Fall

It is beautiful today. The sun is shining, the remaining leaves on the trees are slowly finding their way to the ground...Moving on! There is so much to be done to get ready for the inevitable!  SNOW. The flowerbeds are clean, the grass is cut, the leaves are raked.  One job remains. We have to clean the garage. Now, while we were moving in, the man's pride and joy was a repository of postponed decisions. Just what he will use and what he will donate is completely up to him, at this moment. I know that we have to carve out a spot for the snow blower, the lawn mower, the garden tools, the things that actually deserve a home in a garage. Like vehicles!  Add to that trade show displays, extra gadgets that he sells for a living and several antiques? It will be quite the process I can assure you. The man has also promised to paint one room this weekend. Which one? Who knows? Who cares? It all needs to be done! Where we start  doesn't really matter. We will end up getting it all done eventually. When we finish painting a room, I will order window treatments, buy anything we may need to complete the room and move on to the next. I like to keep a simple house without a lot of clutter, and often I find that my decorating involves getting rid of things rather than adding things to the room. Less is more.

Konmari Method

If you haven't had the pleasure of listening to this lovely woman, take the time and find her videos on Youtube. I have confessed to an obsession with tidy drawers, but never in my life have I managed to keep them that way. Until I found this method of folding.  My dresser has never looked neater!  Everything is easily accessed because it is all visible, so there is no rooting through all of the items to find the one you want. I seem to have one challenge. That is folding the items to be the same size. It seems though, that when they are all neatly placed in the drawer, it doesn't seem to matter that some parcels are a little longer, or a little fatter than the others. They just stand there neatly waiting for their turn to be worn. So if you have a moment or two to make  a huge difference in your organizing life, check out the KonMari method. You will not be sorry.

Another Day Another Drawer

Drawers. There is never a time that I don't enjoy tidying a drawer! I love the promise of a "new and improved" super organized drawer. I fall for every tray, box or organizer I come across, and yes, I do use every one of them. Mind you, you just might find refrigerator organizers in the bathroom cabinets, and makeup organizers in my kitchen drawers, and once or twice I have been known to use tool boxes for lace trims and thread!  It is all about following the flow of your life, how and what you use.  And of course, that changes with the seasons of your life. At one time, I used a lot of cosmetics, and loved to try new things. Now I am a "use it to the last drop" type of person because I only use what works for me, and usually repurchase the same item. It really makes life a lot easier when you don't have too many choices. Enough for variety, but not too many that it boggles your mind in the morning! 

I started my day today tidying my makeup and hair products in my vanity drawer.  It is huge, so I was able to fit everything from blush to hairbrushes in one single drawer!  The tower is well on it's way to be organized as well...I am using it for the final "gilding of the lily". Things that I put on last, and take off first! My eyeglass collection, for instance. They have found a home in the second drawer down, with no need of cumbersome cases. 

There were a few other little victories today. We found a buffet to use as a beverage station in the dinette. This is more than a convenience, it is pretty much a necessity in a home that only has one plug in to use at the kitchen counter! By moving the toaster and coffee pot to the dinette, it will solve the "bumping" problem that we seem to have every morning. The one we chose has two doors, and a center area for 'more pleasant to look' at things. The doors on either side will cover an ample supply of coffee pods, tea bags and hot chocolate packets. I am anticipating that this piece of furniture will also house a fair amount of "air"!  

There is so much to do in this house that it could easily become overwhelming. However, we keep on an even keel by going to bed on time every night, and doing what we can every day.  We have a carpet cleaner scheduled for Thursday to see if we can coax the family room carpet into living for another year or so.  Not having to replace 100 square yards of carpeting will certainly ease our stretched budget!  We hadn't really counted on redoing the bathroom, but it was so badly done that we really have no choice. There is nothing worse than an older home that has had "improvements" that are just not suitable.  That is the case with our main bathroom. So, there is no choice but to demolish and do it again. The good news is, that it is just the vanity, mirror, lighting, tiles and flooring that need replacing. The tub and surround are fine, as is the toilet.  But how are we going to manage without those things while the tiling is being done?  The downstairs bath is so far away from our bedroom, that we will get our 10,000 steps in before waking in the morning...maybe we will just give in and sleep in the guest room until it is all done and dusted!

Taking Time

Since I have been on this planet for sixty-five plus years, I think I have learned a thing or two about time. I have learned how it passes, mainly. Sometimes too fast, sometimes too slow, but this I know, it always passes.

I am looking forward to this phase of my life. There is a freedom that is available when you are an old lady that just isn't there when you are younger. Take body image for instance. What a waste of time. I am happy now if it works, and isn't in the process of falling off!  Your body is YOUR body. It is something to be nourished and respected. Not pummeled and neglected. What a contrast to obsessing over the calorie count in the only meal you will allow yourself for the day!  Foolishness.

If wishes were horses, beggars would ride. This beggar should have ridden all over anyone who suggested it was necessary to starve myself like I used to. It all ended badly, for as you know, I am still not remotely close to slim, although years of deprivation should show different results. I have the type of system that just adjusted to the rigid patterns, and stubbornly held on even tighter to the pounds. But that is only one thing that has stolen time from me.

Another  thing is time to speak. Speak up. Speak out. Speak! To whom I like, when I like.  Funny thing? I haven't met too many people that object to this.  If, of course, I am not rocking their boat! People are very protective of their status quo. New thoughts and ideas scare them. Why? Because they are new and yes, people are lazy. It takes effort to think through a new concept! So, they continue doing and saying the same things year after year, and wonder why nothing changes. Telling themselves that they will be "happy when....". When never comes. You wake up every morning and you have a choice. Be happy. Don't be happy. There are always blesisngs in the day, no matter how rotten things look. There is a bright side somewhere. Don't stop turning things over till you find it! Take the time to do that, above all else. Hopefully you are younger than I am and will have more time to enjoy your life as it is, not as you dream it should be. Take the time. You won't regret it.

IKEA Vanity

The man came home from Winnipeg, with the vehicle fairly bursting! He is upstairs as we speak, putting together a nifty little tower that will house every scarf and bauble that I own.  Last night, he put together the vanity, which came complete with a glass top, and one long top drawer to house all of my paints, powders and brushes! 

 I am so looking forward to getting all of my bits and bobs organized!  The problem with smaller closets, is that they are smaller. The good thing about smaller closets? They are smaller! Absolutely no room to collect things you will never wear again. You need to find alternative ways to keep everything accessible.  After all, if you can't get at it in a few seconds, you may as well not have it.  Being basically lazy human beings, we have a tendency not to bother getting something that is difficult to reach, opting instead to wear the thing that is conveniently close at hand.

After these little numbers are put together, I will sort and purge once again. Then, the painting will begin We have decided to reno the bathrooms first. Then it will the the kitchen's turn. THEN the new flooring will come. There is absolutely no point in having a floor put down, and then tracking all sorts over it! But there is no harm in installing new hardware, lighting, and putting down a few coats of paint in the bedrooms while we wait for the bathrooms to be done. We are happily living in squalor. There is something to be said for not having to be so careful with your home! And, we aren't in a rush. Yes, that is me talking. By not in a rush? I mean ASAP but taking a few hours to enjoy life along the way!