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On another thread, someone asked about special projects.
For example ...
When decorating the the Christmas tree, when you only have a few minutes each day available to work on the project.
Do you leave the open boxes of ornaments and hangers and tinsel out on the table for a week, as you work?
Or do you have a place to put things that are "in process" ... that you can take out each day as you work on it?
If you are a "recovered squalorer now maintaining your reasonably clean home", how would you handle this?
How do "normal" people handle this?
Do you pick up most of the project materials and put the items AWAY each day .... and then get them out again when you want to work on it?
Related question:
What if you have a "designated staging area" for sorting things?
Do you place that in your living room? Or in your back bedroom? Do you leave a table out for sorting at all times? (Thus making part of the room always unavailable for normal use).
Do you allow the clutter-sorting to pile up in the staging area ... thus making the living room unaesthetic for visitors and the guestroom unavailable for guests?
What do you do?
Do you have an EMPTY cabinet or closet, with bins that close ... for storing "in process" sorting projects ... that you can take out whenever you are ready to resume sorting?
Or do you just leave the project out ... where it is in danger of attracting more stuff and where piles might fall?
(I'm betting that nonsqualorous people actually have empty places to store projects of this nature).
I think the above are GREAT questions. Thank you SO much to the person who asked on the other thread.
I think that the answers would be difficult for many of us ... as our homes are still crowded with junk.
But ... ideally, I do think we should strive to have an empty closet or cabinet ready for storing "ongoing projects" still in process.
Why do I say this?
Here are some examples:
When I've worked at professional accounting jobs, I've wanted to leave projects "in process" out on my desk.
My boss would always tell me that it made the desk messy, and it was embarrassing for her when my coworkers went into my office and saw my messy desk. Yes, my boss felt my messy desk reflected badly on her area of the office.
At least twice a day, I would have to stop my "ongoing project work" and start some new task that came up for immediate deadline.
My boss gave me a plastic egg crate with hanging file folders.
My boss told me that whenever I stopped working on the ongoing project ... I must put my "in-process ongoing project" work into folders in that egg crate, and then place the egg crate into an empty desk drawer.
When I wanted to start working on the project again, I just pulled out the crate, and my project was all ready for me to resume working on.
I found this to be difficult to train myself to do, at first.
But once I learned the habit, I found it very refreshing to arrive at the office first thing in the morning, (or return from my lunch hour) ... and find an empty desk. Refreshing to my spirit.
And my boss and co-workers appreciated seeing my clear desk.
Another example:
This topic comes up at pre-schools and child-care centers.
If a child is busy building a complex original creation out of Legos, the child might not be finished at the end of playtime ... but the room might need to be cleared for another activity.
Sometimes the teacher has a large empty bin specifically for placing partially-built creations into. The bin is stored on special shelf. The child can get it out the next time it is "Lego hour".
Examples from family life:
A large, complex jigsaw puzzle that takes days to complete.
or
A very long "Monopoly" board game that takes days to complete.
Some families choose to own very large wooden board that is 3 feet square. Or a giant cookie sheet.
The family does some work on the puzzle or plays part of the game ... but ... they place the puzzle or boardgame ATOP the special wooden board or cookie sheet. They do all their work on the puzzle/game while it's ATOP the special thing.
When it's time for supper, they just carry the whole thing away and put it in the closet on a shelf where the other children and pets cannot get to it.
This way the table is clear for dinnertime.
And the puzzle/game can easily be retrieved when the family wants to resume.
I think that many of us are USED TO seeing ongoing sorting, renovation, or decor projects ....
left "OUT" and visible in our homes ... so it doesn't bother us.
But ... I bet cleanie visitors would feel assailed by the visual disorder. It probably has a subtle impact upon our families ... giving the idea that "
It's okay to leave stuff laying around". And perhaps our own subconscious the chaos, even if we block it from ourselves.
I think the question is ... why make part of your room unusable or disorderly for long periods of time?
Yes, we are used to that, but ... perhaps there are other ways to handle this.
Certainly, this cannot be solved by those of us in deep squalor and huge hoards ... there simply is no room to put things away.
But we can discuss it now ... so that when we are ready, we can implement a plan.
Perhaps the goal is to have even MORE empty space in our homes ... for storing things of this nature?
Just like we need to have extra time in our schedule, to allow for unexpected events.
QUESTION:When does "leaving something out" become "neglect"?
What about "in process" projects?
For those members who are "maintaining" a clear home, how do you handle "special projects"?
For those members who are still in squalor/hoard, but "visualizing" what kind of home you want someday, how can we brainstorm a solution to this conundrum?[There is no "correct" answer.
All points of view are welcome.
Suggestions/ideas/opinions/methods, etc.]
