Spring Cleaning

It’s turned to March and my thoughts have turned to spring cleaning… In yoga I have been working to create space in the body’s “junk drawer” A.K.A. the hips and pelvis! So we have been doing lots of chair poses, eagles, lunges, downdog splits. And in Pilates we have been doing lots of plies and lunges too. On top of the physical clear-out (which will continue in class through March and April) I have started to spring clean my house. So far I have cleared my wardrobes and filled 2 binbags full of unworn and unwanted clothes. I am now planning to do the same to the husband’s wardrobes but this will be a challenge as he is a worse hoarder than I am!

For example, in the bathroom I threw out over FIVE years’ worth of Total Film and Empire magazines (his) and lots of half-used/almost empty bottles of shampoo, conditioner, cleanser, etc. (mine). I also cleared a lot of old training materials and files/folders belonging to my career as a youth worker. And considering I haven’t been a youth worker since 2005 and never intend to be a youth worker again, it was definitely time to let go. I had been feeling a little like the picture below so it is great to begin the huge clean-up of my crap! If you want to do the same but are finding it as difficult as I had read the article below by Christine Kane for some great excuse busters!

What’s Your Excuse? The 8 Lies We Tell Ourselves about Our Junk; Written by Christine Kane

“Perfection is not when there is no more to add, but no more to take away.”

– Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Our lives are meant to be simple.  Our intuition thrives when given freedom and space.  So does our ability to make good decisions.

Clutter – in the form of physical junk, time-wasters, or even draining people – steals our energy, stops our success, and blocks our clarity.

Each moment we ignore our excuses for holding on to things we don’t want, those things rob us of energy, health, and clarity. Yes, clutter is destructive!

If you’re a clutter-clinger, start by admitting why you hold on.  Read this list to see if you can find YOUR excuse – and then take action!

Clutter Excuse #1: “I’d be a mean horrible person if I let this go…”

Guilt is heavy gooey energy that convinces us we’re bad people if we make a strong choice – or if we let go of heirlooms, unwanted clothing or gifts.

So we allow this stuff to clutter up our lives and keep us in a comfortable – but draining – place.  Guilt is sometimes an easier path than clarity.  Ask yourself if you’re ready to release the stuff and the guilt – and finally get clear.

Clutter Excuse #2 – “I spent so much on it!”

Do you punish yourself for having made a bad choice by keeping the item around?  Or convince yourself that you’re going to get your money’s worth – even if it drains the heck out of you?

You won’t.  And it will.

We’ve all done stupid things. And we’ve all had to let them go. Now it’s your turn.

Clutter Excuse #3 – “I might need this someday.”

I often wonder how many idle telephone cords exist in the world.  Crammed in old desk drawers. Stuffed on closet shelves. They can’t be gotten rid of.

Why?

Because we might need them some day.

Evidently, some day – in spite of technological progress – you’re going to need that particular grey phone cord that came in the box with a phone you bought in 1993.

Throw it out. Now.

Same thing goes for:  The broken fax machine, switch plates from your first house, and every glass flower vase that came with deliveries.

Clutter Excuse #4 – “I might do this someday.”

I know. I know.

Someday you’ll take those broken pieces of china you’ve collected and create a beautiful mosaic birdbath. And you’ll go through those stacks of magazines and make that collage for your sister’s 30th birthday party. (She’s 51 now.)

Now – I don’t mean to deny you your plans and dreams.  However, I urge you to consider experiencing the infinite relief that appears when you let old project ideas go.

Call your sister and tell her the collage ain’t gonna happen. Buy a mosaic birdbath from an artist who makes her living from creating such treasures.

And then, make space for what you want to do. Don’t fill your space with what you should do.

Clutter Excuse #5 – “I Don’t Know Where It Goes.”

When items don’t have a home, it’s hard to determine whether or not they are clutter. Some things may seem like clutter – like the cute card that your daughter made that floats around from drawer to drawer – but they’re not clutter.

They’re homeless.

Once you start defining spaces for items, then it’s easier to see when something doesn’t fit anywhere and should just get tossed.

Clutter Excuse #6 – “My thoughts don’t have any power. Do they?”

Everything has energy.  The thoughts you have about the things in your home CREATE energy. For instance, if you hang on to stuff given to you by your ex, and you still feel bitter – then there’s bitterness in your home.

Get it?

It’s either fueling you or draining you.  If anything triggers you, then that is your barometer. Let it go.

Clutter Excuse #7 – “But I never wore it!”

See Clutter Excuse #2.

Clutter Excuse #8 – “There’s too much stuff!”

Overwhelm can stop us in our tracks. If this article makes you aware that there are lots of items in your life you don’t like, then go slow.   Schedule small chunks of time each day.  It takes time to be clutter-free! But the newfound clarity and lightness are worth it!

Okay… You’ve read it. Now stop the excuses and get to work! I really feel that I’m at excuse #8 so I’m taking it a bit at a time and feeling better with each trip to the bin.

Victoria

What do you do with a bad meal?

So – I had a bad meal tonight. I was out with my husband, my parents, my sister and her husband at our local golf club where my Dad is a member. Now, normally the food is delicious. But tonight they were busy (they’d had a Winter League Dinner for all the golf club members) and so when we got there the food was a bit like it was thrown together. My fish and chips and mushy peas had under-fried chips and mushy fish with dry peas which is surely the wrong way round. However, the whole meal was bad because:

1. We walked in late to a party that was already in place with loud music and drunken people and it felt like we were gatecrashing (especially as we couldn’t even get in because no-one was answering the intercom)
2. My Dad had been there all day and was so drunk he could no longer speak correctly which really annoys me
3. My Mum had been there long enough to forget that she “doesn’t smoke” (read: drunk as well) and was outside smoking which always pisses me off
4. My Sister and her husband were being their usual flirtatious selves and charming the pants off all of Dad’s friends which makes me feel so unattractive
5. Everyone in the golf club calls me “Vicki” which REALLY irritates the hell out of me as I haven’t been called that in over 12 years now so it always makes me feel like a child again

Yep – the whole night was like a throwback to 1989 when my natural seriousness and vegetarianism (it was a big thing in those days!) meant I had to sit at home while Mum and my Sis met my Dad after golf. But now that I’m older it seems I haven’t gotten any wiser because I still went tonight. However, I left early because my Sister tried to walk out as I was apparently upsetting her so I left first to give her nothing to upset her anymore. And, of course, my husband came with me. And, of course, when we get in the car he tells me that his dinner was bad as well…

I think I’ll eat in for a while. At least until I can feel like the mature and sensible adult I am rather than a pre-teen with issues!

Victoria