2020 Decluttering Support and Motivation

[eventmom]

- 3 more tops to consignment
- pretty decent decluttering at the office. They finally (2 years) finished remodeling for our department. But much less space in our offices. I managed to purge 2 boxes, and clear out two filing cabinet drawers, fill the paper recycling can, more in the sealed recycling (anything with identifying info), and brought home some materials in case I have to teach from home in the fall.

[lreidgreen]

Originally Posted by Vantreesta

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I know there are lots of books on decluttering but does anyone know of any podcasts on the subject? I listen to fitness podcasts on our morning walks and they're helping me stay motivated and excited for my workouts so I started wondering if I could get the same effect from a decluttering podcast.

I had "the Minimalists" bookmarked on my podcast player but never listened to it. It is more than decluttering though. I just did a search on Stitcher (my podcast app) and there are several: Maximixed Minimalist, A Slob Comes Clean, Clear your Clutter, The Simplicity Sessions. Journey To Organization with Rebekah Saltzman, A Grateful Space.
I bookmarked a few for future listening when I get tired of all the political stuff I listen to.

[Vantreesta]

Thanks, Leslie! I did do a search and The Minimalists was one that showed up. I haven't listened though. I did click to follow one (but haven't listened yet) that I think is more than just decluttering. It's called Slow Home podcast.

I've never heard of Stitcher. Is it a free app?

[lreidgreen]

I think i last posted in April. Haven't done anything major. I did get rid of some fall/winter clothing when I moved my summer stuff into my closet from the extra bedroom. I did this later than usual because of the mild spring.

I did start cleaning out the pantry last month I think(the weeks and months are blending together) getting rid of stuff and organizing the shelves on one side. Yesterday I was looking for something on top of a cabinet on the other side and found evidence of mice. Lots of evidence. Gross. I even found a mummified mouse in there. It was kind of interesting actually. I showed DD who is a Bio major and she was NOT interested in it at all. The cat was lazy this winter apparently. I got rid of some stuff but mostly just cleaned and organized. I also determined that I want to replace the cabinet/drawer/shelf unit in there.

Last week I cleaned out the drawers in my bathroom vanity cabinet. Got rid of a bunch of old makeup and other stuff. My next job is the closet.
Also need to declutter the family room.

ETA: I haven't disposed of any of my items to donate because none of the charities are picking up. I forgot to mention that someone contacted me about a Facebook Marketplace listing from months ago. This was back in April or May. Listing was for old computer and Playstation games. I met the guy near work, opened the hatch of my car before he got there and told him from the drivers seat to just take the stuff. I was too scared to even exchange money. So glad to get it out of my garage.

[lreidgreen]

Yes it is a free app. I don't know how I found it. I was late to podcasts and maybe I found it when I read about a particular podcast I was interested in. I don't know of any other podcast apps other than Apple which I can't use because I have an android.
I did get a trial subscription to Slate plus which I cancelled before I got charged. Apparently Slate Plus did not work well on Stitcher and Slate just stopped supporting it.

[lreidgreen]

Originally Posted by BunnyHop

Anybody read Gretchen Rubin's book ? Outer order, inner calm : declutter & organize to make more room for happiness

I just started it and so far I like the tone of the thing.

In general clutter-suppression efforts, I managed to get all the cookbooks and cooking related books in one room. Got up on to the top shelf in the back closet and everything. Now begins the sorting, purging and organizing.

I have not read that book but it was on my list for awhile. I have other ones that i have not made time to read though. I need to go through my cookbooks again. That was one thing I didn't get to when I went through the pantry. I did get rid of a bunch about a year ago but I really hardly ever use them so I should purge a few more.

[Vantreesta]

Originally Posted by lreidgreen

Yes it is a free app. I don't know how I found it. I was late to podcasts and maybe I found it when I read about a particular podcast I was interested in. I don't know of any other podcast apps other than Apple which I can't use because I have an android.
I did get a trial subscription to Slate plus which I cancelled before I got charged. Apparently Slate Plus did not work well on Stitcher and Slate just stopped supporting it.

Thanks, Leslie! I've only started listening to podcasts in the last year or so. I listen on Iheartradio, Pandora and Spotify.

[Vantreesta]

I'm curious how you guys approach decluttering. When we started going through my mom's stuff we basically tried to group all similar items together in designated areas and it seemed to work pretty well (also was very eye opening how much she had of a lot of stuff!). I am wondering if I should try that approach. I'm just not sure though since it's different circumstances: I'm not getting rid of all my stuff. But I wonder if it could help for organizing and, like with Mom's, a reality check on my hoarding tendencies.

[fanofladyvols]

I'm curious how you guys approach decluttering.

Vantreesta, we establish where or how much space we want categories of items to take. So I do what you did with sorting your mother's items. There were kitchen items I did a different approach, like for casserole dishes or Tupperware, I went through a season of cooking. If I didn't miss or use it then I purged it. So like Easter, anything I didn't use for our dinner I put in a bin. Then when Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners came, anything left in the bins that wasn't used was purged. So if it was more than would fit in the cabinets, then I evaluated what was in the cabinets. I evaluated what I needed more and purged to make room for the casserole and Tupperware because to me those were more necessary. The ultimate goal for things to be easy to find and put away in all the cabinets. It took several years though. I like to attack drawers and cabinets and wean stuff away. Souvenir cups and water bottles are a constant battle, lol.

[Vantreesta]

Thanks, Linda! That's helpful. As far as Tupperware, I would love to transition to glass for leftovers, but I fear it would take up more space. I'm okay with plastic for things like cookies but glass would be nice for leftovers bc of the nature of "real" food plus being able to heat the food in that container. Hubby melted a plastic bowl the other day.