again

[dannylion]

May 3, 2023 11:29:18 GMT -5 Opti said:

Apr 30, 2023 15:38:06 GMT -5 dannylion said:

Thanks for thinking of me!  I'm really touched.  I didn't anticipate being missed.  I'm fine.  My former employer enticed me to come out of retirement to help out for a bit.  It's been rewarding and even fun, but it was more difficult than I anticipated to navigate the world of work again now that I am learning how to live with chronic pain, so I let everything else slip.  My decluttering project has suffered the most, and I'm just really tired, so I don't think I will sign on again after this contract runs out.  

Do you still have your purple car?

Oh, my gosh!  I'd forgotten all about that car.  In the end, I talked myself out of buying it.  I think it lacked some features I wanted or I dawdled and lost interest in it or something.  I don't really remember.  I was driving less and less, so there didn't seem to be any urgency.  Then there was no inventory during the pandemic (I hate ordering and waiting for a car -- I just want to make up my mind and go get a car and get it over with).   Now that the local Cadillac dealer is starting to have more inventory and all those features I wanted seem to be standard now, I've started the car search again.  Of course, once I finally make up my mind and choose something, it will turn out to be a year with boring colors, but the following year purple will be available again. Story of my life.  

[NastyWoman]

Another day, another short lived burst of decluttering. Today I skipped the books, went into my closet and filled two medium sized kitchen bags with clothes to go to goodwill. 
They will leave the house with other miscellaneous items tomorrow. I need to get my car back into my carport first. It is now parked a few blocks away due to a painting project here in the complex I live.

[snapdragon]

Hi everyone!

I am back from HI. But I caught a sinus infection/cold on the return trip. So I am working on getting better.

Place is still pulled apart and a wreck and I have not gotten any groceries which I need to do. Hoping tomorrow is a better day.

[debthaven]

Hi friends. We are in the Alps at DD's place. I worked Tues and Wed so we left Wed late afternoon, slept on the road, and arrived at DD's at noon on Thurs. (It's a 6h drive.)

Our car was completely loaded with the purchases, items from DD's room, and the dishes and kitchenware she chose from her late grandparents. We haven't stopped running around. Yesterday we drove here, unpacked the car, and bought groceries and picture frames. Today we bought DD an inexpensive wardrobe because her clothes have been in totes/storage boxes for 18 months. DH built the wardrobe, then we went out to buy hangers. 

DH also built the set of Ikea shelves we bought for DD's basement storage space, and framed and put up her artwork. Her apartment still needs light fittings/curtains/a rug/mirror/more furniture but it's SO much more homey than it was! Rome wasn't built in a day.  DD is THRILLED with the changes, especially having all her clothes in one place!

We did spend a few hours hanging out by the lake today in the sun. 

[finnime]

What a great gift for your DD, debthaven! It sounds wonderful, perfect to suir her needs and wants.

[startsmart]

Hi friends!

Taking a break from chores to check in, my week has been a jumbled mess because I worked an event last weekend. I moderated on zoom for 27 hours in 5 days 😭 it was exhausting!

I am about to move my pool back in place now that it’s cleaned and then fill it up. I know it’s only the first week of May but it’s supposed to be 93° this weekend.

I did go out and pick strawberries at a local farm and they are fantastic! I’m freezing 2 lbs for smoothies and such and the rest I’ll eat this week. I’m also airing out the house and getting my motivations up to a) finish painting the kitchen ceiling and 2) mop the floors.

I’ll have to do the mopping before bed because so much is stacked up on my bed right now.

If I can finish the paint in the kitchen I’ll clear off the kitchen table and then sew my black and white quilt. I have a long list of to dos so I am back to it… in a minute… maybe after a nap?

[jerseygirl]

I’ve sold $250 of vinyl records so far. Listing about 4/week. Satisfying to get these out of the closet corner and also make some $
Probably will split the $ between our 2 DSs because these belonged to them before they left them behind

[Sharon]

I'm really far behind in life right now, it seems like everything is a mess, indoors and outdoors.  This morning was a late start because I actually got up in the middle of the night to watch the coronation, then went back to bed for a few hours afterwards.  Today I got the sheets changed, 3 loads of laundry done and put away.  I had 3 burnt out light bulbs in 1 fixture and confirmed that two of the outlets were bad, but at least got the one changed and the globes washed.  Some time ago I had bought some new spices to replace ones that were very, very old, but hadn't ever thrown out the old ones and put the ones bottles in their place.  That got done today.  Again some time ago I had bought new outlet covers for the family room and was going to replace the covers when I painted.  I have no idea when I will ever get a chance to paint that room so I switched out the outlet covers and they are no longer hanging out on my kitchen counter.  The family room also got a serious vacuuming and mopping this evening.  My neighbor bought me a huge bag of asparagus earlier this week.  I gave at least half to DD and today I finally got my share cleaned.  If it's cleaned I will eat it and I don't want to let fresh asparagus go to waste.

[seriousthistime]

I moved into this house last fall, spent 3 months away, and got back in late March. 

Yesterday I managed to pull out the sewing machine and shorten a sheer curtain on the full length sidelight next to the front door.  It has tension rods at the top and bottom and the curtain is gathered taut between them.  A previous owner used a sheer that was too long by a few inches, so the bottom tension rod allowed the hem to spill out over the tension rod and onto the floor.  My dog liked to get in there to see if there was anything interesting going on in the street. 

But now it's hemmed properly, washed, and reinstalled.  It looks great, and it crosses off something on a very deep list of things to do. 

Best part?  That curtain will never need to be hemmed again. 

Unlike laundry, grocery shopping, and other chores that need to be done over and over, ad nauseum. 

The shite pile/filing project is almost done. 

[debthaven]

PLEASE DO NOT QUOTE
We are back from visiting DD. It was wonderful to see her, but she's not doing well. You people know she's fragile. She was put on sick leave on Saturday because she is skeletal. We wanted to bring her home with us but she refused. She's planning to visit soon. She's 30YO so we couldn't exactly force her into the car.   So we're not doing great either.

Tomorrow is off here. Then it's my last busy work week till mid-June.  

[plugginaway22]

They are still our babies and the worry we feel can be consuming! I hope she visits with you soon and will be willing to get whatever care is necessary. Take care I am sure your visit was a lift for her.

[finnime]

I understand completely the challenges of an adult daughter with issues. No matter what their strengths, they can undermine their own future too easily. Thinking of you.

[debthaven]

Thank you so much plugginaway22 and finnime . Finnime I know you worry a great deal about your DD too. 

[TheOtherMe]

debthaven  I hope your daughter will let you help her help herself.  I'm sorry she is having a difficult time.

I have another blood clot in my other leg so will be going to the doctor in the morning

[debthaven]

Oh no TheOtherMe ! I am so sorry to hear that.

[Sharon]

debthaven I'm sorry to hear your DD is having some challenges at the moment.

Today I got all the floors done except the two extra bedrooms.  It feels so good to have that done, even if it won't last long.  DD and family came over for a little while this afternoon but we were mostly outside so my floors didn't get messed up.  DSIL did clear the filter on the hoses for the washing machine.  I'm on well water and don't have a water softener.  This little filter gets clogged with manganese and needs to be cleaned out a couple times year.

While he was here he also put a cross beam back up on the fence that the cows knocked down and they hooked up the float in the cows water tank so they should be able to have fresh water all the time without my having to fill their trough a couple times a day.  Since DSIL had his fancy screw driver here I had him take down two cheap plastic flower pots that the previous owner had screwed to the side of the house.

I have a pork roast in the oven for dinner tonight and will be adding some fresh asparagus.