Fling it out Fridays

[nellie]

Thought I’d try to make de-cluttering sound more fun, so decided to dedicate Fridays to wading through the mountains of stuff I’ve been “hoarding’ in my basement and other places in my house. So anyone else want to join in the challenge?

I read a book a while ago called “Throw out 50 things” – the title was memorable but can’t remember much about the book . Anyway figured I’d use the “Fling 50 things on Friday” as a minimum goal.

So if anyone else is game – maybe we could list how many things we got rid of on Friday?

And perhaps keep going with SIx(ty?) on Saturday, Seven on Sunday, More on Monday, Ten on Tuesday, Whatever on Wednesday, Thirty on Thursday and the another 50 on Friday? Ok better stop before it get too silly:-) but with any luck my basement will look lots better by next week.

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[quizzical]

This strikes terror in my pack-rat heart, but that’s precisely why I should rise to the challenge! Well, that and the fact that there are exactly ten things on my porch right this second waiting for a charity to pick up (GO, ME!). So – I accept! 40 to go…..

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[quizzical]

OK, realizing maybe I read that wrong, because I was going for fifty BY Friday, rather than ON Friday, but that’s probably a better starting place for me.

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[nellie]

Hey quizzzical go for it – way to go on starting!

I did manage to get stuff out – more than 50 – took about 6 big bags to the local rummage place on the week-end. However, sadly that’s not even a dent, but hey at least I’m plugging along. Have loads more boxes on the basement stairs to bring away tomorrow. In the meantime decided to spend today tidying my kitchen and getting rid of the stuff that’s just been sitting on the counters. Funny how things get to be part of the wall paper after a while And VERY satisfying to have uncluttered counters, suddenly it looks like a whole new room Almost makes me feel like cooking!

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[quizzical]

6 bags! That’s awesome!

A charity called me this morning, and guess what day they are doing a pickup in my neighborhood? That’s right – Friday! It’s a sign! So even though I just had a pickup today, I told them, “Sure, I’ll have something for you!” So now I really have to follow through!

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[nellie]

Nothing like a deadline to move things along! Glad you found an added incentive.

I’m still plugging along,but the basement actually looks worse though because I was tearing through to get rid of things and not sorting all that much.

On the plus side my kitchen is quite presentable for a change! But I can’t believe it took all day. It wasn’t even that bad, it was just a couple weeks of odds and ends getting left out, not as if I was using it as a dumping ground or anything. Just the usual magazines and mail and other stuff no one feels like putting where it belongs. While on the one hand I feel like I’ve accomplished something, on the other hand I feel I wasted 6 hours. Imagine – 6HOURS TO PUT STUFF AWAY! I guess all the more reason to put it where it belongs in the first place!

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[quizzical]

I hear ya on that 6 hours thing – I spent something like 6 hours on a memorabilia-sorting project yesterday. Which, in the grand scheme of things, isn’t nearly as essential as getting your kitchen into shape! Kitchens can be sneaky because, as you point out, a lot of non-kitchen stuff finds its way in there, and so a kitchen clean-up usually has me visiting several other rooms in the house!

I’m proud to say that I actually finished the memorabilia project, aided in no small part by re-defining what “finished” meant. When I started I had boxes in several different rooms, all labeled “scrapbook stuff.” I ditched the whole scrapbook notion. Now “finished” means I have 4 clearly labeled boxes, sorted into general chronological order (1 box high school, 1 box college, etc), all with lids I can easily open and close, all on the basement shelves, all on the same shelf! Finished!

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[Anonymous]

hi – so i’m trying so hard to deal with all the clutter. so rule #1 when i start a task…30 minutes before i can quit or stop and touch things once. so every tasks starts with a small rbbermaid container. a paper recycle bag and a goodwill bag or box. i have found bills and mail from 5 years ago!!

Finished for me is committing to 30 min.- the job will get done in several sessions. its like jumping in the pool. taking a deep breath and committing. now to get the bags on the front porch to Goodwill!

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[nellie]

Wow forgot all about this thread! Glad you dug it out of the archives sosatex

I think choosing to do things in small increments as you describe is a great plan. It will help you from getting overwhelmed which is generally why we never start these projects in the first place. OR at least that was my biggest issue and why I spent 20 years trying to organize my basement

The other thing I found helpful was to make a general time plan of the project and then schedule those small increments into my agenda. It forced me to define my goal and prioritize against other demands on my time.

My basement project also had a self imposed deadline because I had house guests come to stay with me this summer. On the one hand, this added stress but on the other hand the huge surge of adrenaline really helped to keep me focused when I was ready to run away from home because it looked endless

While the basement is now presentable it still isn’t exactly going to win any awards in the decorating department so I have to keep flinging things. I have several holiday parties I am hosting as well as being the designated family Christmas hostess so I had better get cracking!

I can hear those sleigh bells coming closer

I guess I can say it here: I will fling at least 10 items by the end of the week-end!

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[Anonymous]

Interesting thread. I’ve been living under a huge ‘weight’ of having just too much stuff. None one bit of it could be considered junk but I have just too much of it. I’m living in a large house and every room is furnished nicely plus all the extras. The original owners had the builders put an apartment in a portion of the basement for their mother. It has a beautiful view from all its windows and doors (house is built on the side of a hill so the basement is a ‘walkout’).

My problem? There are 2 people living here now and a son who occasionally pops by for a night or two. We need to move somewhere smaller ’cause I’m tired of cleaning and dusting rooms that I never even use. To move to a nice small little place, I’ve got a whole lot of stuff to unload. We have a charity shop in the area that I could take everything to but I’m boggled at the number of trips that would take.

Throwing it out sounds better but it isn’t junk. I don’t want to have one of those auctions for contents done since I’m not dead (yet). That is the only time they are done in my area.

I may have to resort to doing a weekly haul of a load or two to the thrift shop. Someone should get use out of it. It is just too much stuff for me to deal with. I think it makes it hard for me to think because I keep seeing a layer of dust forming on top of tables throughout the house as I walk around.

I’ll get my kids to come and claim anything that is theirs before starting my purge.

I think we need a more austere environment to function the best. I work best that way at school so I don’t know why I let my house collect all these things. *sigh*

What a job. It will be better when it’s all done. A bit at a time, right? 😆

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[Anonymous]

Well, it’s interesting you picked Fridays, as that’s the day that a friend and I end up going to our costume hall and tidying up the mess there (we’re involved in a scout production, and help in the wardrobe department). We really need to get rid of stuff while we tidy, as we just don’t have room, and there are costumes there that are well past their use by date 🙄 Ick! So we will be doing plenty of flinging out on Fridays!!

But I also need to declutter our house too, so I will endeavour to have something ready to fling out every Friday. I have a bag here already, that is earmarked for the local thrift store. I just need to take it there – easier said than done

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[Tiddler]

I did flylady for a while. Like everything else, it didn’t last. But I do still sometimes do a ‘fling boogie’ which I guess is a similar thing. I take 2 carrier bags and dump rubbish in one and stuff to go to charity in another.

Then the beauty of it is – tie them up, bin or drop them at the shop and DO NOT LOOK INSIDE THEM.

Don’t know about you, but if I start having a quick look through at what I was going to get rid of, I end up taking half of it back out again…

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