52 Weeks to a Clean House: Week 8 - Organized People Don't What???

When I was young, I shared a bedroom with my sisters. On Saturdays, we cleaned our room. Usually this was a "dust and vacuum" kind of job, but periodically it was time to clean under the beds and inside the drawers. My sisters magically whipped through this task, and I was left alone in my room with, well, stuff. I would organize and tidy a drawer, and then there was always this little pile of things left over. Things I wanted, but didn't really know how to categorize. How could my sisters put away all of their things and have their spaces look so tidy so quickly? What did they do with their little odds and ends?

I have since read that organized people don't have "miscellaneous." What? They don't have a miscellaneous drawer. They don't have a miscellaneous file. They don't have a miscellaneous pile of stuff left over. What do they do with all their miscellaneous?? Apparently, the belongings of organized people have a home. A place for everything and everything in its place. It makes sense. I mean, if I like an item enough to hang on to it, I should honor it with a place to stay, right? But all my life, I have had these little piles of things or or little stacks of papers left over when I clean. That is one habit I need to change!

I am determined not to have miscellaneous hanging around when I am through with this cleaning project. The office is testing my commitment, but I am pressing forward. As I cleaned out old files this week, I noticed evidence of my cleaning issues archived through the years. For your reading pleasure, here is a list of actual labels on old file folders I found this week:

• Current!!
• Immediate!
• Miscellaneous (you knew it had to be there, right?)
• To File (really? A FILE of things to file? Why didn't I just file those papers in the first place?)
• And my favorite...RANDOM RECEIPTS.

I laughed, too. And I am not going to use those labels ever again.

Maybe new filing supplies will help?

Filing is taking a toll on my motivation, so today I sneaked in an errand to the office supply store. I love looking at new office supplies and notebooks. Maybe having new, colorful folders will make filing less of a chore. While at the store, I found a little notebook on clearance with a great Dr. Seuss quote. Maybe it will keep me motivated until the end of this project.

Great quote for inspiration.

Because the sorting is taking so long, I decided I needed to tackle one project that I could actually finish today and feel good about the accomplishment. I decided to sort, purge, and tidy up one shelf in my office. This shelf holds National Geographic magazines. I love National Geographic. I love it because it is a great magazine. I love the articles. I love the photos. And I have a lot of nostalgia for this magazine. When I was growing up, my grandparents had a bedroom in the basement they called "the library." Now, I have always wanted a library, so of course this room was a favorite place to explore. There were books on the shelves, some of which we read when we were visiting. And there were National Geographic issues. I could read current issues upstairs while the adults visited. But I could also look at old issues down in the basement. I remember following Jane Goodall's chimpanzee research through the years, and I eagerly awaited the regular updates that appeared in the magazines.

Sorting National Geographic

I don't have a library or the shelf space to keep all the magazines that come through my mailbox. And I have subscribed to National Geographic for most of my adult life. Today some more magazines had to go. It was easier than I thought it would be. I did a quick sort, let my kids save a few they were interested in, and fit them all neatly on one shelf in my office. There is even room for all of the new 2015 issues yet to come! I am happy to have something to show for my work today. Wish me luck ridding my life of "miscellaneous!"