After I confessed to spending several hours binge-watching home organizing shows* on Netflix, a friend asked if I was getting organized for 2021. Nope, I enjoy watching other people get organized. (Is “binge-watching” a 2020 word?)
Mike and I are not hoarders, occasionally discarding useful items unintentionally. It is understood in our shared household that common areas are to be kept clear. Other than the multi-functional study filled with current projects, rooms are uncluttered.
Watching the Netflix shows makes me appreciate my modest wardrobe and minimalist needs. I mean, how many pairs of shoes does a person need? How many jackets for a two-year-old? The real appeal of the shows is getting control of a mess in one hour or less.
A little OCD
The key to organization is to do it continually, not dropping items randomly throughout the house. At the end of the day, ongoing projects notwithstanding, the house should be tidied. A touch of OCD helps.
Each month, I tackle one room, deep cleaning and going through all storage. Not only am I cleaning out, but I am taking inventory. Infrequently I will hold an item to contemplate if it brings me joy, per Konmari. More often, I know before I even pick it up what I will do with it.
A new year, a new me? No. I am beyond the age of making and not keep resolutions. But there is something about cleaning and organizing that reaches beyond the physical into the emotional, psychological, or spiritual. Removing dead wood from the closet creates physical space and relieves the mind. Witness the change in people after working with Marie.
Eating to clean
Many years ago I became aware that I sometimes eat just to “clean up”. I consume the two remaining cookies to get the container off the counter. Ingesting the tasteless refrigerated leftovers for my lunch will make room for tonight’s leftovers. Somehow this makes me feel like I have completed a task. I am mindful: if there are two cookies in two containers, I choose the tastier, leaving the others for later.
I am more prone to this habit during times of instability. Just imagine all the cookies and leftovers I consumed in 2020! And the bottles of wine containing less than one glass!
2021
A new year, a new me? NOT! I’m still getting used to the old me. I am more than aware of my unhealthy tendencies as well as the progress I have made toward wholeness, and would prefer not to start over.
*Tidying Up with Marie Kondo and Get Organized with The Home Edit
2021 not a new you, an improved you!