The Organizing Journey Day 17

Day 17 – I Refuse to Quit

Yes, I did skip two days.  I’m feeling overwhelmed.  Not by organizing.  I can’t even GET to organizing.  Just overwhelmed with other commitments.

These piles and boxes are taunting me.  I feel like my living space is getting smaller and smaller.  Ah well, hopefully soon.

So as tempting as it is/was to stop pretending I’m on an organizing journey, I won’t go there.  I refuse.  I will find the time to do this even if it’s Mount Olympus in front of me.  Maybe if I piled all my boxes and my piles into one heap, it WOULD be as big as Mount Olympus… seriously, I have a lot of stuff.  And it’s not stupid stuff.  Well, there’s a certain amount of stupid stuff, but I anticipate ridding myself of that as soon as I really get started.  No, the stuff I have is necessary and useful.  It’s just NOT organized.  I have dressers with empty drawers.  Cabinets with empty shelves.  Storage containers with no contents.  It’s because in my hectic life, I want everything at my fingertips.  So nothing ever gets put away.  The solution will be a compromise.  Putting things away, but leaving them in my sight.  You’ll see.

Here’s an example of something I started.  These are my spices (on the right).  Having my spices with all the labels facing me is totally what I need.  I can’t be digging through a cupboard, rotating each bottle trying to look at the label.  This is so me! 

But as you can see, I have only done half my spices.  I probably did this a year ago… and still have not taken a couple of hours to complete the job.  My inner critic is calling me a loser.  Which reminds me of one of my favorite songs.  Loser by Beck  Which, if I’d KNOWN the title… well, okay, so I only heard the song on the radio and never saw the title written anywhere.  For years I thought he was saying “I’m a lizard, baby, so why don’t you kill me.”  Apparently I’m not the only one because the first comment on that video… Meaghan, I love you!

I, too, was younger when I got the lyrics wrong… but probably old enough to know better.  Ha!

Okay, back to organizing (and not calling myself a loser… seriously… I have to quit that kind of thinking).

As you are my witness, I will finish my organizing!

I did get some time in the studio today.  I have two half-finished pendants and one that’s in queue for patina.  Then I annealed a piece of silver again, because I’m trying to figure out why I’m having such issues annealing silver.  Copper I can do fine… silver.. .oh my gosh, I make it HARDER than when I started.  Ack!

I’ll show you the goods after the stones are set and the pieces are polished.  I’m trying to get some new work into the gallery before Thursday.

I’ll get a better photo of my newest “skinny drawers” (in the studio), but for now let me show you what’s in a couple of them.  These are bits and pieces that have no current home, and some have no purpose.  But I was tired of seeing them on my work table every day so I put them into these drawers.  We’ll go through them (y’know, organizing them) later on, but for now it keeps the clutter off my work surface.

 

I see a lot of half-finished projects in there.

And here’s something I have to deal with.  Not just this (in the photo)… things like this. 

There are LOTS of things like this.  Items that have no purpose, but I feel like I should keep them in case I need them someday or because they have sentimental value.  Well, not sentimental value, really… more like, effort value.  Something I worked on for a certain length of time so even if I have no purpose for it, I feel bad throwing it away.  Maybe I can make one big treasure box and put ALL the things that fit into this category into the box and then I’ll put it in storage and 20 years from now it’ll be fun to go through, but in the meantime it’ll be out of the way.

While I generally want things that are visually pleasing, sometimes I opt for functional until a more aesthetic options rolls around.  It dawned on me today that I hate ear bud cords.  And every time I want to use my earbuds, I have to untangle them.  Which makes no sense to me ‘cause all I do when I’m done is lay them down.  But whatever.

So I googled “earbud storage” or something like that and ended up on a Pinterest board, that took me to this post, with the brilliant idea to glue two clothes pins together (here they are in my vise with E6000 between them)…

… to become this perfectly practical tool.  One clip end holds the pin jack, the other clip end holds the ear buds, and the cord wraps around the two clips together.

Thanks for all the wonderful comments and feedback.  It’s great hearing from you all and finding out that I’m not alone in this journey.  :-)  Share your tips, tricks, ideas and experiences too, in the comments section.

To see the beginning of this journey, click here.

The Organizing Journey Day 16

Day 16 – The Little Things

Okay, so I did spend most of today in the studio working (after the orchard chores).  But I made a conscious effort to do something I’m not in the habit of doing.  Every time I used a tool or some material or created garbage, I dealt with it… immediately.  It’s a little thing in action, but a huge thing in progress toward a good habit.

After I cut copper solder, I put the “copper solder box” back on the shelf and I put the clippers back in the lazy Susan.

After I got the stone I needed, I changed the stock amount on my inventory sheet, then I put the tray of stones back into the cabinet.

After I opened the box from MonsterSlayer, I put the invoice in my invoice folder, put the wrapping materials in the garbage (except those that get recycled which went into the recycle bin), and I put the metals into their appropriate drawers.

It felt weird and good.  Weird only because I’m used to leaving everything out after I’ve used it (y’know, don’t want to interrupt the work flow).  And good because as I put things away (which really only took seconds at a time.

Unfortunately, I haven’t been doing the same in the kitchen.  I had company this weekend and I tend to not do dishes when I have company.  Sigh.  So now just about everything in my kitchen needs washing.  I’ll either do it tonight or tomorrow (I have more energy in the morning so it’s easy for me to always procrastinate on stuff like that… but it’s true).

I was looking at organizing tips on the internet the other day.  Lots and lots of tips for organizing purses, shoes, make up, and nail polish.  I have so few of these things.  Yay!  I can breeze right on past those things… and kids’ items too.

I also looked at photos that make me realize I *am* on my way to minimalism.  Some of the things in the photos from the internet… just too much stuff!  Granted I am one person.  I know it’s different if it’s a whole family, but I think it still bears consideration.  I mean, look at your stuff and saying, “Do I really need this many of this thing?”  There was a time some of my cupboards may have looked like this.

As soon as I finish this current bracelet order and get out my other two orders, we will sink our teeth back into some real organizing.  I feel REALLY good when I can get rid of stuff, then sort out what’s left and organize it.  I’m so excited!

Thanks for all the wonderful comments and feedback.  It’s great hearing from you all and finding out that I’m not alone in this journey.  :-)  Share your tips, tricks, ideas and experiences too, in the comments section.

To see the beginning of this journey, click here.

The Organizing Journey Day 15

Day 15 – Day Off

Not a day off from blogging because this is like when I needed that “perfect attendance” certificate in 7^th grade.  No, just a day off from organizing.

Although I do have some things to share with you they will wait until tomorrow because it’s almost 10pm (WAY past my bed time) so I’m actually calling it a night without writing my post on my daily progress.

I’ll be back tomorrow and to make up for today’s lame post I promise I will share some good tips with you.

To see the beginning of this journey, click here.

The Organizing Journey Day 14

Day 14 – Distractions Take Two, or Three, or Four

Tomorrow, a half a month will have gone by since I started and I’ve done barely anything.  When I look at the boxes and piles of “stuff” that needs to be sorted, I’m anxious. 

Worried about the huge amount of project ahead of me, but excited about the prospect of having some if not all of it sorted, organized, dealt with.

So maybe my goal for today is to be chill.  There are boxes of stuff.  Being upset about it doesn’t change the number of boxes.

I haven't done yoga or meditating in months.  I've eaten terrible food choices the past week.  I'm not taking care of myself.  I’ve got four custom orders sitting on my workbench (meaning on my list… they are nowhere near my workbench).  They are all right now only existing in theory, not practice.   And today I have to process SRAJD applications, clean a very messy kitchen, still do my outside chores, pay my bills, strip and wash my bedding, then get into the studio.  I've got to get all my houses in order.

And here’s the guilt.  Right on time.  Let’s remember, my two-day company just left.  I need to not be so hard on myself.  I can do this.  Just nose to the grindstone.

As I type, I’m looking at a variety of silver wire sitting in front of me (on my computer desk) and it’s taunting me with the possibilities of things I can make.  I did manage to make ONE thing this past week (in preparation for a class I was teaching).  I made this pair of earrings with my rolling mill (still sorting out the process).

I look forward to finishing the custom orders and start on new work.  So let’s get on with it!

Thanks for all the wonderful comments and feedback.  It’s great hearing from you all and finding out that I’m not alone in this journey.  :-)  Share your tips, tricks, ideas and experiences too, in the comments section.

To see the beginning of this journey, click here.