Nice and Toasty (Clutter Comedy)

May 17, 2015 · 4 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags:

One of my gifts at Christmas was a toaster, as shown in my New Year’s post. I decided to keep it on the countertop because it was new and pretty, instead of putting it away in a cabinet after every use as I had done with the toaster it replaced. You can probably tell where this post is going. The old toaster stayed on its usual cabinet shelf, just because we’d gotten used to seeing it there and did not notice it was clutter.
 

Old toaster with four narrow slots and a knob to adjust for doneness. 

Taking it out made more space in the cabinet, as well as making me feel that the kitchen has more new and modern stuff in it. I also bought a new electric skillet recently, which I keep in the same cabinet where the old toaster was. The new skillet’s ceramic coating doesn’t have the unhealthy chemicals of older nonstick coatings, and seems like it cooks more evenly too. So my kitchen got a low-cost upgrade this year, yay. I still have an ancient wafflemaker in that cabinet, though…

About Clutter Comedy: Every Sunday (which I envision as a day of rest after a productive week of de-cluttering) I post a Clutter Comedy article describing my most memorable clutter discovery of the week. Other bloggers who wish to join in are welcome—just post a link in the comments! There’s no need to publish any “before” photos of your clutter, if they are too embarrassing. The idea is simply to get motivated to clean it up, while having a bit of fun too!

Handrail (Nurturing Thursday)

May 14, 2015 · 4 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags:

Recently I’ve been considering how many things in life help to keep us safe as we go through our days. No matter how many we can list, though, it can be hard to let go of worries (most of which have nothing to do with actual present-day events) and to feel safe. So I decided to post a photo of the handrail on the stairway leading up to my second floor to illustrate that there is always something to hold on to, and that’s where the focus needs to be.
 

View of wooden banister looking up from lower handrail to upper portion of stairway. 

Of course, sometimes we miss our grip. Last summer I slipped at the top of the stairs while carrying laundry and bruised my back. But bruises heal, lost or broken property can be replaced, and plans that don’t work out provide useful lessons going forward. What’s important to remember is that we never really have to go through life without help and totally vulnerable to random stuff, even though our worries may trick us into feeling like that sometimes.

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Out of Season (Clutter Comedy)

May 10, 2015 · 2 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags:

I keep holiday decorations in the basement when they are out of season. That’s fine for the Christmas stuff, which is neatly boxed up every January and put in the closet under the stairs. Not so good, though, for random Halloween decorations that went to their final resting place long ago in that dim dark crypt…
 

Plastic jack-o-lantern with vampire doll. 

The light bulb in the plastic jack-o-lantern burned out, and then it just sat in the basement for years because nobody ever got around to replacing the bulb. That in turn left us feeling less interested in doing anything with other Halloween decorations. Now, after they’ve been cluttering my basement all this time, I just want them gone. Next time I put a jack-o-lantern on my porch, I’ll get a real pumpkin and a candle, and do it the old-fashioned way. That’s more fun anyhow!

About Clutter Comedy: Every Sunday (which I envision as a day of rest after a productive week of de-cluttering) I post a Clutter Comedy article describing my most memorable clutter discovery of the week. Other bloggers who wish to join in are welcome—just post a link in the comments! There’s no need to publish any “before” photos of your clutter, if they are too embarrassing. The idea is simply to get motivated to clean it up, while having a bit of fun too!

The I Am Safe List

May 8, 2015 · 6 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags: ,

I recently bought Louise Hay’s book Loving Yourself to Great Health after reading a review on Awaken & Begin. It’s about the interrelationship between our thoughts and what we eat. Not only do we feel better when we eat healthier foods—our bodies also make more efficient use of the nutrients when we feel better about ourselves and thus continue to become healthier, in an ever-improving cycle.

One point that resonated for me was the relationship between gut health and feeling safe. Gut feelings are more than just a metaphor; the brain and gut really do communicate with each other. When we’re overly stressed, we feel it in the gut, and it’s likely to result in digestive issues such as constipation. Conversely, a gut feeling of being safe improves both mood and digestion. The book suggests affirmations and gratitude lists, as well as more nutritious foods, to feel better and become healthier. I decided to be more specific about listing reasons why I am safe, such as:

– I am safe because I have a loving family who will always help me.
– I am safe because I live in a well-built, comfortable home.
– I am safe because I have a low-stress job that provides for my needs.

I hadn’t really thought about it before I read the book, but there is a big difference between appreciating one’s blessings and feeling safe. The first doesn’t necessarily lead to the second; so although gratitude lists can bring about an improved outlook on life generally, they might not be enough to banish old fears.

For the past week I have been reminding myself every day that I am safe, and setting forth some reasons why that is true. I have in fact noticed some improvement in my digestion, in addition to feeling calmer. So, although reasonable minds can differ as to the particulars of the nutritional advice in this (or any other) book, I’d say it was well worth reading.

Climbing (Nurturing Thursday)

May 7, 2015 · 4 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags:

Deciding what annual flowers to plant is always fun in early spring, before the warm weather arrives. Last month, I had in mind that I was going to plant lantana next to my mailbox. But I looked at two stores, couldn’t find any lantana, and was getting a bit frustrated. Then I ended up buying mandevilla instead—just happened to notice it at the supermarket when I was doing my grocery shopping.
 

Mandevilla with red flowers next to my mailbox. 

It is a climbing plant, and I expect it will look gorgeous toward the end of the summer when it’s all over the mailbox post. I’ll also look upon it as a reminder to “climb” beyond my original expectations and always keep my mind open to finding beautiful things everywhere!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

It’s All Good (Clutter Comedy)

May 3, 2015 · Write a comment · Categories: Musings · Tags:

You know how great it feels when you’re shopping for clothes, and all of a sudden you see something beautiful on the rack next to a bunch of ordinary stuff, and there’s only one and you think “Please, please let it be my size,” and YAY, it is!

I had a memorable shopping trip like that in 1988 when I found a pretty white and gray blouse full of sparkly silver and gold threads, which was love at first sight and the perfect size for me.
 

Old blouse with silver and gold threads. 

The only thing I had to wear with the blouse was a cheap gray suit from Value City, which my mom had bought for me when I was still in school, but I expected that I’d buy a better suit to go with it. That never happened, though, because I spent a few years staying home with my kids when they were little and then got a job where I didn’t need to wear suits. I gave the cheap gray suit to a charity that was helping women on welfare to transition into the workforce, but I kept the blouse just because I remembered how happy I felt when I bought it.

Obviously, I’m never going to wear it again. Even if the material hadn’t gotten yellowed from almost three decades of hanging in my closet, it has 1980s-style shoulder pads, for heaven’s sake, and would look absolutely ridiculous with any of today’s fashions. Also, one thing I’ve learned over the past year while cleaning up my clutter is that holding onto useless stuff just because it has good memories is counterproductive. That causes unhealthy feelings of stagnation and takes up space, both mental and physical, which could be put to much better use! So I’m letting the blouse go, while reminding myself that whatever may come my way in the future, it’s all good.

About Clutter Comedy: Every Sunday (which I envision as a day of rest after a productive week of de-cluttering) I post a Clutter Comedy article describing my most memorable clutter discovery of the week. Other bloggers who wish to join in are welcome—just post a link in the comments! There’s no need to publish any “before” photos of your clutter, if they are too embarrassing. The idea is simply to get motivated to clean it up, while having a bit of fun too!

Outcomes (Nurturing Thursday)

April 30, 2015 · 4 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags:

I’ve had the phrase “let go of the outcome” in my head a lot this past week, when telling myself that uncertain situations would turn out for the best regardless of what might happen at a particular time. In keeping with that thought, and with the “consider the lilies” story that I posted yesterday, I decided to illustrate today’s entry with a photo of the daylilies next to my garage.
 

Row of four daylily plants, not blooming yet, under a gas meter. 

I planted them under the gas meter about 10 years ago, and they’ve been growing robustly ever since. One year the gas company dug them up to put in a new meter, and that left me concerned that they might not recover properly. But they came back the next year as healthy as ever; so, just as with anything else, I shouldn’t have wasted my time and mental energy uselessly worrying about possible outcomes!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Purple Goo (Clutter Comedy)

April 26, 2015 · 2 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags:

Earlier today I found a bunch of fake flowers in a dark corner of my basement, literally, and carried them upstairs while trying to remember how the heck they got there. While pondering that question, and wondering what reason I might have had for keeping them, I put them in the sink to rinse off the dust. Next thing I knew, the fake color was coming off, and my sink was full of icky little spots of purple goo.
 

Bunch of fake flowers, mostly purple iris, next to my sink. 

I still have no clue as to where those flowers came from, and suspect that I probably moved them from our previous house and put them in the basement without paying any attention whatsoever. But there’s one thing I am sure about—I’ll know better than to do this again! Next time I discover ancient clutter around the house, it’s going straight in the trash without stopping to think about it!

About Clutter Comedy: Every Sunday (which I envision as a day of rest after a productive week of de-cluttering) I post a Clutter Comedy article describing my most memorable clutter discovery of the week. Other bloggers who wish to join in are welcome—just post a link in the comments! There’s no need to publish any “before” photos of your clutter, if they are too embarrassing. The idea is simply to get motivated to clean it up, while having a bit of fun too!

Friendly Visit (Nurturing Thursday)

April 23, 2015 · 10 comments · Categories: Musings · Tags:

Not sure how this happened, as these were supposed to be two separate groups of bulbs—but doesn’t it look like one of the purple flowers decided to do a bit of neighborly visiting with the white flowers?
 

White and purple spring flowers, with a purple one next to the white. 

This little scene left me remembering childhood wanderings through meadows full of wildflowers, making up all sorts of fanciful fairy-tale scenarios of what the flowers might be doing. I believe it would do us all good to exercise our imagination like that from time to time, even as adults!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.

Honorable Discharge

April 22, 2015 · Write a comment · Categories: Musings · Tags:

In olden times, when an invading army was defeated and the war came to an end, the victorious defending soldiers would be paid whatever wages were due to them and sent home to tend to their families and fields. What if we did the same with our defensive emotions when our lives became more peaceful—honoring their service, while recognizing that it’s not in our best interest to keep them as a standing army? An imaginary mustering-out ceremony might go something like this:

Anger, step forward. Today we honor your valiant service. You charged courageously into battle, attacking wrongdoers and righting injustice. You kept your fellow soldiers motivated to go on fighting until victory was won. Here are your wages and a medal honoring your many brave deeds. May you find success in turning that impetuous energy toward a new career. How about the theater? It would suit your dramatics quite well.

Fear, thank you for your service as a vigilant scout, searching the countryside for dangers and quickly alerting the troops. Without your hard work, there surely would have been more mishaps and ambushes. Here is the money you’re owed—no doubt you’ll manage it just as carefully! Enjoy the pleasant, sunny days of peacetime on the farm, and try to relax if you can!

Bitterness, now it’s your turn. For many years, you honed your talents as a masterful propagandist. You made sure everyone knew the sordid details of the enemy’s evil schemes—and if they got exaggerated beyond recognition, well, that was all in a day’s work. Surely you’ll find great success in the advertising industry! Here are your wages, along with a commendation for having been so zealous.

Doubt, you were a fine quartermaster. Nobody got away with stealing the army’s supplies while you were on the job! You’ll certainly have many commercial firms eager to hire you. Here’s your bag of gold coins. Please try to wait until you step off the stage before you count them!

Judgment, your efforts are much valued. With diligent attention to detail, you kept us informed of all the ways we were better, smarter, and more capable than the enemy. You gave us certainty that we were always in the right—and that even if we weren’t, it was someone else’s fault. Word has it that you plan to start a new career in politics. Good luck to you, and here’s your well-earned pay!

As all of you receive your honorable discharge today, please know that your service to God and country is greatly appreciated—and as the times become more peaceful, may we find peace in our hearts as well.

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