decluttering, puttering, sputtering
Jan 24th, 2008 by lapazfarm
This is the first week that my de-cluttering progress has met with a bit of resistance. I think it is for 2 reasons. The first is that I am really hyper-focused on school this week. We are having lots of fun and getting tons done, and I am a bit of a one-track mind kind of girl.
The second issue is that I think I chose my area of the week unwisely. This week was supposed to be my “office area.” I don’t really have an office area, but I do have 2 desks in my bedroom that I use. One has my computer, so I use that for blogging writing and reading blogs research along with checking email correspondence and online shopping finances. Can you see the problem here? The temptations to take a break from de-cluttering and upload some photos address some home management issues are just too great. And I am so weak!
The other desk is supposed to be my planning area. It is a complete disaster( which explains a lot about my planning)! Not only does it have all of my school planning stuff, but it also has a bunch of crafting supplies, notebooking supplies, half-finished projects, office supplies, books I am using, books I have been meaning to use, books I should be using but probably won’t…I look at that area and I just get overwhelmed, not only by the sheer volume of stuff, but the guilt that half of it carries with it! I know I need to face it all but I cower at the thought of making the kinds of decisions I must make to de-clutter that area. Again, I am so weak!
So, lesson learned. I am a newbie at this de-cluttering game and I have no business jumping in over my head. I need to keep my goals in sight, choose my battles wisely. Don’t bite off more than I can chew. Any other handy aphorisms I can apply here? After all, I am in it for the long haul…
Oh yeah, I do know what you mean
Why not kill two birds with one stone and consoilate your desks??? Just a thought…
Oh my, I am right there with you. My goal is to lose 2000 lbs. of stuff this year, and I was cruising…until I hit my “office”, with its two desks- one with a computer and one covered with current lessons, past lessons, lesson planning materials, books in use, books that just arrived in the mail, bills, things to be files, things to give my husband to read…
Everytime I try to de-clutter it, ( or lesson prep…which really is back-logged here) all I manage it the most superficial clearing of the surface.
Please share if you come up with ANY sort of system for approaching the dreaded office. I am turning over the idea of canceling school and devoting an entire week to the office- but first I will try one entire weekend…when I can find one.
Carrie
Nooo! You can’t stop now! You are my inspiration to my de-cluttering. You have me so motivated that I have begun to tackle my homeschooing shelves and my own desk. Ok, I don’t have two desks like you do, but I am sure that I have enough folders, paperwork, and homeschooling misc. to fill up both of your desks. LOL! Anyway, if I can do it without getting side-tracked (crossing my fingers behind my back on that one… *wink*), I know that you can. You will do it Theresa, just keep that train on the track and you will get it done dear.
I can see why the office is a stumbling block. You are still actively schooling while you are in the midst of these moving preparations. If you are like me, you don’t want to pack up or get rid of anything you might need. Yet, you seem to have a pretty fair idea of your direction for the rest of the term, and in truth, you have about four months left. Start with the larger items and the dust collectors.
Then attack the paperwork. While filing, keep handy only those things that you might plan on using. Get some really nice color coded file folders, and attack the piles in a new filing system: ideas /materials this year per child; future ideas per subject. Whenever I clean my desk, I am amazed that over half of the things I thought I needed to hold onto aren’t all that great.
I’ve done this mid year before, and it is amazing the feeling of clarity and lightness I felt in moving ahead for the rest of the year. We are often our own worst enemies in pressuring ourselves to do more in any given year than is truly reasonable. Give yourself a break, and trim the excess!
Another trick: Pack away the things you need to keep but won’t be using: old tax records and such, into labeled, 2-gallon ziplog bags, and box them up.
well, you never said how fast you had to do it…so even picking up one piece of paper at a time is technically following your plan, right?
Thanks for your comment, btw. I know some people really stick to their guns about certain definitions of ‘schooling’, ‘unschooling’, ‘homeschooling’…but I really feel like if your kids are empowered and learning through joy, that’s unschooling to me. My son loves math workbooks (??? how is he my child?!) and we incorporate it into our day. Not unschooly, but the principle is the same.
I love the way your kids are learning! I love the lapbooks they make and all the science experiments!