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Posted By: Lisa LowCarb What did you Organize Today? - 10/22/11 05:29 AM
Today I went through the mail pile which had stacked up quite a lot smile It was great to get all that paper into the recycle bin!

It also reminds me - again - to work to get some of these people to stop writing me paper letters.

We got a new shelf for our dining area, so we can start bringing in all our plants before they freeze. So we need to do that soon.

What did you guys organize today?
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 10/23/11 07:19 AM
do you bring in the herbs from your garden? or just let them come up again next year?
Posted By: Lisa - Moms Re: What did you Organize Today? - 10/23/11 02:42 PM
I think I'm going to tackle my desk today which has piled up due to the Jewish holidays.
Posted By: Susan Helene Kramer Re: What did you Organize Today? - 10/23/11 02:58 PM
I got my birthday cards for November sent out. I still send snail mail cards to family for birthdays and the holidays; I use museum cards that could be framed as small pictures. One daughter says she has framed them and hung them in her hallway across from the bathroom door. I think of these cards as little gifts in themselves and a set of 10 costs about 10 dollars. (euros) for us.
Posted By: Burt B. Re: What did you Organize Today? - 10/23/11 03:54 PM
Originally Posted By: Lisa - Moms
I think I'm going to tackle my desk today which has piled up due to the Jewish holidays.

Oh Joy !
The desk and I have this on-going battle since I was, well about 13yrs.. smile
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/03/11 09:15 PM
I spent five days up in the wilderness near the grand canyon and just brought back one of my tiny vintage trailers. It's kind of ruined. I need to organize the things in it, and clear out the rodent droppings and sanitize it a bit.
Wow Jill! Your organizing project sounds fun! Not so much the sanitizing part, but it's not every day I hear about someone getting bring order to a vintage trailer. Have fun!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/03/11 10:00 PM
thanks - it needs quite a bit of doing. I am working on the list and possible resources now. It will be great to have a tiny little camper that is easy to use. I need to sell my big one to have the money to fix this up though.


Posted By: Lori - Marriage Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/03/11 10:06 PM
My best organizing tip is to get rid of anything non-essential. It's surprisingly easy to organize when you don't have much of anything to file or keep. smile
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/05/11 09:39 PM
Jilly -

We bring in our container plants, and we leave out the in-ground plants.

So the sage and mint and chives are in-ground and stay there.

The rosemary, three kinds of basil, and dill are in containers so those come in.

We also bring in the four pepper plants and some flowers like the lantana and two petunias.

Oh we also brought in a bit thing of stevia.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/05/11 09:42 PM
Susan -

That sounds delightful, to send them little gifts that are meaningful and long lasting!

I don't send any physical cards any more, I have become anti-mail in general. I think I've been deluged with it for too long. I do enjoy sending out books from my house, because it reduces my house clutter level. So that makes me happy!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/05/11 09:42 PM
Jilly -

It's great that you are organizing your world one step at a time! I'm sure it's very satisfying to get everything organized!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/05/11 09:44 PM
Today my son James is over for the weekend so I'm sitting with him while he plays computer games. My boyfriend is coming home with two binders. I'll post separate threads about each of the two projects I'm tackling - car notes and people notes!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/06/11 12:18 AM
Binders! I love binders. And I love organizing by category. I will have to read those threads.

-----

This week i am happy to say I finally got my gigantic mulch pile out of the driveway. It's only been sitting there for a year. That made me happy.

I also picked up my 1950s metal patio glider from the place I had secreted it and put it in the front yard with a small hibachi grille. The other night I made a small fire in it and sat there on the glider with dan to enjoy the fire. Very nice.

--------
Next organizing plan is to somehow remove the washer drum from its plastic casing to build the fire pit, move the garbage and recycling out from the lean to, and bring the patio stuff into the lean to. In an organized fashion, somehow. smile

I should break this all down too.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/06/11 01:03 AM
Dear Jilly -

That is awesome about the mulch and the glider! Your world is coming together!

One step at a time!

I am now putting together my auto binder.
Posted By: Susan-Colleges Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/06/11 01:31 AM
Jilly, I also love binders for organizing anything that I need to look at on a semi-regular basis. I used to file everything in traditional files. Then a friend of mine (who is highly organized) mentioned binders. I started using them at work and it made life so much easier.

For things that I need to look at once a year or less, I prefer traditional files (or the recycle bin). But for anything I look at often, I love binders.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/06/11 02:01 AM
Susan, binders are so much fun! In my self esteem class we now have binders for it and i love it. We each have started bringing in funny or meaningful copies of stuff for us each to share and live in the binders (comics, sayings, artwork, handouts). So those things can be interspersed with the classwork. It makes everything more fun and pretty.
Binders are great! They can be powerful tools, customized in so many ways. And they are super easy to transport. Just talking about binders now makes me want to write an article about the many uses they have. Thanks all for the inspiration!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/07/11 04:39 AM
let me know when the binder article is up! Yay!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/07/11 04:47 AM
OK, today I got a lot of the scrap steel out of the driveway and from the lean-to. I filled my jeep with the metal and hope i will be able to sell that tomorrow. I still have another jeep load of steel, and a cart's full of aluminum cans.

I am very excited to get all the recyclables out from the lean to. I am excited to get the garbagey stuff out of my driveway, also. It looks really white trashy here from the road. I feel so much more settled and content when everything is clean and put in it's place.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/07/11 10:49 AM
Dear Jilly -

I know there are emotionally laden reasons for the "white trash" label. I also would gently suggest that the phrase is derogatory and applying it to your own world hinders rather than helps. So while others might use it, mentally translate it into "cluttered" into your mind. Cluttered is not derogatory - it's simply a current state that can be worked on. If things currently look cluttered, then definitely they can be worked on to look more neat and tidy!

With all the branches down, it is very cluttered looking here. Plus we have the entire old shed's worth of steel in a pile in the corner. So we have to get that out to the recycling place. My sleep schedule is really wacky right now - I was asleep about 2pm I think, awake maybe 6pm? And have been awake since then. I am trying to get myself really sleepy so when I go up I actually fall asleep instead of tossing and turning. Which reminds me, I'll go make myself some tea right now. But in any case it means I'll probably sleep through daylight again. Hopefully I'll wake up with at least a few hours of sunlight to do the outdoor gathering work before it's dark. It needs to get done before the real snows come.

Today was mostly about schoolwork, I wanted to get it done early this week so I could focus on web work during the week itself.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/07/11 11:33 PM
Today I want to bring the books that are on the outside porch into the storage area of my house. They have gotten a bit wet from the storm and are looking curly and unhappy. I move so much that all my books get ruined eventually. frown

I also am hoping to get the rest of the steel and some more metal out from the lean to and set them up for a second recycling run.

Lisa, you know where the white trash thing is coming from. It keeps coming from that quarter and is always either mildly irritating or vastly upsetting. I am working on just being irritated/amused instead of discouraged.

My own POV is that it's all slowly getting tidied up and clean, and that I am in no hurry. It is healing like i am healing. I have to try to remember this in spite of the anxiety of not doing something on someone else's timeline. This is MY house.

I think you should get a nice little bit of money from your old shed. Someone recently dismantled an old bus in the woods around here, and got a thousand dollars from the metal.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/11/11 05:11 AM
Today I have been working on my desk/pantry area. Yes my desk is in the pantry. It's only 150 square feet in here and I have to grab a desk where there is room. smile

So my books and papers and binders are mixed in with nuts and top ramen and olive oil. I have to constantly weed stuff away from my desk or it piles high in a day. Every so often i just take everything out and decide what goes back in. I'm still in the middle of this process and hope to have it under wraps tomorrow.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/11 12:04 AM
Today i worked on pulling more weeds from the garden (almost done!), organizing the wood for the firepit, getting boxes of random stuff off the front porch, and clearing out more things from the lean-to.

Someday all this will be organized and pretty.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/11 02:12 AM
Dear Jilly -

That is great that you are making such progress. Celebrate those small steps!

I know it's challenging, but maybe there's a way to start thinking of it as pretty right now. It's pretty and in progress, and that's fine. Any house will always be in progress. There will always be things to do. And that's OK. It can still be pretty right now, in its own special way.

I'll put the white trash comment in the self esteem area since I think it's more along those lines than the organizational lines.
Posted By: Dianne W - Editor Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/11 02:24 AM
After spending most of this morning writing, I spent the afternoon organizing my storage room and throwing out a lot of my ex's junk! What a liberating day!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/14/11 11:43 AM
Dear Dianne -

That is fantastic! Good for you! I'm sure you feel much better about that room smile

Celebrate the victory!
Originally Posted By: Dianne W - Editor
After spending most of this morning writing, I spent the afternoon organizing my storage room and throwing out a lot of my ex's junk! What a liberating day!


Organizing is liberating! Hurray for you! And I am so glad you let things go that no longer served you. I know how good that can feel!
Originally Posted By: Jilly
My own POV is that it's all slowly getting tidied up and clean, and that I am in no hurry. It is healing like i am healing. I have to try to remember this in spite of the anxiety of not doing something on someone else's timeline. This is MY house.


You sound like you are very self aware Jilly. Stay true to what your feel and know. Consistent slow action will result in lasting change. It the consistent part that is important. No need to rush the process. I am of the mindset that rushed never works, it's fleeting at best. Time spaced improvement is the best way to create and stick a new reality.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/22/11 09:47 PM
Today the fire department came and took our exercise bike, for use in their fire station. So we're helping them stay in shape! We also gave them a bunch of beanie baby toys for use in consoling kids who are traumatized. So two sets of things out of the house. Hurrah!

Bob also did a bunch of chainsawing of fallen trees from the Nor'Easter, so the lawn is in better shape.

We *still* have the steel from the shed out there. I don't like it out there, it is a big mess. I will give Bob a few more days and then I'll just call the Craigslist guy to come take it.

The big issue right now is my Dad is coming over for Thanksgiving dinner and the dining area is full of piles of garden stuff that needs to go into the shed. So we'll have to work on that tomorrow.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/26/11 07:56 PM
Yesterday I pulled a lot of small rocks out from one of the rock piles and made a circle around one of my trees. I also pulled out some huge rocks and rolled them towards my rock garden. dan was impressed with the size of the rocks i was able to move myself. I just use my body as a lever. smile

Today I did some raking and filled up some containers with my nice aged compost, and stacked them under the lean to. I need to make a filter screen to really get the fine compost out. I will put that on my mental list of frugal gardening projects. I know i have some old window frames and some mesh lying around.

Much online work today today. Will get to that list shortly.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/28/11 12:43 AM
That is wonderful Jilly, that sounds wonderful! Congratulations!

We were *supposed* to have our nephew show up this evening and take away a ton of stuff. He never showed up. I'm feeling slightly frustrated that the house was supposed to be much cleaner, and he didn't even call or answer my messages. Now it may be a full week before we can even try again.

I got a bunch of writing projects done today but no cleaning ones. If anything the kitchen got much messier because some of my projects involved getting a lot of glassware dirty (I was documenting what "a shot" looked like in a variety of glasses).

OK, I need to do something organizationally helpful. I will go through a paper pile in my office and at least get that done. That will be one less pile.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/29/11 12:51 AM
Good job, Lisa! Just one more thing each day, even if it's small.

I am sorry your nephew did not show up. Can you take this stuff out yourself?

Today I did a few small things, inspired by this thread. I wanted to at least say I organized something! So I filled up my last two rain barrels with the water I collected from the eaves (in smaller buckets). And I restacked my compost pile and added water to the dry sections. I tried mixing it up a bit. I really do need to restack the pile more often as the top parts were really dry and the bottom was a little anaerobic. (read: slightly stinky).

smile

I also moved some wood pallets and a few small things from my lean to around.

Not much, but it's something. smile
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/30/11 01:27 AM
Today I made some calls to figure out how to get spay vouchers so i can get my kittens spayed - that was a LOT of internet searching and phone calls. I think i have it figured out now. Tonite i will print out the applications and schedule a time to fill everything out and send them off.

I also did some research on trading/selling my land and other high end possessions and put some ads up on craigslist.

Now for some online work to do!
Originally Posted By: Jilly
Today I made some calls to figure out how to get spay vouchers so i can get my kittens spayed - that was a LOT of internet searching and phone calls. I think i have it figured out now. Tonite i will print out the applications and schedule a time to fill everything out and send them off.


Hi Jilly. Your post inspired me to organize my pet stuff/information. Now when I have a pet sitter in everything will be easily accessible to him or her. I thought I had it all set, but I realized this one area that needs to make sense to everyone, not just me.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/18/11 03:09 AM
Kelly Jayne, that is a wonderful idea. Did you put the stuff in a binder, or folder, or how did you do it?

I am so excited. Right now I am working on my Physical Health Binder. It's almost done! I have the different sections thus:

medical visits
Medication information
AHCCCS information
Phoenix Health Plan info
Mingus Center and misc

figuring out if i have more sections to add. Maybe a numbers/resources section.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/18/11 10:28 PM
Today I am working on my Flylady control journal. It has sections for morning routines, afternoon and evening routines, plus goes over zone clearing for the week and daily habits.

I have a control journal that i put together years ago when i lived in Seattle, and I am revamping it to make it applicable to my life now. It's really fun to make these lists, put them in sheet protectors, and use them to help me from feeling overwhelmed.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/20/11 12:23 AM
Dear Jilly -

That is awesome news! I'm so glad you are enjoying organizing your world!

My nephew finally showed up, so they took away a bunch of stuff. They didn't take the dresser, but we just sold that for $25 on Craigslist and someone took that today. So progress, and money!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/21/11 12:55 AM
Did they take the steel? Glad they took at least some stuff!

Today I took in my own first load of steel and made $20. Yesterday I bagged up my bottles and that will be another $50 when I bring it in for deposits.

I still have a lot more metal and wire to bring in but will worry about that next year. smile I think maybe I should set aside this money for fixing up the workshop. This way I can keep recycling and earning from this, but have it be a nice organized and pleasant experience. I need to research some sturdy bins.

I also have my calendar organized and also the 'flight plan' journal for my daily self care and cleaning tasks. It's a flylady thing. smile

@Kelly Jayne, did you get your pet binder worked on?

Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/22/11 02:12 AM
Steel might be tomorrow. I was just too busy today. I did get email organized, my second to last record set to mail, 3 loads of dishes done, etc. tiny steps.

That is great about your progress! Well done!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/22/11 02:14 AM
Today I got Cameron spayed and I also set up my financial records to meet with Utilities Assistance tomorrow.

I also went to two different food pantries and got a lot of free food for the 'over the holidays' stretch. Both places gave me free chicken, which was nice. I cooked up the cutlets today since I don't have a freezer. Now I can just keep the chicken in my dorm sized fridge.

The actual 'bird' I got from the other place I do not know what to do with. I will have to give it away in the morning when it warms up. I have no way to cook it and no way to freeze it. I actually have no idea how to even safely cook a bird. wink
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/22/11 06:27 PM
YAY! I had my meeting with catholic charities today and they will be giving me utilities assistance in seven or eight days. THis will be a big help with my electric bill!

I also found a free place to take a hot shower right here in town. I hope to go use that tonite.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/24/11 09:13 AM
That is fantastic news, Jilly! Congratulations smile

I still have steel in my yard. Maybe I'll decorate it for the holidays smile
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/25/11 11:48 PM
LOL, totally put up some lights on it. smile

Today I took more stuff from my lean to and did some gardening. It was tee shirt weather today, so I really enjoyed the gardening. I was very surprised to see all the great plants that made it through the cold storms of the last few weeks. My thick mulching is turning out to be very helpful in keeping everything growing over the cold months.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/28/11 04:07 AM
Been busy camping, but tomorrow i hope to get some calendar work organized. I also have to drop off some bills, run to the bank, call the MVD, meet my case manager and and pick up my meds.

I'd like to get in a walk or some yoga, too.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/29/11 12:27 AM
YAY! I got all those things done today! Except the yoga - will do that now. Plus a facial. I also did a bunch of house cleaning.

Okay, facial is done.

Tomorrow - meet behavioral worker (call or go to MVD), go to woman's group, go to shower house and fill out more calendar plans.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/31/11 11:39 PM
I got everything done this week that i needed to! It was exhausting. And I am looking at another whole week of appointments ahead...

Today is a total kick back day. I am cleaning, organizing, putzing, reading and enjoying having nothing on my calendar to do for an entire day!
I'm organizing the kitchen this holiday. Get ready for a new year, I want more organized meal times, or I probably mean less stress meals. So I'm organizing so I can plan things better. I guess I'll be working on menu plans soon.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/01/12 12:38 AM
What kind of meals plans?
I want to pick a few days a month to put together and freeze extra casserouls for cook free evenings. I want to use my slow cooker more to help in this area as well.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/01/12 01:10 AM
Ooh, what a great idea - to have casseroles put ahead. And i do not use my slow cooker enough, either.

I really should. It's so easy. I just don't like cleaning the thing out afterwards. smile
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/01/12 06:35 PM
At least you just clean once for many meals!

It sounds like you are doing great!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/03/12 12:23 AM
Okay, you guys are inspiring me to do find and bring in my slow cooker. It's probably got dried food on it from a year ago - ick.

but I would not mind some nice beans. I can even add my garden herbs.
I have to find some of my old vegetarian cookbooks, I remember the greatest chickpea soup from fresh chickpeas. I have a handful of slow-cooker recipe books too that will come in handy in the coming year.

Meanwhile, I pulled a cheese lasagna from the freezer for dinner tonight. That was inspiring to know that one day of putting together four lasagnas created meals for eight days (if you count a left over lunch or dinner for each).
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/03/12 12:41 AM
Alllrighty. Found and retrieved the cook pot. It has a black, baked on crust of old beans from last year. Ick.

I am soaking the crock right now in a bucket of rain water.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/03/12 12:44 AM
Violette, that is awesome! Whoohoo, girl; that's just being smart.

You must have a chest freezer then? I have no room for frozen anything in my dorm fridge.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/04/12 06:58 AM
today i worked on my medical binder some more, and I am still developing my Local Resources binder.

My eyes are tired now from the pinkeye so I gave it a rest.

I do have colored bins to hold my recyclables as of today, so i can mess with that this week.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/04/12 11:47 PM
That is great news Jilly! Cleaning the pot is a great first step, and sorting recyclables is fun!

Well done!
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/04/12 11:54 PM
It's a new day! I need to go to the urgent care this afternoon or evening for my eyes, but in the meantime i hope to get some planning and organizing in.

ETA: My dirty crockpot? I have it floating in some rainwater and a huge circular wad of burned blackened beans was floating on the surface in the bin. heh.

I guess i can take the thing out and actually wash the rest today.

I have a Kindle copy of Saving Dinner by Leanne Ely where she has weekly menus, shopping lists and recipes. I think almost every week she includes at least one crock pot recipe, most featuring beans. The book is organized by season too which is nice.

She writes about cooking for the Fly Lady (the organizational guru of declutter I guess).
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/05/12 07:03 AM
Vi, I am a Flylady fan from years ago. I recently got back on the 'flywagon'. I adore her. It's so nice that someone is just proud of us, all the time. smile

She is totally a guru. Good call.

I know i have a copy of Saving Dinner "Low Carb" somewhere. I think in the kitchen of my RV.

What kind of things are you interested in cooking ahead then? Bean meals mainly? And that is inspiring about all your lasagnas.

------

I wanted to add that I worked on my Bills Binder today after finishing my Pet Binder. I am pretty pleased with these. I also added to my Flight Plan (ala Flylady), which is getting closer to being exactly what i need to refer to each day.

I am a little lost on compiling my Financial Resources Binder - I have so much to add and so many categories to think about. Hmmm. I zipped it all up together to mess with later.

Good night!

Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/07/12 06:02 AM
Had a lot of fun working on my binders this evening. Tweaked my Flight Plan, my project binder, my bills binder, health binder and class binders.

I am figuring out how to tease the local resources stuff from the financial information stuff. Still have to work on that.

I want to add my daily nutritional goals to my flight Plan next.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/08/12 02:45 AM
I worked with my bill binder tonite, adding a set of checks and pen to the binder, and info on the water and sewer companies. Then I wrote checks for those.

I'm pretty happy with this. When it comes time to pay each bill, I will fill out the specific beta on each one.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/08/12 04:02 AM
Tweaked my flight plan again tonite - added my meal plan ideas, to help me at a glance get enough fiber, whole grains, protein, dairy, veggies, fruits and antioxidants every day.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/12/12 05:03 AM
Today I worked some more on my civil traffic fine - the court wants to see proof of this and that. I gathered all the pieces and had my case manager make copies, and then we mailed the envelope to the court. So now the ball is back in their "court" as to how they will choose to reduce the charges. Hopefully. We will see.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/13/12 03:05 AM
My crockpot is now clean! Ha. Only took two weeks.

Now I just need to find a place to put it, and grab some of my bags of dried beans. I will put this up over the weekend I think. I need to make sure I don't burn the beans this time. I really am hopeless when it comes to heat and food. smile

Yesterday I managed to grab a friend who also needed financial help on an eye exam, and we went to our local Lions Club and filled out the applications. They will have a meeting next thursday and will let us know how that works out. So that is one more application done!!!

Also, my other girl kitten was accepted by Morningstarr for a spay voucher. So I have to get her deuterined next week.

I received my magnetic brake lights for my vintage camping trailer and want to add those to the vehicle plus the new license plate. I need help from dan with that, but these are here, ready to go.

Still working on my binders. I made a new vision board for my Flight Plan today - lots of images of water and greenery. Of course. smile
I'm still working on my kitchen.

Got a couple organizer cabinets to put in the basement to put craft and art supplies in for the kids...and mine as well.

Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/13/12 07:13 AM
oo, Vi, what kind are they?
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/14/12 01:27 AM
Today I have been forum posting and then running off to clean and organize small things between postings. Wiping switch plates. Cleaning the cat bowl. Taking out the compost pail. Nothing huge but the little things that add up to a lot.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/16/12 02:59 AM
A good organization day! I am working on getting things off the floor, and putting the stuff that isn't used daily into some kinds of containers, instead of just stacked up. I hung up a few pictures on the wall, made hooks for my broom and baggie holders, brought in a better end table than the one i was using, and returned my swivel chair to the RV.

Also i found a good large spoon, small spoon and fork that I like, a decent mug, and one plate - these are to go along with my downsizing efforts.

Also did some laundry, took apart the cat house now that the kittens have a cat door, and am deciding which three (and only three) jackets to rotate into the home this month.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/17/12 01:44 AM
Okay, i did some minor stuff today - put diatomaceous earth in the cat food (which I have been meaning to do for months), sorted out my coats to figure out the top three I am using this winter), brought in a few purses to pick out which one will be the best for me right now, and eliminated some kitchen items.

I also am working to eliminate some of my winter caps - I have a lot. I kind of love these things. But I can't wear that many. I also have too many winter scarves.

I am sorting through my pajamas right now and am realizing I have way too many. I have big tees, sweats, silky stuff, flannel pj sets and comfy nightie house dresses. I spend a lot of time at home in my pjs but i still think i can get by with less.

hmmm.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/20/12 06:13 AM
I worked on my financial aid projects binder tonite - i put the dividers in a binder and added different papers in between the dividers. Next I need to make hole punches or add sheet protectors so i can track my applications and so on, and also label the dividers. But it is coming along. smile
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/03/12 04:57 AM
Not the best organizational day, but i did get some things done. I faxed in my signature to the disability people - yay!

Also did a heap of laundry and pared down the hair stuff to one brush. next I need to look seriously at my boxes and boxes of hair ties and clips - it's ridiculous when I really just grab the same things over and over. I did just toss one broken hair claw that i kept using for some reason. smile

I think next time i watch a tv show I will bring up my little baskets of hair stuff and figure out what i actully use, and what is just taking up space.

Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/03/12 05:33 AM
I also just worked with my bill binder for this and last months' bills. That works very nicely.

I also am laying out stuff to work on tomorrow.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/06/12 01:29 AM
I have way too many hair accessories. And yet i can't seem to talk myself into getting rid of them.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/13/12 12:05 AM
Last night - organized old coupons, cleared off my desk area and decluttered some of the items i have sitting out. Reorganized my food shelf and moved some books to a top shelf temporarily.

I cleaned up my potting shed area by dumping some boxes of newspapers and old coffee grounds into my garden. I think I will add some of my boxes of mulch and heaps of compost on that too.

I also cleaned out a small box of hotel toiletries from my storage area - one less small box to deal with.

Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/26/12 09:00 PM
I am working on my binders today and also printing out and highlighting information about getting disability. There is a LOT to learn!

Binders I'm organizing today: bills binder, resources binder, mental health binder, classes binder, flight plan and Home Maintenance Journal.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/27/12 12:02 AM
Whew! Just spent a few hours in the yard. Moved rocks, pulled weeds, laid down mulch, watered the trees by buckets of rain water, scrubbed cabinets in the old trailer and put the steel and plastic recycling in the car.

Now i deserve a nice beer. smile
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/28/12 07:53 AM
Today i did some decluttering in my hoard, and scrubbed the really old grimy drip collectors in my 1960s mobile's kitchen. I am soaking them right now in water and washing soda. I will soak them overnight and then scrub again. Tomorrow I will scrub and soak the stovetop grilles. I have no idea when the last time these things were cleaned. Maybe the 1960s. heh.

The stove does not work but it could certainly be cleaned up. It's so grimy, just like everything else in there. Now I can see through the glass window on the oven!

I also got some nice handles from habitat for humanity's salvage store, and will be putting them on the cabinets that remain in there. I already put new ones on the bathroom cabinets.

Little by little!

I also got some paperwork today, answered emails, paid a bill and made some much needed phone appointments. A good day.

Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 02/29/12 04:38 AM
More grille scrubbing, and I also did some drain cleaning in my utility sink in the studio where i live.

Right now I am working with my binder, my calendar, and my wellness classwork. Not much organizing going on - been a busy day doing stuff out of the house. On days like this i am happy to get in my meds, vitamins and some veggies or fruit.

Tomorrow my behavioral worker will come out and help me get the house's hallway cleaned up. I want to get everything out of there and then rip up the gross old carpet with dried up kitten poo all over it. There is also a cubbyhole cabinet that I want to clear out. Those are my two goals for tomorrow.

After that it would be nice to do some organizing in the studio. Things have kind of piled up in here.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 03/01/12 06:55 PM
Yesterday my BHW came over and we got another fourth of the patio cleaned up, and I am pleased to say there is now a visible hallway in the mobile! I got everything out of the hall, and then we spent the rest of the time ripping the carpet and carpet pad out of there. The 1970s carpet was incredibly gross. The pad was just as bad. There was so much fine sifted dirt in and under there that we had to wear face masks. Blech.

Then i shop vacced up the dirt and we tried to remove the carpet pad staples and tack trim. No go. Anything I put down on this flooring will just have to go over the whole thing.

We also uncovered two major holes in the hall flooring, under where the swamp cooler sits in the ceiling. There is a piece of lucite covering the holes in the floor at this time.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 03/05/12 10:44 PM
More good stuff! Dan put down plywood over the hall floor for me - so no danger from the holes in the floor at this time. :-)

We also burned some more paper and burnables and moved the logs and kindling around to make it neater. So I now have a stack of logs, larger kindling and twiglike kindling. Plus the stacks of paper.

I also put some more food pantry stuff away and moved more books to shelf areas instead of just 'wherever".
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 03/13/12 03:13 AM
Today we had gorgeous weather out so we took all the plants outside and put them around the porch. It made me so happy. I was able to do an hour of yoga amongst them. We've left them all out overnight - it looks like it should be fine for them for a few days.

Most of them did make it through the winter, although the three basil plants are a little crispy. The rosemary, at least, is its usual big bushy self, which is great.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 03/19/12 11:07 PM
Having a cold front blow in, so today I cut the ends off some empty gallon milk jugs and placed them over the new food plants i put in last week (strawberries and tomatoes).

Also, taking a look at what I need to do to catch up after traveling for over a week. Making phone calls, checking my calendar, setting plans.

Not unpacking yet. Too stressful when I just rolled in last night.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 03/26/12 01:55 AM
A little annoyed that by putting plastic over some plants to protect them from cold, i ended up partly cooking them the next day! The gardening books don't mention that. frown

This weekend i cleared out another third of my large patio - it now has a seating area and looks clean. I used wood polish on the furniture, which helped. Everything is weathering really fast.

I also did a lot of hand weeding, mulch spreading, plant watering, food foraging and forum writing.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 04/06/12 10:26 PM
Changing out my bedding today, airing out pillows and blankets, adding a pillowcase cover i found for free at a food pantry.

I'd also like to do some produce chopping and dehydrating today.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 04/17/12 06:45 AM
Today I organized my calendar a bit, sorted some books on my new desk, cleaned up a bit in the kitchen and worked on getting things out of the studio that I don't use often enough to keep at hand. No reason the other things can't live in my shed.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 04/24/12 12:36 AM
The last few days I have been organizing anew my studio, since it is purely my own space now. It will probably take a few months to get this where I want it to be. I am fine with it as a long term project.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/01/12 10:59 PM
I have been working on my clothes cubbies and my food shelves. Still a long way from being done.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/01/12 11:59 PM
Dear Jilly -

It's wonderful that you're taking things and appreciating the progress that you're making! It sounds like things are coming together nicely. No need to rush - you have plenty of time.

My office seems to always be piles of books. I am making some progress on sending those off to editors, so that makes me happy. I still have stacks of computer games that I intend to list on Amazon. So I need to work on that at some point.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/02/12 12:21 AM
Thank you, Lisa. It is nice to get encouragement.

I just now took everything off the two big shelves that dan made for food above the sink and washing machine, dusted them and sprayed them down with hydrogen pyroxide. When that dries I will lay out some anti-insect paper that someone gave me, and then decide how to order the food that goes back up there. Right now it's all a hodge podge. I have no idea what I even have.

So I am doing that as we speak.

Lisa, you've been doing a great job with the books! This, of course, is prolly why they keep sending you things, though...
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/13/12 11:57 PM
This weekend i am working on chopping and dehydrating a lot of the massive amounts of produce I've been given. It's a race against the clock, really, lol. But i am having fun experimenting how it goes. Using both my dehydrator and sun-drying things.
Posted By: SandraJ Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/02/13 11:29 PM
Good grief, Jilly!
You are a very busy person!

Oh, by the way, I have a pile of bark in my driveway. I think it's been there over 2 years now. Almost got it gone but I am now waiting for the rain to stop....at least for a few hours!

Every part of my house, garage and life needs organizing. I did nothing, as far as organizing, today but I'm going to do a couple of hours of organizing my craft room tomorrow morning. I get overwhelmed so easily then I get frustrated, start crying and run out of the room. So, I will set a timer for 2 hours of craft room organizing. We'll see how it goes. wink
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/03/13 06:03 PM
Hi Sandra! I'm not busy so much as someone who expects too much of herself.

I finally got rid of my mulch pile and reclaimed that part of my driveway back. Next I have to get the RVs out of here.

What will I organize today? I want to update my calendar, check the mail, put my bills for the week in order and plan the weekend. So, mostly paperwork.
Posted By: SandraJ Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/05/13 12:27 AM
Yippie! I worked on organizing my craft desk area so I can find things easier. I'm working on a project on my dining room table and every time I go into the craft room for a specific supply item...I can't find it!

So I decided to take about an hour to put things away, toss out the scraps of paper laying all over the place, and file some bills & papers laying all over the desk. I can find things a little faster now. wink
Posted By: Quadira Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/05/13 12:41 AM
Yesterday I finally got a storage shed set up on my patio, to keep things out of the rain. Today I stashed in it an armchair that won't fit in my tiny home, plus several boxes that had been cluttering my yard and nearly blocking my door and my art table. Yay!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 04/24/13 06:46 PM
For about six months we've had two empty long storage rubbermaids in the bedroom, waiting to do something with them. Finally today I asked Bob about them, and we tested them in various locations. We decided we really can't use them at all. So we're going to see if any family / friends want them.

To think they've been sitting there for six long months, blocking our walking, when we didn't want them at all!

One step at a time smile
Your experience is not unusual Lisa. When stuff sits around it eventually becomes part of the landscape and we stop thinking about it. The inconvenience becomes normalized. On the face of it that whole scenario seems sad, but what it proves is that we can adapt quickly. There is a bright ray of hope here - since we are highly adaptable creatures, creating new, supportive habits really isn't as hard as we might imagine.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 04/26/13 08:41 PM
Dear Kelly -

Right I definitely agree with the "fade into landscape" idea - I don't even consciously see them any more. But my subconscious does smile.

Today I cleaned my desk and organized that a bit. So a step in a good direction.

Also my friend Debi came by and took away a CD player and audio - video switcher that my mom had given me to get rid of.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/01/13 09:59 PM
Today I am tackling the two boxes of BellaOnline radio material I have in my office. I'm going to scan in all the release forms and then shred the paper. That will help!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/02/13 07:12 PM
Woo hoo, I scanned all the forms and that is all ready to recycle. Now I have a simple stack of CDs and am going through them one by one to post reviews. Progress!

Next up, to review the two humidifiers in my office so I can wash those and put them in the basement, now that humidifier season is over.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/05/13 10:50 PM
Today we worked on the back yard. I transplanted the lilies that had "escaped" from their square fenced area back into that square. We also built the fire pit and had our first fire. So the back yard is getting organized step by step.

Sometimes I look around me at all that still remains, and get a bit discouraged, but I remind myself to take it one small step at a time.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/05/13 11:19 PM
Today I organized some of my thoughts on paper. Spent most of Winter and the beginning of Spring getting new ideas but I was not putting them down. My memory is not too good but thankfully I have not forgotten any of my ideas. Before starting to put them down on paper (started earlier this week) I did put the minimum in a document in my computer, the problem is that it was put there here and there and it was not even put together so I am working on putting it together and figuring it out.

I'm going to have to learn to clear my mind at least once a day because my head will explode! All I do is think and calculate things. It brings me headaches, insomnia, more stress and I can't focus. Hopefully putting it all down is the first step on learning on to clear my mind once in a while.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/06/13 01:31 AM
I want to be able to set aside time each day to clear my mind too. That would be a wonderful addition to my routine. I'm just not there yet.

I am doing really well with my list of "Jilly's Rules." I totally want to keep that going. Small steps.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/08/13 04:20 PM
Nancy -

That is great that you are organizing your ideas! That's a wonderful thing to do.

I definitely recommend daily meditation. It's a great way to build focus and calm. Keeping lists can help with that, so you clear your mind and know it's all written down for you.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/08/13 04:26 PM
Jilly -

Absolutely, small steps are the way to go. Remember, you can start tiny too. You could simply rest quietly for a minute when you first wake up. That would count!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/08/13 04:29 PM
Today my organizing is getting four reviews posted on Amazon, so I can start to clear out the pile of review items in my office. My office ends up being a storehouse for things that need to be reviewed, which stacks up. So it'll be nice to have that cleared.

I also want to get my email sorted into to-do folders. If I don't keep on top of my email every day the inbox gets massive. At least if I get email into to-do folders I can handle them a bit more easily.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/08/13 04:31 PM
Yesterday I made huge progress in writing my thoughts and ideas down. Today I will continue (started earlier while waiting for my scans) doing so.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/08/13 09:34 PM
Hmmm, Lisa, you are right about even one minute. I will think about that. Right now i am really focused on making my "rules" into habits, so i don't want to distract from that yet.

Nancy, that is great that you wrote down your ideas! Feel free to share them!

Today i cleaned out all my random stuff from the (non-running) white jeep, and talked to a mechanic about what kind of fix it might need. I feel really positive that i can turn this jeep into a plane ticket to europe.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/08/13 10:09 PM
Nancy - that is *awesome* that you are tackling that project! I know for me, that writing down tasks and notes is a great help in clearing my mind.

Jilly - definitely, one step at a time. You're doing wonderfully! That is great that you are making progress on the white jeep.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/10/13 01:18 AM
I just finished writing all of my ideas down! The plan now is to finish a few more things and then give my brain a break by not thinking about it for a few months then with all that energy it should give me I will make the big decisions I need to make. Tomorrow I will put a date on when I will finish what I need to do before my big break; I still want my break to last an entire Dallas Stars season but before the plan was to start the day after their schedule would be out or if they would announce Benny as the new captain but I thought today that putting a set date would be better, I just want it done before the first game and I have plenty of time for this.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/10/13 03:22 AM
Today I had a "danger duty session" with a friend. She sat and kept me company while I organized my recycling. Then we took some down to the bins at the supermarket.

I am grateful i have friends to help with this. I help them as well. Next week we have two more Danger Duty sessions. We try to have two a week.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/10/13 05:28 PM
I have made my decision about the date. It's June 4 of this year so it is soon but it gives me enough time to finish some other things. I also made another decision, I was looking at everything I would like to be done before my big break and I want to give myself longer to do these things so that big break will be farter down the road but not that far.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/12/13 12:55 AM
Today I organised my favorites. Most of it are already but I have many videos that are not in their place and many other links too that are not supposed to be there. Plus I found a link that was already there. And there are other links that were just supposed to be there for a while. I have probably fifty or more videos to put in their places!
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/12/13 10:52 PM
I worked a little more on my favorites today.
Posted By: Quadira Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/13/13 10:49 AM
Hi all,

I am away from home, and forget how to access the admin area from this page. I may be able to add my article before I get home, if someone could send me the link, please!

Thanks,
Caitlin
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/13/13 08:36 PM
I did a little more organizing in my favorites. I put all my videos up (in 4 categories...separated by 3 of my fave websites) and I have quite a lot of links after that so it takes more than one minute to put a video in it's place and since videos are what I mostly need to move I don't do much at a time since it ends up hurting the finger I use.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/14/13 10:13 PM
I continued organising my favorites today.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/15/13 09:06 PM
I again worked on my favorites today, I still have many videos left to put in their places but the rest is almost all done.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/15/13 09:39 PM
I made a pinterest board for my organizing projects, to organize them smile.

Organizing PInterest Board

I definitely recommend people try pinterest for managing their priorities. It's a great way to motivate you.

So today I did that and I also did some more of the tarot journal work, to get that updated.

Also we finally got all the plants out of the kitchen and onto the back deck for good, now that last frost is over. So that's a huge amount of space freed up. It then meant I could do two loads of dishes which were also mixed in there. So the kitchen is actually fairly clean now. It also meant I could list the two stereo components on craigslist that I'd gotten from my mom last weekend. All sorts of projects had "stacked up" because of the kitchen mess.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/16/13 09:26 PM
I continued the organizing of my favorites today. Everything that should not be there is now gone and there's less than fifty videos left to be put somewhere else. There's also a bunch of extra links but when I'm going to be done with them they'll immediately be gone instead of letting them there keeping up space for no reason.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/17/13 07:53 PM
I again continued working on my favorites today, I have thirtyseven videos left to put in their places.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/17/13 08:21 PM
Yesterday we were testing out a new router and my boyfriend got annoyed by the mess of cables for the cable modem, router, Vonage box, etc. He managed to pull the Wedding Vase down onto his head which made him less than pleased.

So today I got everything more secure in there and labeled all the plugs.



So that is better. That corner has my romantic imagery - a pair of red swans, a pair of foo dogs, the wedding vase. And our connection to the world smile.

Oh and a small container with red rose petals, sent to me by Susan in Holland smile.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/18/13 10:49 PM
I've been lazy today about organising my favorites, only put one video in it's place. I also have lots of stuff on the floor of a room upstairs, took lots of things out of the closet to fibnd something then I just didn't want to put it back in the bags they were in and then in the closet.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/20/13 01:06 AM
Today I only put two videos in their places and the mess I made in the upstair's room is still there; it's the room where I do my morning routine after breakfast and where my clothes are so I guess that when I'm gonna be tired of having all these things on the floor I'm going to put them back where they're supposed to be, I also made a little mess in my bedroom but at least those things are on furniture not the floor.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/20/13 02:28 AM
Nancy -

Even little steps add up! You're doing great!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/20/13 02:29 AM
I'm completely done with my two spring-1 classes. I organized all their final files and "closed" them own. I'm starting my very last class today, digital photography 2. Now that I have just this one last class, I'll finally be able to breathe smile.

I just sorted all my email into to-do folders, and am heading to sleep. Have great faith that starting tomorrow morning (well, morning is a relative term) that I will start plugging away to make progress on various projects and tasks.

Also the 30 day BellaOnline Earth Day challenges are nearly set. I loved doing them, but they also took time to organize. So it'll be good to have those complete.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/20/13 09:43 PM
The organisation of my favorites continued today, I have thirtyone videos left that are not in their places. The messes on the floor and on the furniture is still there though.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 12:14 AM
Love the foo dogs, Lisa! And good idea on adding wooden shelves to the setup for the electronics.

Today i organized the canned food area of the pantry in Serenity.

I keep pulling out more things to organize and then I have to deal with all my horizontal surfaces being co-opted.

I need to stop pushing myself so hard - i never get to enjoy living in a clean space. I need to learn to clean up an area and then STOP moving right on to the next thing. It leaves me in a constant state of cluttery stress.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:00 AM
I have twentyeight videos left to put where they belong. And the messes are still there :-(!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:11 AM
Jilly -

That is a great idea, to build in time to appreciate what you have done. You have accomplished quite a lot!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:11 AM
Nancy -

That's all right! Just take it one step at a time. Tomorrow is a fresh day smile.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:15 AM
Today I gave away a number of books and magazines, which helps to make my own world less cluttered. So that's good.

I am down to just one review book in my bedroom pile, so that's also good. I do have another large pile in the music room, but one step at a time.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:18 AM
WOW! Down to one review book? I am impressed, Lisa. Although, what is the difference between the bedroom pile and the music room pile?
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:27 AM
Jilly -

The music room pile are all the other books I need to review that were less pressing. So they are still books to review.

I only made it through the do-soon pile.
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:35 AM
What dictates which books are more pressing?
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 01:55 AM
Jilly -

There are a variety of criteria I use. I try to get my schoolbooks posted quickly because those can be $50 or more each and I want to recoup my money before a new version comes out. I like to work through Amazon vine books because I explicitly asked for them.

Many of the books that are left in the music room are books sent to me by publishers that I'm interested in the topic but hadn't necessarily asked for them. Or books that someone suggested I'd like, and I agree and bought them, but haven't gotten to them yet.

One step at a time.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/22/13 11:51 PM
I still have not taken care of the two messes and I only took care of two videos today. Lazy day for me, woke up late and I had a show I like returned with a two hours premiere and I watched a new movie. Now I have a ton of dishes to do and some food before my last two shows starts (will watch the 2:05 and 2:35 replays since i have so much dishes to do...i decided that doing a ton of dishes passed 2:00 would suck).
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/23/13 11:14 PM
Twentyfour videos and two messes left to take care of.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/24/13 06:57 PM
Twentytwo videos and two messes left to take care of.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/24/13 07:21 PM
I've been trying to do at least one thing every day - I'm trying to organize some files which I need to pass along to the next president of the club. I'm eliminating excess and filing what needs to be passed on.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/25/13 11:15 PM
The two messes are still there (i will take care of at least the 1 on the floor tomorrow..i cant take it anymore) but I did a lot in my favorites, I put the entire album of Prometheus one by one yesterday and tonight I found out that the new Eminem song I had was from a 2011 album (i still cant believe i never knew that album was out until tonight!!!!!) so I found all the others (Lighters with Bruno Mars is 1 of his best songs!!!!!!! I CANT BELIEVE I NEVER HEARD IT UNTIL A FEW HOURS AGO!!!!!!!!!!), I have the extra songs from The Dark Knight Rises (except 16 which for some reason is only available by a remix of someone i dont know about) and the songs from A Serbian Film. If I take care of each songs from these four albums per day I'll be done with this on Wednesday!
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/26/13 09:31 PM
All the songs from the soundtrack of A Serbian Film are in their places. I also started this afternoon to clean up the mess on the floor but I had to go downstairs a little after starting to do something and the energy to finish had gone so I didn't, at least some is gone.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/27/13 10:47 AM
The Eminem songs from the album I did not know about are all in their places, I will not take care of the messes today because I am too tired but earlier when I was waiting for my last scans I did put into writing my big days coming up and what the plan for these days are and before that I organised all my nail polish (got plenty so will not need new bottles any time soon).
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/28/13 08:02 PM
Ten tracks of the Prometheus score is in their places so twenty videos are left. The two messes are still there.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/29/13 05:52 PM
Today I put three videos in their places. The messes are still there, I did went through some of the things on the ground and that gave me an idea.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/29/13 08:02 PM
I am reorganizing the papers of my organization which I have been saving for the past three years.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/30/13 10:40 PM
Today I put a few more videos where they belong but I found two songs I never heard before and like on Youtube, the two messes are still there.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 05/31/13 08:33 PM
Today I finally took care of one of the two messes (the 1 in my bedroom), also all the videos of the score of Prometheus are in their places. I also put in writing the plan of the next few weeks (it stops in july). So now I have seven videos and one mess to take care of.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 06/01/13 06:40 PM
I put the two songs from Shame in their places, now I have five videos and one mess left.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 06/01/13 06:57 PM
As I prepared to back up my laptop, I consolidated some files and tried to eliminate a few as well. I am filing.
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 06/02/13 05:36 PM
I finally have all my favorites organised like they should be, now I hope every new links may they be videos or something else will be put in their places when found because I'm going to end up like I was again!

The mess on the floor upstairs is still there but I gave myself until July 5 maximum to take care of it, it's a job of less than ten minutes so I should be able to do that by then (by july 6 i want to get up early and eat better...i also will start again using my sundays for cleaning like i used to do since being a teenager...when i started beeing lazy i stopped doing that..now all i do on my sundays is clean my bedding...when theres too much dust i just use 1 of these swiffer things to gte rid of it).
Posted By: Nancy Roussy Re: What did you Organize Today? - 06/11/13 06:54 PM
Finally the mess on the floor of one of my rooms is gone, I finally can go get some clothes without risking to brake something or injure myself!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 08/09/13 02:29 AM
I am finding that the house can easily and nearly instantly fill with clutter if I don't make a deliberate effort to keep it in check each day. It is staggering. My office was clean only a little while ago (it seems) and now it is a giant mess again. Piles of things everywhere.

So I am going to restart my efforts smile. Even just one thing, each day, in each room.

For example, my boyfriend hung up my grandmother's plate in my office two weeks ago or so. It was nice of him. But he left the container of hooks on the table in here - and it's just sat there ever since. So I am going to move it to the pile of "stuff to go into the basement" at least smile.

I have a giant parakeet cage in the kitchen, waiting to be sold on craigslist. I will drop its price by $10. It's worth $10 to me to get it gone!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 10/16/13 10:27 PM
It is amazing how quickly the house fills with junk. I still have this parakeet cage!! At this point though I figure the holidays are coming up and maybe things will sell during the holidays. So I'll tolerate the mess until after Christmas and then I will PURRGGGEEE!!!

Today I'm working on my email to-do piles, to get that whittled down.
Ok Lisa!

Today I just organized other peoples stuff at work, but, and I WILL FOR SURE be re-posting on this page this weekend.

I have a lot of organizing to do for the upcoming holidays because I will be working so much. Be I INTEND TO GET IT DONE! Thanks to BOL! I can achieve so much now. You are inspirational!

I thank you and all involved...you are changing my life for the better.

It's so funny. My girls always ask me as I'm sitting typing on my laptop "Mom, are you doing your recipe thing on BOL again?" I just smile and say, "Yes, I am" smile And they say, "Cool". My kids have me bookmarked! LOL

So Friday and Saturday, I will be on the junk thing!!

later....
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 10/17/13 07:18 AM
Lisa and Allyson, My daughter was here yesterday and she put the desk together. She is organizing because baby #2 is coming on Nov. 5 if not earlier (earlier would be good). So, I have the desk now and have wanted an office or three years and just didn't do it. My husband glombed the desk last night and has scrapbook materials on it. He's putting together the album from our latest trip. Before the holidays, I need to say NO to any additional volunteer work and stay at home and reorganize the shared desk; my piles of stuff on the coffee table; on the floor; get book shelves for my genealogy library; etc. Whew!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/29/13 08:16 PM
I finally made another 12 "tracking cubes" for the various Facebook fan pages I need to update each day. These are in essence 2" x 2" squares of paper I keep on my desk, one for each site. I laminate them so they don't wear down. I have one for each site I run, so Low Carb, Video Games, and so on. That way when I glance at that part of my desk I see quickly which ones still need to be done. When I do one I can toss that cube into the "done" pile and it's a good feeling. I have 24 pages I now maintain, so keeping it organized is a must.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/29/13 10:01 PM
My big projects were sorting through one of my junk drawers and combining Christmas wrap and emptying out a drawer so that I could put my flags away. As a result I emptied out a big box that I hope to fill with clothes to pass on.

Your idea of the update cubes is really good.
Between yesterday and this evening...A LOT!

Santa Joe (my hubby) got me a Canon scanner and from the piles and piles of recipe notes, printed recipes of my own, recipe ideas....trust me I had piles and piles, over-running my coffee tables too, I scanned with ease and uploaded to Evernote.

I love that program - does anyone else use it? It's a great App - I have it on my Galaxy III too, so I can write notes from home or work and it all syncs.

Well, I made files and organized. Still need a little tweeking, but I feel free in my mind knowing I don't have to pull out piles of papers and look for a scrap! It took me longer to look for my notes than it did to type my article. lol. I feel uplifted!

So Happy and ready for 2014, in an organized way!

Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/29/13 10:41 PM
Allyson, I received a Flip Pal for Christmas but have not installed the software yet or tried it out. I am setting up an office upstairs but have a bit of work to do before I can inhabit it and get anything done. I recently began using Evernote but not extensiv ely yet. I did save two webpages to Evernote today and used the little app on the Chrome browser to do that.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/29/13 10:56 PM
Allyson -

That is great about the scanner! I have a Neat scanner which is like this:



So you feed items into it one after another, quick and easy. I keep a bin to toss receipts into and when it fills up I sit on the couch watching TV with Bob and just feed in all the items. They scan to my laptop, auto-sort, auto-file, and it's done. I can then shred all the paperwork and know that I have everything on record.

My bin is full right now, so I need to do that smile.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/29/13 11:14 PM
Lisa, one of my first scanners was a like the one you mentioned - I loved it - small footprint and it was quick and dirty. But with the upgrades in software and company changing hands the drivers went away and I couldn't update it and use it any more.

Is the one you have like the one I have seen advertised on TV? How does it know how to sort and label?
Nice scanner Lisa!

Mine is similar size but just a little thicker in depth. I love it!
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/30/13 11:10 PM
I used my Flip Pal tonight and scanned about 100 photos tonight. They were from my uncle's album from the early 1930s. Hot dog - I have almost finished this project. Scanning was the hardest part.
Angie - that is awesome!

I have the same project to do one of these days. I'm always afraid my old photos will get damaged/damp in the cellar. It's a 'to do' on my list!
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/30/13 11:55 PM
Allyson, it's just the tip of the iceberg but you have to start somewhere.
Speaking of the tip of the "ice-berg?"

Today, I mentally organized that of my Spiritual well-being! I took a stand, said my piece and ironically, all of the other pieces fell right into place smile
smile
Thanks "Al!" smile
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/31/13 08:01 PM
I just saw an ad for TryNeat - is that what you have?
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/31/13 08:02 PM
OK!!!
Your welcome Karen!

Happy New Year darling!
smile
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/01/14 05:50 AM
I've been scanning receipts all night long, while Bob and I watch a Magnum PI marathon. I'm nearly done with the bin. Then tomorrow I'll shred them, and that will be one less pile of stuff in my office! Hurrah, one step at a time.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/15/14 07:38 PM
I did get all 2013 receipts scanned and shredded and they all went out with the recycling. Hurrah smile.

Today I packed up 2 ebay items, 1 amazon, 1 paperback bookswap and Bob is bringing them all to the post office for me. Decluttering one step at a time, plus bringing in a bit of income too. And making people happy. A win-win-win.
Yeah! Happy for Lisa!

I know you've been backed up..you're an inspiration to me.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/19/14 06:49 PM
My inbox is now at 1,900 mail messages. Time to sit down and sort this all out. Need to invest some time in unsubscribing from lists again.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/20/14 04:03 PM
Lisa, I feel your pain. I too have subscribed to too many newsletters/blogs, etc.

I was organizing some family history - sorting names and families and trying to put them on the right tree!
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/27/14 07:23 AM
A new week! New opportunities! I start with 1752 messages in my inbox. First task - to sort and organize these. Happy Monday!

What are you organizing?
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/27/14 09:23 AM
Still on genealogy - sorting my father's letters to my mother during WWII.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/27/14 10:03 AM
Angie -

That's what I was doing yesterday. My son was over so I was sitting with him in his room which has all the diary / genealogy stuff in it. I scanned in 300 pages worth of letters from my great-grandmother. Now I just need to "merge together" the pages that go with each letter set, so they form distinct units, and then I can send all the PDFs off to family members. I also put them all into sheet protectors in a 3 ring binder, so they can store more nicely.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 01/27/14 05:42 PM
Lisa, I use Primo PDF and I append the pages (when I make and save pages individually) and make one document OR I scan the pages and make one document.
Awe Angie and Lisa! Stuff so heartfelt always makes me cry In a good way smile
Posted By: Jilly Re: What did you Organize Today? - 04/26/14 07:21 PM
Back in AZ for a few weeks to organize everything here. It's overwhelming to pick what to do first - trying to make a list and number the things by priority.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/06/14 07:41 AM
My house has devolved into a giant, extreme disaster while I focused on all the server stuff. It's hard to even know where to start.

Tomorrow I will tackle one spot. Just one.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 09/01/15 04:51 PM
Today I packaged up a bunch of books that had to get mailed, as well as a set of manga I sold on ebay. So that was a good amount to clear out of the house. So a win-win. Tonight I hope to pack up another 20 books and get those ready to mail. These are all marketing copies of my own books going to readers. So I've just had these stacks of my books in my office waiting to go out, taking up space.

Also I have a big stack of Penguin review books here. I'll sort through them, make a list, and send that to the editors. So that way my office gets cleaner and editors get free fun books to read.

It'll be progress!

What are you guys organizing this week?
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 09/01/15 06:04 PM
Good job, Lisa. What an accomplishment.

Tonight I need to finish working on the inventory and merge any duplicates.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 08:42 PM
Today my task is to clear off my desk. My desk tends to be a magnet for clutter but every small step helps.

What are you guys going to organize today?
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 08:51 PM
I had a pile of coupon offers (department stores, restaurants, etc.) and I weeded through them and cleared out a lot and the same goes for the mail.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 09:21 PM
That is great, Angie! I have piles of junk mail lying around. I need to just sit down with it all, go through it, and recycle it.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 09:31 PM
Originally Posted By Lisa LowCarb / VideoGames
and recycle it.


I love filling up the recycle basket. At one time I kept a bag by my chair. As I went through the mail I chucked the paper into the recycle bag.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 10:08 PM
Yes, we definitely recycle every thing that we can. We only have one planet and it is struggling right now. If we destroy it, then we all die. It's as simple as that.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 10:25 PM
We did a lot of recycling when I was a child. We scouted around for bottles and turned them in for money (that was when soda bottles were in glass and they were reused). My mom would pack my red wagon with rags, newspapers, etc. and we would take it to the rag man. He weighed the wagon loaded, then empty, and gave us $$ for the junk. We often heard from Woodsy Owl, "Give a Hoot, Don't Pollute."

When Al Jazeera America was on they had a great ad hoc commercial. A plastic bottle is being blown around the city streets, in the country, the forest... The bottle says it always wanted to be at the shore overlooking the sea. Finally, after many travels, someone picks up the bottle and puts it in the recycle can and in the next scene, the voice says, it is exactly where it always wanted to be, a bench overlooking the sea. What a great message.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 10:46 PM
I think when people only had a little, every item was precious. They reused every item they could.

Now that people aren't in that kind of super-tight financial situation that they just toss stuff away without thinking about it.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/13/16 11:03 PM
I remember hearing people say that we became a "throw away" society" when plastic came into use. It couldn't be repaired so just toss it. The days of "MacGyver" (remember that show), the man who could make something out of nothing, are long gone. My parents grew up during the depression so I'm a child of that age too - save and reuse, re-purpose everything.

I know when I go into the grocery store, the clerks probably groan because I bring in 3 or 4 tote bags for my groceries. It's so much easier and faster for them to pack a couple of groceries in the plastic bags and me leave with 20 bags.

Fortunately, the plastic bags are recyclable too.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/14/16 12:00 AM
I wouldn't think they would groan - most places I go to are happy that people bring their own bags. Heck, it saves them money. Some stores even pay you to bring your own bags because of that.
Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/14/16 11:21 AM
A lot of the younger cashiers look for speed. One store does give a credit when you bring your own bags.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/25/16 09:46 PM
I finally got my email inbox down below 10,000 messages. It's still quite a lot, but it's a start. One step at a time! Now to work on Mused final proofing, now that I can find things a bit better. What are you guys up to today?

Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/25/16 11:45 PM
Originally Posted By Lisa LowCarb / VideoGames
I finally got my email inbox down below 10,000 messages.



Lisa, you are as bad as I am -----
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/29/16 10:50 PM
My email inbox is now under 4,000 messages! Huge progress from when it was up over 10,000. Every little step adds up! How are you doing today?

Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 11/29/16 11:35 PM
Good job, Lisa. I am told your inbox should always be empty at the end of the day. I often leave items in my inbox that need some follow up.
Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 12/27/16 07:23 PM
My email inbox is finally down below 1500 messages! Hurrah! Every step adds up to progress smile. What are you guys up to today?

Posted By: Lisa LowCarb Re: What did you Organize Today? - 03/21/17 02:42 AM
Oh my head! I just spent hours digging through mail server internals / IP tracing / IP blocks trying to track down why my mail hasn't been working properly for months. I dug out some answers and - fingers crossed - I think my mail is finally working properly again. Hurrah! Now to get some sleep - I have to wake up early tomorrow! Have a great night everyone smile. #namaste

Posted By: Angie Re: What did you Organize Today? - 03/21/17 08:30 AM
I tried to organize myself for a meeting today - I have a pile of items to take with me and don't want to get there and be missing something.
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