The FastDay Forum

Let's do it @CandiceMarie

Same as chinchin and coffeetime. I am rubbish at it. Pun there? Pardon me. I went to ikea today and bought lots of storage boxes and things. No idea what I'm going to do with them. Just admire them probably. I am a bit concerned though as to why someone would want to part with 18 year old wool. Was there something wrong with it?
Decs are down but put not put away (that's what I got the boxes for) I'm thinking that if I put them away properly labelled, I will find them better next year. If the boxes are all the same they will only take ip a small footprint in the garage when they are stacked. Trees will stay up till Tuesday. Good idea?
As you can see, I am in dire need of help. Come on, let's get this show on a new year road

Oh @Wendy Darling you sound so sorted! I'm getting my boxes out now. I believe the tree is fine for Tuesday the 6th.
Bedtime soon and then Monday fast for me

Love this tent. Is it the day to take down the decos, cards and Christmas tree? I thought it was 12th Night. Wouldn't that be Wednesday? My New Year Resolution is to de clutter an object every day. So far the decluttered items have all ended up in a box in the study and I can see what will happen - they'll end up decluttering the study. I need to move them on to the next port - the car on the way to the charity shop. It's so hard. I am getting rid of a perfectly good operational portable radio cd player. It is surplus to need and just was cluttering up the kitchen. But surely someone wants it! Boxes are good. I bought some of those big plastic boxes with lids some years ago on a decluttering spree and now I have a Christmas Box, full of all the paraphernalia of Christmas. So if I want something that has any relation to Christmas, I know where it is. I also have a wool box.@Wendy Darling Of course we need 18 year old wool! I think I need to be more systematic about it. I am just randomly going around the house every day and chucking something that I notice. Perhaps I need to take on a cupboard today. As for the question of what to chuck and what to keep! Very deep! There are a series of questions to ask: Have I used it in the last year? ( No, not the 18 year old wool) Do I love it? I can't remember the other questions. There are whole books written about this!

@Sallyo very good questions you pose. For me, there are two to do's 1. keep sentimental/historical items for the family. 2. keep items that explain who I am as an individual and what I love. Does that make sense?

Thank you Lizbean. I do often give that impression, strangely!
Sallyo, that is a great idea. One item a day. I will give it a go because like you, I have trouble offloading perfectly serviceable but unwanted items.
Anyone else in for an item a day?

Spotted this news item examining the parallels between over eating and collecting too much stuff. Interesting.

Viewpoint: The hazards of too much stuff - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-30849473

Julieathome wrote: Its the wrong time of the year, but I am putting my winter boots on ebay. They are too big for me. Who knew that losing 40lbs would shrink my feet as well as my waist.
One thing we do keep is the packaging that expensive electronics came in as we tend to move house fairly regularly. The boxes are a much safer way to transport TV's and computers plus my power tools than stacking them in a moving truck willy nilly..

@Julieathome I had the same experience when I lost weight! My feet shrunk and none of my lovely, expensive shoes fit any more.
Also, I used to move a lot, so I save the boxes from big electronics, too. However, I've been living in my current place almost 7 years, so I'm probably safe to throw them out now!

I love this thread! I just spent this weekend (including a fast day) decluttering, including throwing out a giant box of Kashi bars that I hadn't looked at in months. I was able to remove 2 large plastic shelving units which were pretty ugly, including one from my living room and one from my dining room. I also hung up some art. I rearranged my knick-nacks and put my DVDs and VHS tapes (!) into storage.
I wish I could do the decluttering on my fast days, but I usually do those on work days and I tend to be pretty tired when I come home.

I feel like I have a constant battle on my hands - a husband who never puts anything away doesn't help!
I feel worse about it since having a cleaner who has pointed out a few times that she couldn't cope with having the amount of "stuff" around the place that we do and that she can't dust certain areas because there's too much clutter!
My latest strategy is to do half an hour a day tidying/decluttering - will let you know how it goes!

Madcatlady wrote: I feel like I have a constant battle on my hands - a husband who never puts anything away doesn't help!
I feel worse about it since having a cleaner who has pointed out a few times that she couldn't cope with having the amount of "stuff" around the place that we do and that she can't dust certain areas because there's too much clutter!
My latest strategy is to do half an hour a day tidying/decluttering - will let you know how it goes!

@Madcatlady I have always been worried about hiring a cleaner for fear they couldn't clean around my clutter. I would basically be cleaning prior to the cleaner! But now that my apartment is all put away, I can see all the grime. Still, I feel guilty knowing that I should be able to clean a 1 bedroom apartment myself, especially given that I know it's such good exercise. But I never seem to get the grime to go away!
I live alone - can't blame it on a sweetie, tho I used to have a semi-live-in boyfriend who was a borderline hoarder. Now he's a great friend, but I'm so glad to have him 600 miles away, and no longer leaving paper bags and half-finished projects all over my dining room and living room! Once he left a saw on the floor for days!

Excellent article, @carorees ! I have seen other research linking obesity to hoarding. I also know that when you spend your money on experiences, rather than STUFF, money CAN buy happiness, and I have resolved several years ago to spend my money on travel. However, I do tend to buy stuff on my vacations to remind me of the trips... so I guess I'm not all the way there yet!

I was decluttering happily when I came across some textbooks from undergraduate and graduate school I couldn't part with, and I can't figure out why. They are not particularly relevant to my current field, they are outdated, and I don't ever look at them. Sure, they are hidden away in a closet, but why do I keep them rather than recycling them (no one would be able to use them, as they are both extremely esoteric and outdated)? I can only surmise it is because they remind me of being in college, which was not an entirely happy time in my life, but at least represented a time of endless possibility.

I think I'm going to post here that I will recycle these books (along with some ancient cook books I haven't looked at since I moved to my current place 7 years ago!) this week, and I expect you all to hold me to it! So there!

Well I haven't exactly been doing the half hour every day but my house is definitely looking tidier! Instead of ignoring areas that require attention I have been tackling them one at a time when I feel inclined/have the time. Shame I haven't unearthed my favourite pair of sunglasses that have gone missing but I am clinging to a shred of hope! We are currently fitting out a new holiday home so we have taken some of our dishes from the kitchen (I always said we had too many!) so that has created some cupboard space and I keep adding stuff to the charity shop pile!

Good work @madcatlady!
And how exciting about the new holiday home! X

I'm glad to see this tent resurrected. Well done @Madcatlady. I have been having a bit of a blitz lately. OH has been too unwell to keep up his cleaning and housework duties and I have taken them on with enthusiasm. It may wain, but at the moment I am enjoying establishing new cleaning routines. Tomorrow I am going to tackle the guest bedrooms, which are very dirty in places like the skirting boards, behind the beds. At the end of that day I will have done one round of the whole house, except the laundry. My plan then is to revisit each room and take on a decluttering job in each room, now that they are basically clean and I won't have to do much more than a quick vacuum. One room a day. One shelf per room a day. The exception to this is the disgusting sewing room/ study where I could only bear to spend half an hour yesterday. There are still piles and piles of junk to be sorted. I only managed a corner of the room.

I have moved many times in my life but with three grown up children, living in mainly houses/flats that were too small, I have done my fair share of sorting/decluttering. At the moment we live in a small bungalow where all the rooms are small and more importantly very little storage space, so I think now I have the fewest belongings since my mid twenties when I married. And the fewer things I have the happier I feel.

Lots of knick knacks make me feel claustrophobic, which is what I feel every time I visit my parents or inlaws. When I come home from a visit I get straight on to decluttering my own home even though there is very little left.

I tend to tackle one room every month or two, so everything goes through my hands at least twice a year. My one big weakness is BOOKS. I used to have shelves upon shelves of them. But since moving to this bungolow with very little space I have allowed myself only 1 tall and one half book case. If we get a new book and I can't fit it on either of the book cases, one of the old books on the shelf has to go.

Sadly my MIL (a massive hoarder) died recently and my FIL is in the process of decluttering. So I ended up with a few items which I couldn't bear being thrown out. But now it makes me feel uncomfortable because I had to put them in the guest bed room which I did not want to clutter up.

So I have the same dilemma like everyone else that I WANT things and then when I have them I can't stand them taking up space in my home. Does anyone think I need therapy?