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Post by phoenixcat on Jan 1, 2015 13:48:49 GMT -5
Diane - good luck with those blinds. Is there any chance of replacing them with something like shades - easier to keep clean? If they are standard sizes - you may be able to find something that will use the same "hardware". Sometimes habitat for humanity, reclaimed stores, dollar stores, Big Lots, etc. have inexpensive standard options. Good idea for a thread. I'm busy setting up our house - hardly unpacked at all so I want to join this thread to accomplish the unpacking by February end. Since it has to be done at the same time as work, visitors, travel and keeping the existing clean - it will take at least the 2 months - (maybe 6 ). Good luck everyone on your goals! PC
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Post by andrea on Jan 1, 2015 14:14:53 GMT -5
This is the perfect thread for me with what I have going on right now. I have 4 or 5 goals that I need to get accomplished in the next 2 months and having everyone else will definitely help me get thru this time. My goals from the top to the bottom are: 1) Keep up with all of my medical appointments and meds 2) seriously work with older ds with his schooling since he is seriously struggling 3) get my room cleaned and organized especially all of the paperwork 4) Get all my paperwork from my business last year together for taxes so that 5) I can buy the land and get a motor home for my boys and I. I seriously hope that I can getb all of this done before the end of Feb.
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Post by andrea on Jan 2, 2015 2:00:20 GMT -5
It looks like I may be taking 5 off since I found out today that someone has put a large deposit on the land I wanted and could afford but that leaves me the chance to pay off a majority of my bills which would help the boys and I tremendously right now. I was able to make a large dent in my room today with going thru 2 large stacks of papers and filling an entire bag for recycling plus an entire bag of trash. Hoping when I get up I can get a majority of my room cleaned.
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Post by thedreadedknock on Jan 2, 2015 3:06:24 GMT -5
I know I want to join but I don't know what my goals will be yet. Definitely to set up a daily/ weekly cleaning schedule that I don't balk against. Other than that I have no idea. I'll have to think on it.
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Post by BetsyMarie on Jan 2, 2015 8:52:03 GMT -5
I've also been thinking what to do for the past couple days, and hit upon something that was easily do-able, but not so large as to incite resistance. And this morning I hit upon it. "Put away 3 a day."
My biggest hurdle has been 'maintaining', so this will help establish a pattern. "Put away 3 a day" can include any task that puts something, no matter how small, into the place it belongs. Fold a throw and put it on the couch, put a piece of trash or recycling or dirty laundry into the right bin, clean clothes put away, dirty dishes in the sink, straighten magazines, and so forth.
I started this morning, and it was extremely easy. And it got my eye looking for things to do, and I dealt with far more than 3 items - most of which I hadn't even noticed as being out of place. I tend to be 'clutter blind'.
So, that's it. Simple, fast, and usually easy. "Put away 3 a day." Far less onerous than the dreaded "maintaining" or "housework".
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Post by Jannie on Jan 2, 2015 9:14:43 GMT -5
I said I won't and don't do resolutions, yet I feel so optimistic today I will set some goals for myself. 1. Still need to lose weight- I'm down 4 pounds from my heaviest, about 20 more to go- not really "dieting" but I am trying to eat healthy stuff and exercise and walk more. 2. Financial goals- get taxes turned in on time. Get credit cards under control within three months- I went a little crazy with Christmas and other spending, had to rent cars twice and that cost me about $1500 which , of course, I put on a card. I will rein in spending- deal only in cash for the forseeable future and keep paying down the credit cards. 3. Housecleaning- just keep going, make progress. Every day I'll do dishes, take out the garbage and clean the cat box. Keep laundry under control, do a load as needed, even if it's once a day. A swish and a swipe on the main rooms of my house- "common" rooms we share- kitchen, bath, family room and dining room. And work on all the closets and my own bedroom which is a Gawd Awful mess- piles of clothes, papers, books and magazines. I need to toss, toss, toss. Well that should keep me busy.
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Post by def6 on Jan 2, 2015 15:55:18 GMT -5
I'm very motivated to clean the next 8 weeks so I won't have to spring clean. I get a silliness that comes over me in springtime and I don't want to clean then …so this is perfect.
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Post by dtesposito on Jan 2, 2015 16:46:58 GMT -5
Wow, more participants--I love the varied goals here--everyone doing what they feel will be the most help to their particular situation. Andrea, I'm sorry about the land, but maybe this will give you a chance to take care of your health first, and then save more money so that when you do are finally able to move, you'll be in a better place physically and financially. You can work on the decluttering too, so that the move itself will be easier. And maybe you'll find a place that you like even better! So here it is, half way through January 2nd, and I haven't done a thing towards my 3 goals yet. Tomorrow I try to wash one set of blinds, tonight I hope to start checking and reorganizing the books I already have for sale, that's always the first step towards listing a bunch more books for sale. The paperwork stuff still feels like a big, huge hurdle to me, so I'll have to read the websites again to see what I need for my IDs--I think I've blocked it from my mind and I don't remember what I was reading there before. Still need to make up my rough timeline. Diane
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Post by RoadRunner on Jan 2, 2015 17:18:01 GMT -5
Two Months of CONSISTENT ACTION what will it net me. I have been reflecting on this post for the past couple of days trying to decided what my goals would be for the 2 month period. I think I have finally narrowed it down and hopefully my goals are doable in the 2 month period.
1) Consistency in routines -- For the next two months I want to consistently complete AM, Daily and PM Routines -- They are
AM Unload Reload Dishwasher Load to wash Fold Load from Dryer Breakfast and Coffee Check E-Mail Personal and clean out one folder, handle one @action a day Check W-Email -- Delete 100 unread and handle current Laundry Flip Fur Babies Stretch -- simple exercises Head to Toe and kids up
Daily Handle 3 Paper Clutter Squeeze in exercise 90 mins of focused work on Class Preparation
PM Clean Exercise Handle Mail 10 Receipts for taxes File 10 Update Checkbook Dishwasher Supper Declutter-Purge-Clean one cabinet or drawer in kitchen Fold load and put away Handle 10 of DDs clothing items Declutter-Purge-Clean one dresser drawer Tidy 15 mins Charge Mac, Phone, iPad 1 Task AG 1 Task DSs room
Weekly Tidy Van/Exp Pocket Book Rabbit Pen Vacuum/dust Meal Planning 15 min in garage 15 min in attic Personal Time Make Scarfs Paint Ceramics Put Puzzle together DS make hat Learn Italian Work on Photoshop
2) Finish Up DSs room clean to decor
3) Pack up AG
4) Bake
My routines may look like a lot but they are the current routines that I have been working with for the past month. Built into the routines are: a) The decluttering of dressers, cabinets and drawers. Hopefully by the time I am done I can hand a good handle on season changer over for clothes and a very tidy kitchen. b) Handling of paper clutter in small chunks c) The beginning of tax prep for the year.
Below details where I am at in each area, thoughts, feelings and hopes not THIS IS WHAT I AM GOING TO DO. My Goal is CONSISTENT ACTION
Hum I am wondering what life is going to be like on the other side of two months. At the end of the 8 weeks I would like to compare my thoughts and feelings of today with my thoughts and feelings on the last day in February. The only goal I have is CONSISTENT ACTION
Routines -- Currently I am holding true to my routines for the most part sometimes I have to double up the next day for an item or two. It is my hope that the structure of my routines will Help keep me emotional balanced as cooking will be easier, finding clothes will be less stressful and I have defined lines of when to stop and start and I will be able to see things that need to be done (some time in the future) and not rock my faith because I know its turn will come.
--Taxes -- Working a little bit at a time on taxes hopefully will net and sooner submission of our information to our accountant and a solid foundations for our financial affairs. Receipts are in a huge pile but for the most part are together. I have done well filling thanks to the filling system I setup last year as I was getting taxes together.
--Paper Clutter Paper clutter is still in small but doable piles (current paper clutter). I am handling anything new that comes in on a daily basis with very little time spent. The backlog of things to do pile is a bit much and not sure will be complete by the end of February but my goal is to maintain a consistency taking baby steps selecting 3 items from the pile a day and determining what the @next step is for that item and working on it daily until done. One of my hopes is to have a fill for all things, a spreadsheet with important information (insurances ect)
--Currently in the area of clothing -- it is a organized mess meaning everything is in the location it should be but there are clothes that are to small that need to be purged, clothes that are not worn that need to be purged and a good general tidy is in order. I have completed the tall dresser in the Master Bedroom and started on DSs small set of drawers in the closet that holds his everyday outside clothes, socks and undies. DDs clothes I am just handling 10 a day. She has a ton of clothes. My closet hum I must plead the 5th. Other then getting everything functional and tidied I would like to have a nice setup for my dressing area. We live in an older house so closet space is only what we added when we remolded. I have claimed the upstairs hallway closet as mine it is in the front corner of the upstairs hallway with room for a vanity and a dressing mirror. It will be my walk in cloest.
--Kitchen I have decluttered/purged the boxed goods cabinet, the canned goods cabinet the drawer with dish towels ect and a utensil drawer beside the stove. One a day is the goal.
--Garage/attic current state is a mess and I have no real plans have complete any major task or goals in the garage other then work 15 mins a week. The 15 mins will help me devise a plan of action. Once I get DSs room done the attic and garage will be next.
5) DSs bedroom is a work in progress more progress than work. It just needs a nice cleaning and I hope to get it decorated. Current decor painted black and silver dresser. Sky Wall Paper on one wall. A set of swords.
6) Packing up AG (American Girl)-- This is emotionally stressful more than anything. I have to dig through clutter in the garage and attic to find the boxes to pack stuff back in. My DD is grown up and is no longer little and just facing the AG stuff fills me full of regrets for my squalor. I do not know how to face the regrets or the bad feelings that it feels me with. My hopes are to get it all boxed up and stored so that we can bring out different items as part of her room decor. Spring Dresses for the AG girls during Spring ect. Just typing this right now stirs up so many self defeating thoughts. I can not change the past I can only move towards the future.
7)Personally -- Currently I am working on making a scarf about every 2 days I have enough yarn to make about 8. Moms birthday is in February I want DS and DD to make her a hat using the Hat Loom we have. Mom would really like it especially if DD and DS make it. For two years now I have wanted to paint two table top Christmas Decor items that I bought for my mom and mother in law would like to get started on them so I can be finished by next Christmas, with DS and DDs help of course. I want to learn more in depth techniques for Photoshop and hopefully earn certification so that I can offer certification for my students next year. And last but not least I want to learn to speak Italian or relearn what I did know from living in Italy as a child I want to be able read facebook post of my Italian friends. Of course I will not complete all these things in two months but progress in these directions will be welcomed.
8)Baking Currently I do very little baking -- DD loves cake pops and got a cake pop maker for Christmas so Cake Pops is a on the list of things to bake. I would also like to learn how to make a 7/12 layer chocolate cake.
I am excited to post my responses in February I may even need to post a response at the end of January to gauge Success and @next best actions.
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Post by sparkle on Jan 2, 2015 21:51:19 GMT -5
Hooray. Someone else needing essential documents. I need a will, revocable trust and medical and durable powers of attorney. With a simple estate, I think I can do this online but first I must decide between Suze Orman, RocketLawyer, Nolo and LegalZoom. Is there anything else I should consider? I may not get the trust in place this time but I could get a will done, by golly. I'll give myself till next week to finish my research and then I'll take the plunge. I am fully prepared for it to take much longer than I expect since I will have to gather documentation but it's never going to happen if I don't at least start filling in the blanks.
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Post by RoadRunner on Jan 2, 2015 22:03:06 GMT -5
January 2, 2015 -- I managed to pull through all my routines, worked in DSs room and have some major headway going on, my creative thoughts are starting to come through. I pulled 15 mins in the garage getting 40 items out for the 2015 items out challenge.
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Post by andrea on Jan 3, 2015 0:04:59 GMT -5
Today was a very good day for me with volunteering at my favorite place and working with both of my boys. I was also able to clear enough area to be able to get to my closet and go thru my clothes. After all the weight I have lost most of my clothes no longer fit me. I was able to get rid of 38 pieces of clothing plus a whole bunch of papers that I put in recycling. I have also set up a couple of medical appointments for me for next week and have been faithful about taking my meds. I am hoping now that my filing cabinet can be gotten at that my stacks of papers will seriously start to go down. I am also debating what I want to do with the vcr tapes that I have if I should keep them or get rid of them.
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Post by phoenixcat on Jan 3, 2015 13:39:50 GMT -5
everyone! At some point in the next few days - I want to add a ticker with all my boxes to unpack. I know that the mover brought 202 items. But that includes furniture. I've unpacked 7 dish "barrels" and rooted around in a many, many boxes for one thing or another. We've unpacked another 5-6 boxes of stuff that the movers didn't bring - mostly alcohol January 1st - I cleaned off part of my new huge desk and DH set up my office electronics. I still have a lot to sort through and actually process out the stuff that didn't go to recycling/shredding. January 2nd - DH and I spent all day cleaning out a china cabinet that houses all the "feeds" and related equipment for the house. DH is a huge techie and loving creating a "smart house". But his stuff was all over my built-in china cabinet which I kind of wanted to use for hmm, china. It has six cupboards - 2 are glass. His stuff is now in 1.5 cupboards and out of sight. Took us 12 hours to clear out the previous owners "crap" - we had to disconnect all of our stuff on top of it and then reinstall. We took out a big bin of electronic recycling - about 50 feet of inactive cabling. Now I can move some stuff from my kitchen counter to the cabinet. Today - take out cardboard recycling. Work on office/desk area. Start unpacking. Do a box count?? Good luck everyone! PC
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Post by dtesposito on Jan 3, 2015 18:01:14 GMT -5
This afternoon, after coming home from mid-day work, I rested about half an hour and then I started on the blind. I honestly don't think this is going to work. I took one down, put it in the bathtub, and tried to spray it with 409. It was very hard to get all surfaces of all the blinds, because it was impossible to turn them all one way at the same time. The 409 nearly suffocated me, I had to leave the bathroom a couple of times to catch my breath. After letting it soak for a bit, I took a scrub brush and tried to brush. Very hard, very frustrating, because of not being able to reach all parts of the slats. They were even dirtier looking in the bathtub than they were on the window--the water pretty much turned black. After brushing both sides as best as I could, a section at a time, since I could only have a small section flat at any time in the tub, I poured some water over them to see what happened. Some of the dirt was flushed away, but there were grey streaks on all the slats. When I touched them with my fingers, they were sort of greasy, and had to be rubbed away. At this point I realized that I was going to have to wash each slat with my hands. But there was no way to do it in the bathtub, so I decided to hang the blind back up and do it that way. Before I did, I washed the window and the window frame. I tried the microfiber on the window, but couldn't tell if it worked or not because the other side of the window is dirty too. And, I was reminded why I rejected microfiber cloths when they first came out--my hands are very dry in the winter, and the microfiber sticks to them like velcro. It was creepy and almost painful. So I had to wear a vinyl glove for the window washing part. There are three sections where the blinds are woven together, breaking each slat into 4 sections. (The slat is one long slat, but the cords mean you can't just wipe along the whole slat, you have to stop at the cord so you basically have 4 different sections to wipe on each slat). These are mini-blinds, so each slat is only an inch wide. I went down the edges first, on each side, then did one side of the center section and then the other. First I tried a paper towel that I sprayed with my diluted cleaner, but then I tried Lysol wipes. The wipes were too sudsy, but worked better because I didn't have to keep spraying the cloth. The entire thing took almost 2 hours, and that doesn't include any cleaning up--I now have to clean out the tub, pick up all the towels and rags, put the cleaners and the step stool away. And, the cords DID pick up some of the dirt, they look greyish now. I thought I'd try one just washing the slats instead of taking it down, but they're so dirty, I don't know how that'll work--I'm probably going to have to go over everything twice. This is going to be a lot harder than I thought. 1 out of 7 in the sunporch done, that leaves 6 more in the sunporch...7 more in the rest of the apartment. Diane
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Post by seekingpeace on Jan 3, 2015 18:10:08 GMT -5
I'll join! I'm off to care for my mother as she battles the end stages of cancer so I won't be home. That said... #1 I will walk every day -- I've not gotten ANY exercise in a while #2. I will complete the crochet project that my grandma sent the pieces to... almost 30 years ago..... #3. I'll throw all intimidation to the wind and finish it however I want as she left no directions! It'll be lovely once I'm done. And I already brought it to mom's. #4. Also bringing a lot of scrapbook projects that are needing to be finished. (And I've purged a lot of scrapbook stuff as I've packed up --- all the dried out adhesives? O.U.T. out!!) these are my goals, they don't necessarily take care of any clutter in my house, but as there will be hours and hours of just sitting around, they will take care of the clutter in my soul. no computer access there, so I will only have myself to keep me accountable. I can do this!
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