Don't Pimp Your Stuff!

The Diderot Effect

“The pressure to upgrade our stock of stuff is relentlessly unidirectional, always ascending.” -sociology professor Juliet Schor

The things we own comprise a significant part of who we are.  Our identities are tied up in our clothes, gadgets, living quarters, furniture, etc.  We try to find a unity in our possessions. The Diderot Effect states that obtaining a new possession often creates a spiral of consumption which leads you to acquire more new things. As a result, we end up buying things that our previous selves never needed to feel happy or fulfilled.

This phenomenon is called after the French philosopher Denis Diderot, who, after living his life in poverty, comes into a large sum of money, then bought himself a scarlet dressing gown.  Soon he noticed that his living quarters, his other clothes and more seemed so shabby compared to the dressing gown.  He then began using up his money to my more things consistent with the scarlet cape, eventually putting himself in debt.

All products purchased by a consumer aim to be cohesive with that consumer’s identity.

The introduction of a new, atypical product can trigger a process of spiraling consumerism.  Take, for instance, buying a new suit.  Goodness, those old shoes won’t work with it, and neither will the old belt.  Yeah, gotta lose the shirt and tie, too.  So you go out and buy accessories to match the cool new suit. And that's just the beginning.

Our natural inclination is always to accumulate, to add, to upgrade, and to build upon. We are rarely looking to downgrade, to simplify, to eliminate, to reduce.

When we obtain a new item when tend to acquire additional ones.  Being aware of this problem can help you avoid it. 

1) Don’t splurge on a really deluxe version of anything, clothes, houses, furniture, or technique, that doesn’t fit in well with your existing belongings.

2) Don’t allow your children to pressure you to buy things you can’t comfortably afford.

3) Let go of desiring things. There will never be a level where you will be done craving things. There is always something to upgrade or update.

4) If you do buy things, get rid of the old.  Otherwise, you are stuck with a hoarder’s lair!

I read a scary story of a man who died in his apartment during a fire because the firefighters couldn’t get through his stuff to reach him and rescue him.

Define Your Ideal Life

Now that you’ve pared your stuff down appreciably, or perhaps you are still in the midst of the journey, you might want to set your sights on your Ideal Life.

The first step in the process is to write out a script, a kind of screenplay of your ideal life to come. Perhaps a page or two.

Here’s how you go about it: Envision your life five to ten years from now. Write down what you would like your ideal life to look like, as if you would be already there.

I invite you to focus on:

· Work - What do you do for a living? How intense is your passion for your choice?  Where does your work take you? Do you travel in your job? What kind of advantages does this calling offer?

· Money - How much money are you earning every year? How much money do you have in the bank? What type of investments do you have your money invested in? How much money is your money earning for your ideal life?

· Health - Are you healthy and in the future? What is your evidence, that is, what do you see when you look in the mirror and how do you feel?  How high is your energy level?  How much do you weigh? How often and intensely do you exercise? What exercises do you enjoy doing? What does your body look like? Are you muscular? Are you lean? Are you both?

· Family - Do you have a family? How many in your family? How is your ideal future family doing in life? What things does your family enjoy doing and experiencing together?

· Home -  What do your living quarters look like? Describe each room. Describe your surroundings. What country or state are you living in?

· Relationships - Do you have a lot of friends? How many? Describe your friends. What are they like? What do they do for a living? What do you do to make your relationships deeper and even more rewarding?

· Things - What fun objects do you own? How often do you take time to enjoy these things?  Do all of your things have a home?  Do you own a vacation dwelling? Where is it located? Is it on a beach? Is it on a lake? Is it in a big city? What kind of car do you drive? Or do you prefer other means of transportation?

· Enjoyment: What do you do for fun? What are your favorite activities in the future? Do you go on vacation? Where do you go on your vacations? What are some of your favorite vacation experiences? What are your hobbies? How creative are you? What new experiences do you engage in? What learning experiences do you enjoy?

The key is to describe as vividly as you can. You want to identify every aspect of your ideal, future life with all details that seem important to you.

Your mind has difficulty with vague things. Fine points help your subconscious get its neural head around your perfect life. These details tune your mind into the things you want in your life. They stimulate your mind to get to work and find a way.

So get started and begin creating your Ideal Life.  The first seed is being sown when you begin to develop a concrete vision of what you want with vivid details.

Go on.  Have fun with it.

High-Quality Habits are an investment in Your Best Life!

According to the latest research on creating happiness, having a feeling of control over your life is one of the most significant drivers in creating happiness.  High-Quality Habits will not only put you on the path to success, they will also put you on the healthy path to happiness.

Here are the top habits to help improve the quality of your life across 4 spectrums:
-Happiness Habits 
-Health Habits 
-Income Habits 
-Leisure Habits 

Happiness Habits
• Spend a time every single day being conscious of what you have to be grateful for.  You can write this in your journal or just speak them out loud when you wake up and before you fall asleep.
• Appreciate other people.  You can mention positive behaviors that others do, send an appreciative note of thanks, even just thinking something nice about the person in front of you lifts your mood.  Serve everything with a large portion of SMILE.
• Meditate daily.  One recent study, published in JAMA’s Internal Medicine states just that mindfulness meditation will ease the psychological stresses associated with depression, anxiety, and pain.  All you need to do is sit quietly and stay in the moment.  If you have thoughts, and who doesn’t, just let them float by without dwelling on them.  Using your senses, you are aware of the sights, smells, body sensations, etc. right in the moment. Even one minute of stillness helps.
• Learn.  Learn every single day and spend 10 to 30 minutes doing this. You don’t have to commit to huge blocks of time as long as you do a little bit every single day. Use books, audio-books, recordings, webinars, informative YouTube videos, etc.  If you stick to a single theme, you can become an expert on it and, if you wish, use it to augment your income. Whether it's books about presenting, negotiating, making war, influencing, statistics, language, history, or anything else, there's something there to learn about how to work differently and make connections other people don't see.

Health Habits
• Walk more.  Studies have suggested that waking 10,000 steps per day not only helps with weight loss, but that it also helps to decrease your risk of heart disease and diabetes.  I have found a fitness tracker keeps me informed about how many steps I’ve taken each day.  Sometimes, if I can’t get out for a walk, I just enjoy walking to a YouTube video.  The people in the video are happily enjoying walking, the music is energizing and the leader motivating.  My fitness tracker even counts those steps, even though I’m „only“ walking in place most of the time! Use the stairs, park a bit farther away and walk more steps to your destination.
• Drink water. The Institute of Medicine determined that men should drink 3 liters (13 cups) daily and women should be getting 2.2 liter (9 cups).  Using a drink reminder app helps you think about drinking and keeping a bottle of water wherever you are reminds you to empty it.
• Sleep enough. Many people are living with a sleep deficit.  That saps their energy, makes them less motivated and productive, and generally takes the zest out of life.  It can even contribute to overweight!  Multiple studies have suggested that not only does sleep help to improve things like memory, but it also helps to boost the longevity of life, increase awareness, and spur creativity.
• Avoid Junk Food like the plague.  It will make you unhealthy. Period.
• Exercise.  Yes, you knew it was coming but there is no getting around it.  Our bodies crave movement and responds excellently to strength training. Whether it’s light jogging, weights, yoga, a treadmill or some other lightly strenuous activity, merely getting started will help to build the habit. Do it in the morning to energize your day or after work to clear your head.
• Eat smart.  I’m not telling you to be a vegetarian or to go vegan.  Avoid processed foods and anything with a list of ingredients you need a PhD to read.  Watch for hidden sugars and don’t use sweeteners.  Cook your own meals so you know what’s in your food, and use fresh produce.
• Take pit stops during the day.  Focus intensely for a time period and then take a healthy break.  Walk away from your work area, take some deep breaths at the window or walk quickly around the building.  You can do stretches or get in 5 minutes of muscle training using a resistance band.  Don’t skip breaks. Rethink the habit of using breaks to smoke.
• Recognize the importance of downtime.  Decompressing, and reflecting on all that you have already accomplished, finding time for solitude, being aware of and engaging with the loves in your life.  Keeping a work-life balance can be difficult, but having a healthy mind and body makes it much easier.

Income Habits
• Time Management.  Managing your time demands daily attention and a pursuit of the important over the urgent. This means defining your tasks so that you pursue the all-important goals and not simply reacting to the urgent matters that come up in your day.  You need to keep the highest priorities in your sights. Start your day by setting clear priorities for yourself and then make a conscientious effort to minimize distractions.  Don’t spend your time putting out unnecessary fires if you’re not a fireman!
• Begin the day with a specific purpose.  Being busy all day doesn't necessarily equate to getting things done. It's easy to get caught up in the fire drills, meetings, and typical busy work that rule our professional lives, but the drawback is that at the end of the day, rather than feeling accomplished, we end up just feeling exhausted--and maybe a little frustrated that our to-do list went unchecked--again. One of Stephen Covey's seven habits is to 'begin with the end in mind.'  Remain focused despite daily obstacles."
• Plan tomorrow the night before.  Take the time at the end of the day to assimilate everything that happened that day, wrap up loose ends and have a clear game plan for the next day. Designate your three MOST IMPORTANT THINGs. This helps you sleep better and wake up ready to tackle the day motivated.
• Use psychological strength in order to succeed at your profession.  This includes being tenacious, having a clear vision, identifying a niche and going all-in on an opportunity, creating a warm, family-like work atmosphere, eliminating negative self-talk, and always seeking that next challenge.
• Goal Setting. Develop a system for setting goals and ensure that you engage in goal setting every single day. Pursue the goals that are important to you and your work, and ensure that you build checklists to help you accomplish what you want over time. Don’t let yourself get derailed by getting distracted with no-priorities like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, WhatsApp, etc. Keep your eye on the prize.
• Save a percentage of your earnings. At least 20% of your income should be saved, in order to build up your money for an emergency fund and investment opportunities.  Your savings should be automated. Setup a savings account to automatically deduct the funds from your personal account every single time you get paid. Ensure that the money goes out before you can even get used to seeing it in your checking account.
The Hedonic Treadmill
In 1971, the behavioral psychologists Donald T. Campbell and Phillip Brickman coined the term, “Hedonic Treadmill,” also known as “Hedonic Adaptation.” The term makes reference to the natural tendencies for humans to revert back to a set point of happiness after major changes – either positive or negative – to their lives.  When you get a raise, you’ll start spending more and, soon, you are used to that way of life and want more.  You will always want more, no matter what you have.  That’s why it is important to have a percentage of income go straight to a savings account so you don’t even know it’s there.  You won’t miss it, but later, you’ll have it!
• Track where your money is going. Small leaks sink big ships. $5 per-day latte habits equate to $1825 spent alone on coffee a year. $20 lunches out every single day equates to $7300 a year. Track and audit all of your expenses.
• Pay off credit card debt in full each month.  If you can’t do that, you shouldn’t even be using one.  Only have ONE credit card.
• Educate yourself constantly. Spend at least 30 minutes each day with education in your career or towards investments. Whether you read it online or in print, subscribe to something that can help to advance your career. If you want to educate yourself in investments, terrific. Visit seminars.  Find a mentor.  Increase your competence and build useful skills.  Spend each day learning just a little bit, and over time, you’ll see tremendous results.

Leisure Habits 

What are you doing when you’re not working?  Do you sit in front of the TV, snack in hand/mouth.  Or do you engage in some or all of the following habits?

• Keep a clean and neat living environment. “Clean house, clean mind.” Spend a few minutes of your leisure time organizing your surroundings. Take 5 minutes to clean up your desk, de-clutter, or simply to throw things away. You’ll be surprised at how much your quality of life will increase when you get organized.  The rule „A place for everything, and everything in it’s place“ will serve you well.  Then you won’t have to invest your precious time in marathon cleaning sessions.
• Boost the quality of your life by socializing and networking. It’s been said that 79% of rich people spend 5 hours or more networking, whereas the poor spend 16% of their time doing so. But, networking doesn’t have to be just solely for business. Simply take an interest in other peoples’ lives.  Being with friends and family increases your emotional well-being.
• Fight procrastination. Do one thing that you’ve been putting off every single day. This is a tremendous way to overcome procrastination and build the habit of moving your life forward. Create a list of all the things that you’ve been putting off. Then, commit to spending just 5-15 minutes each day doing one of those things. Even if you can’t complete it, make sure that you spend daily time working on it.  When I used to have a TV, I’d jump up during commercials and do 5 minutes toward an ugh-task.  It always surprised me how much I got done, once I got started.  Magically, my motivation increased.
• Get better by 1% every day. The key to building a better business or becoming Your Best Self rests in making small, continuous improvements every single day. Instead of incorporating drastic changes in a short amount of time, focus on making something 1 percent better than the day before. It doesn't sound like much, but those small improvements will start compounding, and that will gradually lead to the change you want.

So there you are.  Some people have their morning and/or evening rituals which encompass several of the above mentioned habits.  If a habit is new to you, you might need to use reminders and notifications so you don’t forget them.  Once they are established, which can take quite some time, you will do them automatically.

STUFF – Your personal ball-and-chain

Last Saturday was my yearly basement purge and it was so much easier than last year.  What was different were the thoughts and feelings that popped up.  Instead of the clinging “I’ll use that soon” (or worse “OH THAT’S WHERE THAT IS!”), I heard myself saying “Yep, that chapter of my life is really finished. Move on and get that stuff OUT!”.  So the boxes of music that were used a lot when I taught more kids and also led student courses on instrumental teaching are reserved for the local music school and the document-maker for my daughter’s new company.

It doesn’t hurt.

I have sold about a thousand books, which seem to relieve a bit of the guilty thought ‘But I paid good money for that!”.  Now, I see some books in the shelves that I’ve read but don’t use anymore and give them to teachers and/or friends – but only if they want them.

Last week, I visited a friend who had long ago asked me to give her any books about teaching that I don’t want.  So, when I visited her last time,  I filled up a basket full of them but she stared at them in dismay when she looked into the basket!  Turns out, she was in the midst of clearing out her recently deceased mother’s apartment and was up to her ears in STUFF.  More books just added to the stress.

Sometimes, we tell ourselves big stories about what we are going to do with our STUFF, or why we need it, or that ‘everybody else has one.’  I really try to put my stories to the test: IF I DON’T USE IT WITHIN THE NEXT 3-6 MONTHS, IT’S OUT OF HERE. 

Perhaps because I am older, I can see more of my self-lies and phony stories.  At this point, I know I’m not going to have more time or energy than I have now.  That helps me not to give in to the tantalizing song of the consumer sirens.  I just ask myself if I 1) will really use it, 2) have a place for it or 3) could share it with someone.  In my art class, for instance, I give people a dab of a certain color and they lend me the palette knife for a few swipes. 

On the other hand, I want to use my cookbooks more.  I generally make myself the same dishes because it’s expedient.  But, since my motto is “Downsize your stuff – Upsize your life!”,  I want to try new things and expand my experience.  I try not to get stuck in a same ol’-same ol’ rut.  But, to be honest,  if I decide I want to try baking cornbread with coconut flour, I check out the recipes online.  Ahhh,  looks like my cookbooks are in for a purge after all.

So, if you have some things that you walk by all of the time but never use, consider freeing up that space with a mini-purge and just leave that area open and free.  Go for the Zen.

Remember Rule Number 1: Don’t even consider renting a storage unit!

Your home is your sanctuary.  Don’t let it become your stressor.

Downsizing the crap in my body

Goodness!  I haven't written this blog for quite awhile.

Downsizing, decluttering, minimalism - it's a never-ending journey!  

It's become a pretty dependable habit for me to pull everything out of a drawer, from a shelf, from a closet and clean, rethink the needed contents and put those things back in a special place ("Everything has a place, and everything in it's place.").  Everything I don't use or doesn't "spark joy" gets recycled.

I have established a little reminding "voice" in my head which asks me if I really need that "something" I'm just getting ready to buy.  I do buy things and some are not "necessary" but, all in all, I am staying within healthy boundries. 

I'm good at closure - if I begin a project, I finish it.  If I am writing a book, knitting a sweater for a friend or my daughter or painting a picture - it always gets done.  Still, I have so much material for future projects. I'm convinced I'll use it all but only the future will tell.

My attention has been on a more important subject lately - nutrition and the damage sugar and prepared food products do to our bodies.  Most people don't know what they are doing to their bodies when they eat the fast food or the pre-prepared dinners.  Not even to speak of the sugar-filled soft drinks.  And evidence shows that, like with smoking, the information doesn't get through to the behavior level.  That means, we know it and still do it because the products are addictive.

I just finished an amazing book on the subject called Fat Chance by Dr. Robert Lustig.  Fat Chance is Robert Lustig's  overview on nutrition and the pandemic of sugar-related diseases we are currently experiencing in the West.

 " Our risk for illness is increasing faster than the increase in obesity. Indeed, the cluster of chronic metabolic diseases termed metabolic syndrome - which includes obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), lipid disorders, and cardiovascular disease - is snowballing by leaps and bounds. And then there the other obesity-associated metabolic diseases, such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, kidney disease, and polycystic ovarian syndrome. Add to that the other comorbidities (related medical conditions) associated with obesity, such as orthopaedic problems, sleep apnoea, gallstones, and depression, and the medical devastation associated with the obesity pandemic is staggering. " (Lustig, p.4)

Fructose The Toxin

-Fat Chance makes the case that all the successful diets have one thing in common: they restrict the amount of sugar.

-Sugar is composed of half fructose and half glucose. Fructose is what makes it sweet, and that’s what’s addictive and what we crave. This is a very dangerous sugar.

-The author makes the point that sugar has the same negative effects of alcohol on our bodies minus the high intoxication effects.

Fiber: The Antidote

-Fiber is half the antidote to the obesity pandemic. (The other half is exercise.)

-Most of the processed "food" we eat today though, including refined carbs to make pasta and white bread, are stripped of fiber.

-One of the reasons the food industry strips fiber away is to make food lasts longer. Which is one of the reasons why you should stay away from food with unnaturally long shelf lives.

Exercising Is Great But Doesn’t Lead to Weight Loss

-The author says that exercising is more important than diet and works at many different levels, except one: losing weight.

-Physical activity accounts for the smallest factor in energy expenditure going from 5% of the couch potato to 35% of the biggest gym rats.

-However, it goes a long way towards mitigating the negative effects of obesity and is essential for preventing metabolic syndrome.

-Exercise also helps in building muscles, which do consume energy.

So, now, I am trying to get as much fiber as I can and will not touch anything that is not "real food" aka comes from plants. I keep my meat down to a minimum of maybe once a week. I do eat a tablespoon of Skyr on my fruit in the morning plus a boiled egg for protein. Nuts and fresh produce make up my diet.

I exercise daily, keeping my muscles toned and like walking for health. I love the videos on YouTube and enjoy working out with them.

I had some blood work done and the doc said it looks great. The HDL was up (good!) and the LDL was down (great!) plus my cholesterol was in a good range. 

Perhaps I am "downsizing" the crap in my body!

LOOK AT YOUR STUFF! - revisited

Again, and yet again...

Yesterday, a Saturday, I got up at 6 and began cleaning and organizing my kitchen shelves.  I took everything off the shelves, analysed my past usage and prognosed future usage of the items, cleaned the shelves and reorganized what I decided to put back.  The rest was tossed or given away.

I've been schlepping my first cookbook with me for over 20 years and cooked from it last when my kids were young.  They are now in their late 30's!! Embarrassment... I took out two love-stained pages with my favorite recipes (which I haven't made in, as I said, over 20 years), and tossed the book.  Nobody cooks with Crisco anymore!!

In my search for the perfect cutting tools, I have bought a food processor, a blender, and two manual cutters, plus a small tool for cutting zucchini into spaghetti. Chagrin...

I placed the plant/flower things together like fertilizer, pots, orchid substrate.  Organized the plastic leftover containers and shall give a bag full to my son.  Put the recipe books in one place but got rid of the ones I won't ever use again at this point in my life.  If I need a recipe for cornbread using coconut flour, I can get hundreds from the internet.

It didn't take me that long surprisingly.  Don't we generally put jobs like that off because we imagine an inordinate timespan being stolen from our precious TV time?

So, now I've LOOKED at all my stuff in the kitchen. What wonderful adventures await me now? ;-)

Are You Paying Rent to Visit Your Garbage?!

Paying for storage facilities might seem like an easy solution when you’re in dire need of short-term space. 

Perhaps you’ve seen the TV show “Storage Wars”.  That is when folks get tired of paying rent to store unused items so the stuff is sold again, and then sold again to retail therapy victims at flea markets or thrift stores.

What's it all costing you?

The storage unit price is determined based on a few factors, including:

• Size of the unit
• Location of the storage facility
• Other special features such as climate control and an indoor storage unit versus an outdoor unit

How much is a storage unit? According to CostHelper, a provider of consumer information, the average national storage unit costs are:

• $40-$50 per month for a 5-by-5-foot unit
• $75-$140 per month for a 10-by-15-foot unit
• $115-$150 per month for a climate-controlled 10-by-15-foot unit
• $95-$155 per month for a 10-by-20-foot unit
• $170-$180 per month for a climate-controlled 10-by-20-foot unit
• $225 per month for a 20-by-20-foot unit

Storage units can be as inexpensive as $25 for a small unit in a smaller population area like Plano, Texas, or as expensive as $538 per month for a large unit in Los Angeles. If you rent a 10-by-15 unit that’s on the low end of the national average — so, about $75 per month — you’re spending $900 per year on a unit. And that price doesn’t include any other taxes or fees the facility charges. (https://www.gobankingrates.com/saving-money/why-still-wasting-money-storage-units)

Even if you’re not a diagnosed hoarder, you should learn to let go of more things to make room in your life — and enjoy your wallet expanding.

Retail Therapy is not a healthy financial plan!

You don't need to be a PhD economist consulting the retail sector to understand that we are bombarded every day by marketing messages urging us to buy, buy, buy. And we do. Way, way, too much for most of us.

Take, for example, clothes. The U.S. apparel industry today is a $12 billion business and the average American family spends $1,700 on clothes annually, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The dollar figures are of little significance since it accounts for just 3.5 percent of a family's expenses, on average. What is significant is whether that money is spent on need or waste. The answer is, largely, waste. In 1930, the average American woman owned nine outfits. Today, that figure is 30 outfits -- one for every day of the month.  But, in the end, we generally wear only our favorite few outfits.

How many unworn items do you have in your closet?

We spend money on stuff, then we spend money to warehouse and organize the stuff we spend on. Then we pay to discard it.  Then we pay to maintain the landfills where it sits for ever and ever.

And then there is the time required to maintain all that stuff. That big house doesn't clean itself, after all. Either you must work more hours at a paid job to pay someone else to clean it, or take your own time to clean it. All those 30 outfits must be laundered and ironed. Or, you take all the stuff and stuff it into closets, garages, drawers, attics, etc. You then lock the doors and hide the keys.  Wouldn't you be embarrased if someone accidentally looked in there?!!

Clutter is just another word for deferred decisions.

Before more time passes, try making a plan. Whether it’s setting aside a weekend to sort out your things or accepting that there might not be a place for some of your property and it’s time to donate it, give it to a family member or sell it — action will yield savings and probably some relief, too. You just have to make time for it.

Feeling ill-equipped to perform a certain task is one reason people procrastinate, according to Psychology Today. Therefore, if you are finding it hard to imagine how you’re going to get rid of a unit’s worth of stuff — perhaps all by yourself — then it’s easy to understand why you might want to put it off. It’s overwhelming.

The solution is to just dive in and do it. You can use a cognitive coping self-statement, sort of like “The Little Engine That Could.” Try giving yourself a pep talk in the vein of “I think I can.” Positive affirmations like this can help take the fear out of the task and eliminate your need to procrastinate — and spend unnecessary money on storage fees.

Next time you go shopping, ask yourself how it really makes you feel. Now think of your closet, drawers and attic. Are they full? How does that make you feel? What about your bank account? Does the balance evoke comfort or anxiety?

Spring Cleaning Revisited

I’ve mentioned before that we need to LOOK at our stuff at least once every year. Yes, I mean all of it.

Yesterday, I began with my clothes, which now fit into two closets and a metal clothes rack. Yes, I know that is still a lot but there used to be more – many more – clothes before I embarked on my downsizing journey. 

Downsizing/decluttering is a never-ending story. I put all the pants and blouses according to color in one side of the closet with shoes at the bottom.  On the other side, ahem – large closet ;-), I put my blazers and dress pants with elegant shoes for work. And in the other closet are my coats and sweaters. Since I regularly purge my clothes, I didn’t need to get rid of anything. But, oh lordy, don’t let me buy one more thing!!

When Düsseldorf has large trade fairs, many participants search for rooms that are affordable, as the hotels jack up their prices.  I offer two rooms at a good price which means I generally need to keep them really neat and clean.

Seems like the season has started again and I am awaiting several guests next week and the week after.  That means I must put my office/studio in perfect order again.  Somehow, I’ve let things slip so anyone sleeping in there would get the jitters! I shall get things in shape NOW!

Otherwise, I would have pleasantly enjoyed the Mañana Syndrome – putting cleaning and organizing off until another day (month, year, indefinite future…). Here’s how it works:

1. It starts with a NEED. You need to do something now.
2. But then you Decide to do it later.
3. As a Result of the delay, you end up not doing it.
4. Now, you tell yourself that you will do it tomorrow.
5. Tomorrow comes. The same Cycle happens.
6. Insanity = Doing the same thing and expecting different results!

I am going through every shelf in that room and there are many.  First of all, I got rid of the “layers”, meaning a second row of stuff in front of the books and art supplies, like pictures, knick-knacks, etc.  While taking one container into my hands, I was, er, unpleasantly surprised at the layer of dust on top of it. So, I am not only neatening, I am picking it all up and cleaning everything.  Tedious, yet necessary.

It is still difficult to refrain from my urges to buy things.  I would love to try oil painting but I still have so many acrylic colors.  Before, I would have gotten all the new materials and tried to cram them into the already scant space.  Now, I just don’t buy it – ahh – most of the time.  Still, I am the only one in art class who has everything and they all borrow from me - even the teacher!

I was going to buy some fixative for my pastel drawings this morning but I found a can I’d already bought behind some junk on a shelf.  Along with cans of fixative for every medium.  See what I mean?  I have to keep checking what I have, like stores do inventory.  Otherwise, I forget what's already there.

Are you keeping up with your stuff?  When was the last time you really looked at it all?