This is what has been missing. Order. Thinking back to a period when things flowed properly, the magic ingredients were simplicity, order and gratitude.
None of those are making a prominent appearance around here at the moment so it was time to make one of them a priority today.
Order.
Last weekend the kitchen was on the chopping block for a good clean out. Today the bathroom got thrown under the bus. How I’ve managed to cram that much non-essential junk into such a small space beggars belief.
Medications that expired 6 years ago. Perfumes… I have no explanation for some of those fragrances. How many bottles of shower gel does one human need? Hairspray? When in heaven’s name did I need hairspray?!
I shudder to think how long I’ve had some of my cosmetics, given I barely wear any. Into the garbage. Here I thought I was running out of toothpaste; nope, I’ve stocked up for the apocalypse. There’s 10,000 miles of floss too if anyone’s running low & 4 unopened toothbrushes.
2 entire baskets of travel sized hand creams, shampoos, conditioners & soaps. Bath sponges that have never been used. WHY?!
My personal favourite; a supply of contraceptives I’ll never need again and a few other shark week accessories. LATERS!
There was a sketchy jar of exfoliant so I pinged all the expired drugs from their packages and mixed it in with that. Into the garbage. *Don’t worry, I checked online and if there’s no place to dispose of medication in your area, it suggests mingling the stuff with something disgusting so it cannot be consumed. It was pretty disgusting.*
Don’t dispose of medication down the toilet or drain; it’s not recommended.
There’s space for days in my cupboards now and I’ve tracked down 3 missing pairs of tweezers. All the stuff I’ve been stockpiling because it’s pretty and shouldn’t be used it is now on the list of things to be used.
The urge to save pretty soaps and stuff is real, I know. 2 entire CRATES of them were given away when I left SA. Pretty soaps in boxes and ribboned, given away. I didn’t get to use any of them. What a waste.
Use the pretty things. They were probably given to you in the hope you would enjoy them, so enjoy them. Gathering dust is not what they were made to do. Every damn day is a special occasion so for the love of God woman, USE THE GOOD STUFF!
An added bonus is you’ll actually create space for new things when you move the old things out of the way. You cannot add anything to a glass that’s already full.
My grandmother hoarded every pretty thing for a special occasion. She died with most of it still in its original packaging, never once opened or enjoyed. I wish I could kick her arse for it. Those who inherited her things didn’t care for them the way she did so they were wasted. The next best thing is to learn from her and not make the same mistake.
Take out the good towels; use the fancy perfume and expensive hand cream. Stop using the scraps for yourself when there’s probably a treasure trove of stuff you’re saving for someone else.
YOU are the longest relationship you’ll ever have so make yourself happy.
There really is order after the chaos if you take it one chunk at a time.
Oh, I almost forgot Wednesday’s installment of the Edinburgh Rose Street story:
My OCD will be right over with a spreadsheet to help you with that!