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Tuesday, February 16, 2010

I'm Doing This

Our home office has been following me with its mocking eyes.  I hear its evil laugh when I close the doors so I don't have to look inside.  I stay away. 

But not today.

Today I have ventured inside to battle the monster mess.  "It" cannot hurt me afterall.  With trashbags in hand, I brave the ordeal.  It is time to begin.

Who has ideas or helpful hints in organizing a home office full of media, photos, magazines, books, letters, craft projects, artwork, school papers, important files?  This is going to take some perseverence...

Day 1-My first day tackling the messy office. 

I had to get really mad and fed up with the clutter taking over, preventing us from really using the room.  My first goal was to throw things away, sort papers, and make big changes that I could see right away.  This was of course just to make me feel like I was accomplishing something amidst such a huge project.

I emptied out the filling drawers in our desk and put our existing hanging folders in there, so that I could get rid of an old, metal filing cabinet that we've had for years.  After putting that in the basement to re-purpose or sell, I also emptied a moving box of random things that has probably been sitting in the office since we moved here.  Ridiculous, I know.  Taking those two large objects out cleared up some floor and wall space.

My current piles are Media, Letters, Crafts/Projects, School, Photos, and Files.

Tonight, when I get home from class, I'm going to continue to sort through the mounds of books and paperwork, and empty out and move our little bookcase to another wall.  Jason has to go through old files and help me set up files for the many categories of our life. 

My ultimate goal is to create a little sitting area/reading nook in the corner by the window and build some shelves to place things up high.  My friend will be coming over once the major project of de-cluttering is over.  She's going to help me set up systems that will help me keep organized so this NEVER happens again. 
This is also going to change how we approach planning schedules, going through mail, and doing our finances.  I intend for this to be my writing space in the future, so it has to be welcoming and distraction-free.  I can already feel the relief that comes with getting rid of STUFF and simplifying my life.

Wouldn't it be amazing if every space in your home felt like a vacation?  A place to get away?

De-cluttering our home is also de-cluttering my mind.  That IS a vacation.

2 comments:

Dani Byham said...

Thanks, Kyle. I love Real Simple. So tell me, are you a messy or organized person?

Anonymous said...

Hi Dani, My husband and I have been battling this same idea for the last year. After our house fire and actually physically touching everything that we owned we decided it was all too much. We have been visiting goodwill almost weekly the last six months.