Resolution 2012

I do have a resolution for this year.

Although challenging, I feel that it will decrease my overall stress levels. I believe it will help keep me sane, contribute to a general feeling of well being and promote a peaceful night's sleep. It may be challenging but it is doable and I feel it is worthwhile.

It may even make my hair more luxurious and glossy.

I resolve I will not watch any political commercials in 2012.

Anyone want to join me?

endings can be fabulous

So many times I dread an ending. When something horrible ends I find that I frequently forget to celebrate the ending of it. Even if I have comforted myself with the thought 'that everything changes' while in the midst of it.

Yesterday I was reminded that endings can be really lovely happy things. I can't help but rejoice for our country and I am so grateful to hear this good news. In fact, like everything right now, it moves me to tears-happy ones.

I find myself wanting to acknowledge this moment but not having many words. Existence is not fair we all know, but it is nice to rejoice in justice.
I wish you all a happy, peaceful week if that is what you would enjoy.

vacation downside

and I don't mean the bugs!

great vacation = time away from work = very full inbox at work on return = so much time trying to get caught up + special work projects ==> no time to blog for days!

There have to be jobs out there when you don't come back to a bigger pile and end up having to pay for your vacation, right?

There is just guilt all around this situation for me. Guilt that I am complaining about the effects of a paid vacation [oh poor me], guilt about having a job when so many do not [how dare I not appreciate it], and overwhelming guilt that really why do I take vacations at all...

I read a startling statistic in the Lonely American last week ...'Americans workers gave back, or didn't take advantage of, 574 million vacation days in 2005'.

This just stuns me. And this wasn't me, the only days I 'don't take' are the ones I can carry over for the next year, and that is just 40 hours at my company. Why does vacation have to have negative consequences for me and what can I do to change that?

Do other people struggle with this? Do other people have success just walking away for a week or two saying to themselves 'no one is indispensable' and can just let it go? Currently I am an odd mix of the two. A work in progress.

Out it Goes

As some may know, I have a bit of an anti clutter bug. It started in 2002, when I realized my 'stuff' was all too much and I started, systematically, going through everything I owned. The free flylady system was a big part of this. I trimmed down my possessions by 75% and reaped huge benefits from it. There is only one item, an old journal, that at times I wish I still had. Mostly because my memory can be so bad.

For the past year though I have felt like my clutter level was off. I know that clutter is something you have to deal with on an ongoing basis, and I thought I was but I was still feeling bogged down and overwhelmed in many areas of my life. It was a puzzle.

I have largely increased my de-cluttering over the past few days enough so that I am really starting to feel back in balance. I also now realize why I got so off kilter -- it was mostly the wedding.

It seems to be a common thing that weddings involve lot of stuff flowing in and not all that much flowing out. We invited over 100 people to our wedding and that generated a lot of gifts. Also throwing that big of a party took a lot of stuff, even with rentals. I think there were a 6+ months where stuff just kept flowing in and in to our home. We also had weeks of wonderful house guests and that also increased stuff levels. My usual clutter maintenance never got adjusted for this huge influx.

So I spent a year wondering why I felt so out of balance but not realizing what was happening. [Should I feel bummed that it took me that long or just grateful I finely bought a clue?]

Then the holidays rolled around again and yet more stuff in the form of presents came in. Luckily right after my wife went on her first major, throwing things away, getting sorted, binge. It now is so clear to me, I feel like a snake that finally digested a big meal and I don't want to take this metaphor too far but things are now going out in an equally big way.

I have gone through my cd collection and pruned and pruned, at least a third gone. I have gone through my shoes and got rid of a third. I even gave away my wedding shoes and purse which I have no interest in wearing again. I went through my sweater collection and released a third there as well. As well as my clothes closet. I plan on doing more, a bit at a time. There will probably be more sorting updates in the weeks to come.

Winter just seems like the perfect time to me to declutter, I am love, love, loving it. My productivity level is going up and I feel great. I just took my stuff to ARC for donation so it is already out of the house.

There was another two wonderful surprises this week. We got 2 written thank yous in the mail for our dinner party! They are so charming and old fashioned in the nicest way. It's like time-traveling to a more elegant, genteel and idealized time. And how great is it to get something that isn't a bill in your mail?

Now more of my secrets are out, I am that easy. To make me happy just slip me something nice in the mail and help me take out my loads of trash.