BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: katlaughing
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 09:52 PM

rags, if those are mediocre, I'll take them any day! Those two of the tanager look like paintings, the colours are so balanced. Just beautiful, all of them.

I couldn't go anywhere without being with my Rog over the past year when I was having such a horrible time with anxiety and depression. Morgan did get me out in the yard to watch him play, but I was not comfortable going anywhere alone. Still prefer having company. It's good you recognise the trigger and can use the camera to make sure you ease back out. Good for you.

SRS, almond milk is delicious on cereal and also in smoothies.

Best laid plans...don't know what we will get done this weekend, now. Rog came home to tell me he picked up a half day or so of freelance work which will really help our checkbook AND it is up on the Uncompaghre (oon-cum-PAH-grey or un etc.) Plateau, so I will go with him as I love it up there. There are a couple of albums at MY OPERA with some photos of up there...not very good ones as I took most as we were driving.:-) We will go up on Sat., so will try to get some things done, tomorrow, for sure grocery shopping.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 08:42 PM

Those are beautiful shots, ragdall. And what a lovely day! I am making a point of getting out every so often or I could go for days without talking to anyone. I'm tired of the skin on my hands being broken out because it makes it difficult to do what I want or I'd be outside a lot more. They got a lot worse this week, but that was after I had soy milk on my cereal several days in a row. Now I'm completely avoiding soy products and I'll see if they clear up. Myself as guinea pig is not the easiest way to sort this out, but it's the only method available to me without the expense of a visit to a specialist, but that will have to be my next move if this doesn't work.

More information on the knife, someone on the British Blades site came in and named a maker and a town in India. I think I've posted as much as I'm going to on the site, though. It is a good looking knife, it does seem to be very well-made, so perhaps it is the exception to what some of these guys are reporting. I've put a lot of buyer-beware information on the site, and if anyone has a computer and uses Google, they'll land on my conversation over on that blade site. One of the remarks I forwarded from questions posted said it was made in India, so that's that.

Time to walk the dogs, then fish for dinner, and after washing up I may watch a movie. It has been a while since I sat down and just watched one. I have some NetFlix DVDs that have been here for weeks. We've still watched instant stuff, so it hasn't gone unused, but it's time to move these along.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Alice
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 08:31 PM

I know the feeling, rags. Once out there it's not so bad, but anticipating having to deal with outer-world is stressful.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: ragdall
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 08:25 PM

Beautiful sunny day here alive with migrating and resident birds chirping and calling.

Before I could change my mind, Mr. ragdall has flattened and taken the boxes to the recycling bin, bless his heart. I've been tidying inside the house and rushing out with my camera whenever I hear birds calling, always hoping to get that one exceptional photo of a bird that I never seem to be able to get. I uploaded the best of the mediocre shots today. After I uploaded these photos I caught three woodpeckers, but will try to wait until later to upload those because I need to get that ladder painted while it's still warm enough out there.

I'm having problems with the agoraphobia again. It got worse from being forced to stay inside for over a week when the smoke was bad. My camera gets me out of the house, I don't feel anxious when I can hide behind it. Going out into the carport with only a paintbrush on the other hand, terrifies me. I need to get this project finished and delivered to the grandchildren.

rags

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Alice
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 08:24 PM

Hour and a half of gardening exercise done, digging, planting, transplanting. Tried to give some Japanese iris to a neighbor, but she declined. Oh, well. More for me next year.


A.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: katlaughing
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 03:40 PM

Thanks, SRS...we had the same thing happen last year in kindergarten. He usually recovers fairly quickly, but his parents both smoke and imo, it costs them a lot of downtime when he brings home the germs OR when one of their co-workers brings germs from their kids to work. Germ pool is right! At least this year he doesn't argue with me when I tell him, first thing, "go wash your hands and use soap!"*bg* And, he likes using purel!

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 03:19 PM

At lunch I took time to empty the shelves and bins in the fridge and wash everything down. I also took out a couple of crisper containers I've been using and cleaned those and replaced the veggies, then scrubbed the door shelves before replacing those bottles and jugs. The freezer will wait for reorganization.

Kat, I meant to mention earlier, the first couple of years of school it seems like the little guys are sick all of the time. It takes a while to build up immunities to what is going around in that new germ pool. I suspect you'll have a few more of these episodes with Morgan home sick during the year. It's less frequent for younger siblings, because they've already caught what the older school child brought home. Same kind of thing happens when they go away to college also. Fingers crossed that there aren't too many colds going around out there in the dry desert air.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: katlaughing
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 03:09 PM

They would make beautiful greeting cards, too, Alice, imo. When I went to the Wyoming Book Fest a few years ago, I took my photos of Boysen Peak to Office Max and had them copied onto card stock, then they cut them for me, so I got to cards from each sheet. I put six cards with envelopes in baggies and sold them for $10 each. I sold lots more of them than I did books. People really loved the images which are fairly unique as not many people get to go up top and take such shots. I've thought of doing that, again, and offering them on places like Etsy. Good luck with whichever you decide to do.

I feel decidedly lazy, again, today. Didn't get to sleep until about 130a and was up by 7a, so maybe a nap is in order, again.:-)I want to be fresh and awake when I pick up Morgan at 4p to take him to buy some new shoes as a surprise.

Rog is off tomorrow, so maybe I'm just storing up my energy for what all we will do together.:-)

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Alice
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 02:24 PM

New project - figuring out how to do affordable multiples of art images that will be popular items to sell on Etsy.

It takes too many hours to create to just sell the original small paintings, so I'm working on ideas like what I did about 8 years ago for items I sold at the Farmer's Market. I can transfer the images to fabric and applied them to lots of items I sold like small terracotta herb pots, magnets, small wooden boxes. For Etsy, I'm looking at reducing and cropping the images and making lockets, pendants, etc.

Sun is coming out. This may be my last chance to get the garden work and the storm windows finished before winter.

I'm getting out my old hula music to exercise by dancing again. A rolfer who worked on my body a couple of years ago encouraged me to go back to the hula I used to perform as the best all over exercise. (I'm sure yoga and others are just as good). But hula has the beautiful memories and brings back my youth when I hear the music and move to the choreography.

A.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: katlaughing
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 12:48 PM

Cross-posted, SRS. Here ya go: PaperbackSwap.com.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: katlaughing
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 12:03 PM

More laundry, today, after taking Morgan to school as his mom is still not feeling well. My Task Manager tells me to finish my website redesign, but my Fun-Loving-Put-It-Off-'til-Tomorrow Self is telling me to go have fun in the old office, moving stuff around, but then it would be more fun to do that with Morgan after school, so...maybe I'll do a bit of what TM is telling me.:-)

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: wysiwyg
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 12:01 PM

Me too SRS.

But folks who are producing CDs do like to ship them in cases.

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 11:59 AM

I rarely use cases any more, I buy the paper envelopes for discs and they take up even less space. Those and a Sharpie for writing on digital media discs and I'm set!

I was out in the garage getting a small pot and some potting soil when the heavens opened. I waited a little while, playing with the phone camera and sending them to twitter, when I remembered there was an umbrella in the truck. I got back too late for the auction. Darn. But I'll get the book from Amazon, or maybe I should sign up for that paperback trading group, see if anyone else has it. If you think of it Kat, post a link?

I have a trailing house plant that I'm going to use to take some cuttings and start in that other pot. It would look nice in a hanging pot once it gets started.

We needed this rain, and I'll be able to do some gardening this weekend. It is looking kind of ratty out there now, lots of weeds. It has been too hot to do much work and the soil was too hard for pulling weeds effectively.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: wysiwyg
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 11:48 AM

WHAT was I thinking when I agreed to be the intermediary/shipper for 500 jewel cases?!?!?!

Oh, that's OK-- they can go in the church basement!

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: LilyFestre
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 11:30 AM

Laundry and dishes done this morning as well as the baby's bedding and some tidying up in his room.

I'm going to have to get extra busy this week as two things just popped up and time is ticking away before our uncle comes to visit. A friend has asked me to take her to Mama Goose, a children's consignment store about an hour and a half from here so that will take up a day (and it will be a good time). Then yesterday I received a notice that I have been accepted to Camp Good Days and Special Times, a camp for children or adults who have cancer or who have battled cancer. I am going to participate in the Wellness Program for Women with cancer. It means 3 days and 2 nights away from home just before our uncle arrives. So....have to get things done soon.

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 10:38 AM

rags, I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one who keeps some sizes and shapes of boxes because I might be able to use them later. Every so often I get tired of looking at them and flatten them for recycling. I got rid of a bunch of them a couple of weeks ago and my sun room looks a lot better for it.

Heavy overcast and rain today. It's a break from all of the heat, but it doesn't have that lovely crisp fall feel I am looking for. We probably won't get that for a few weeks yet. Right now we're living in expectation of fall.

I have a lot of virtual de-cluttering today as I go through photos for work. I also have a stack of disks from my son's room to go through to find one he should have labeled but didn't. He wants it sent to him. I suggested I could send all of these unmarked disks, but it would be a waste of postage.

My biggest goal this month that won't show up in the house, but will affect my pocketbook, is to declutter the credit card bills. After the big move and push for getting ready for college, I need to give them a rest. I earn travel points on one, so I will budget the use there, but on the other, I'll pay it off fast.

The auction knife has moved into the price range I expected once I had remarks about "made in India." There are an awful lot of watchers, but I've noticed in the past with some other charismatic auctions that though there were a lot of watchers it didn't translate to a lot of activity at the end. The early bidding pretty much took care of it.

I'm watching a book at eBay that if it goes above a certain point I'll skip and buy it new from Amazon.

The trash collection guys have changed their routine so this morning they didn't get trash at the crack of dawn. I have time to take it out now. I never put much out there anyway because I recycle so much and compost much of the rest, but now being the only one here I'll be putting even less. If I had a trash burner stove I could get away with putting out trash once a month maybe. I'm tempted to blow up a couple of plastic bags just to bulk up the bag (I usually put out trash in one or two grocery store plastic bags, there's that little of it). :)

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: ragdall
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 07:59 AM

SRS, Thank you for providing us with a fresh thread. The light on the living room step is a very good idea. I wonder if turning off things in your son's room while he's away will offset the the power it uses?

Alice, "Cabin In The Pines" is another lovely image. It's amazing how much detail and expression you manage to work into your tiny paintings.

Today I was able to accomplish a few of the tasks on my list but added a few more tasks, too, so I'm no farther ahead.

Began converting the "guest room" temporarily back into my sewing and storage room, decided to move the large furniture and thoroughly vacuum under and behind it, discovered a few patches of something on the outside wall which may be mildew. I need to find out how to remove that without damaging the wood panelling or the carpet.

Reassembled the children's overhead ladder, adding a washer to each lag bolt to enable more tightening without pulling the bolt head into the soft wood. That helped a lot. Added corner braces and bases under the legs. If tomorrow is warm and dry enough I'll try to apply the final coat of paint.

Nailed two boards on the outside of the deck railing to make it difficult for the neighbours' cat to jump and grab one of the squirrels who come looking for fallen bird seed and peanuts.

Updated several pages of information about who is to do what when and where, to be photocopied and distributed at a meeting to members of a women's group to which I belong, printed up some other materials for that group, removed old pages from my information binder and cut them in quarters to use for grocery lists and notes to myself.

Drastically reduced the size of my "may need this someday" box collection. There is a huge pile of boxes waiting to be flattened and taken to a recycling bin.

rags

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: mouldy
Date: 02 Sep 10 - 03:50 AM

I won't get much exercise today, as I have a massage booked for this afternoon. However, I have a burgeoning urge to go up into the loft and have a real good sort through my craft boxes. I suddenly realised that whenever I move, I will not probably have anything like the storage and work space, so it's time to be ruthless with the cutters and sundry stuff that can be replaced if needed.

Anyway, salt dough plays hell with them: it rusts the metal ones and blunts the plastic ones!

No plans as yet for tomorrow, so maybe a bit of digging in the garden?

Andrea

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 11:53 PM

Good idea, Alice. I always forget about making smoothies, though I have all of the ingredients I like here.

I found a 6' rope light at Lowes, so I've set up my step into the living room with a light again. The corner of my living room is where two halls come into the room (at 90^o to each other) and there is a step up into the halls. It really hurts if you stub a toe on one of those concrete steps. I have the light on a dimmer and a timer, so it isn't super bright or on all of the time. This also provides some light in the hall itself so from my room I can walk out to the hall without having to turn on any additional lights. It's around a corner so doesn't shine in.

I've turned off the power to a few things in my son's room. All of those little ready lights add up over time. We just had a good rain, hopefully breaking both the heat and dry spell we've had. The last water bill was pretty hefty (I did have neighbors water for a week, so maybe they used more than I expected). Perhaps fewer people and better weather will conspire to lower a few bills.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: LilyFestre
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 08:46 PM

Yoga: 90 minutes of bliss

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Alice
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 08:01 PM

I'm anticipating being in an empty nest at the end of this month. Not sure if I mentioned this before, but my son will be moving to California. When he had his own place during college, I was on the road so much, neither of us was home. Now I've been able to spend the last 10 months with him living with mom before going on to build a career somewhere else. We have to let them fly, but it sure is going to be quiet here.

This week I started making milk/berry/fruit/flax seed/coconut milk smoothies to have something fast and easy for meals and no mess to clean. I put the blender, which has been stored in the cupboard, out on the counter so it is easier to keep a blender jug full of smoothie each day in the fridge. Already I notice we have less dish clutter in the kitchen.

A.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 07:37 PM

I've caught up with the last few posts on the last thread. I concur about the value of having someone come in to help with the house. When I was in the house before the divorce and then in the apartment after, I had someone come in every other week for four hours. In that time she vacuumed, swept, and mopped, and cleaned the bathrooms. I swept fairly often, and did laundry and such, though sometimes I'd ask if she could iron, etc.

A few days ago I mentioned drawing down the contents of the fridge. I just now cut up and froze a roast I found on sale - that's three chunks of meat that will be ground for hamburger at some time in the future. I have some other things to prepare and freeze, then I'll empty the rest and give it a quick once-over and restock it. I should also empty the freezer of this side-by-side and organize it.

I haven't made myself any bread since I took my son to college. He always inhaled much of the loaf. I think I'll make a regular loaf and freeze half of it.

A thunderstorm has been passing over here for the last 30 minutes. I feel the emptiness of the house more when it gets dark, and when weather like this passes over. I think it isn't so much for myself being alone, but just an expression of the wish that my chicks are somewhere safe to roost.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Alice
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 07:16 PM

I must add that being home now, after a job that had me driving around the state for the last 4 years, I can at least be active in a way that I could not be for those years. It's good to be home and take care of home and myself!

A.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Alice
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 07:13 PM

Working outside has been my main exercise this year, but it turned cold and wet in the last few days. We have had several hail storms today along with the rain.

Temps are supposed to go up tomorrow and provide some sunshine, then I can work again on the storm windows.

Still some digging and transplanting and bulbs that need to be taken care of before it snows. Garage will be de-cluttered a bit more, I hope, before snow. Yesterday's painting
click.
Worked on organizing art materials this morning. Not sure if I'll get an image painted today.

A.

Subject: RE: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: katlaughing
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 07:04 PM

Off to a good start, SRS, good for you. Don't know why, but today I just haven't been able to build up any steam. My dau. and Morgan have both had days off from school and work this week due to colds. I don't have the same, but something made me feel lazy today. I have great plans. Rog is to take off Friday as well as Monday, so we will be doing some extra things around here to clean the house and yard up. I have to give him some time off, too, though.:-)

Hope to do some qi gong tonight, at least.

Thanks for the new thread. You know we've been doing these for almost two years?!

Subject: BS: Declutter & Accountability Sept 2010
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Sep 10 - 06:59 PM

It's looking dark outside, but not because the sun is going down. It's because rain clouds loom overhead. Here in North Texas we've had one of our hottest summers since they've been recording these things, and I am SO READY FOR AUTUMN!!! If it rains, I'll be able to get out and work on my fall and winter garden. It's a bit early yet for the place to look like fall, but we will begin to have cooler temperatures at night. And when this happens, my cleaning and cooking genes really kick in. Here's the last thread.

This is a de-clutter and exercise accountability thread, one in a series we've run each month. I'm adjusting to cooking for one and deciding what projects I'm finally going to finish. I'm also deciding about how to move my sewing machine into the living room so I can sew and spread out and watch movies on the large television while I work.

Each day I've packed, picked up, and de-cluttered in my son's room. I won't throw out anything other than wrappers, empty boxes, etc. and a lot of dust. My daughter's room is the sewing room, and it was an early staging area for my son's move to Arizona last month. I'll make sure it's in good shape as a guest room.

Think about it - soon is time again for our Secret Santa activities. We're wrapping up our fiscal years and planning donations for tax purposes. Many of us will have a lot more energy once the weather is cooler. Let's make the most of all of these activities!

SRS