Cleaning, Clearing and Donating

Is this Baile Rochel talking?
Could be...

How can one clean when buried under an avalanche of things?

Shuffling/transferring stuff from one place to the next doesn't really help, even if it's the only way to reach the floor. I look at my house and feel sick. I can't paint it, not just because of the expense. I just can't imagine moving everything around and then having to put it back. Just the thought of it, and I go catatonic.


Not all that long ago, the woman who coordinates the senior citizens activities sent out a notice that she would like a few music CDs, so I happily filled up a bag. I haven't bothered listening to my collection for almost four years. I got out of the habit when my mother passed away, and it was forbidden to have music on. Since then the news is on TV most of the day. But I still have too many. Now I'm at the tail end of the year's mourning for my father. Will I start listening to music when it's over? I don't know. But seriously, how many CDs do I need?


I've given away a few dozen books, but they hardly made a difference to the gazillions here and all the papers. And I must say that probably under 1% of the books are mine. So, I don't have the authority to get rid of them.

But I'm very proud and excited to say that this week I did get rid of some stuff that had been inhabiting a nice bag for years. I transferred it to a bag that we really didn't need, killing two birds with one stone! Call it "double riddance," for sure.

Yes, I got rid of lots of yarns from my hat crocheting days. OK, I'm keeping the crochet hooks. I brought them to the senior citizen center when the weaving teacher was there. My plan is to do a very different weaving project next which will incorporate the yarns I've donated. 

Granted it's a small step, but that's how we start. Step by step, nothing traumatic, nothing drastic. Isn't that what Fly Lady tells us?