A lesson from the scary spare room, touch things only once.

Organizing experts will tell you that the best way to eliminate clutter is to only touch things once. If you pick something up deal with it now and not later because later never seems to happen. Since I have not followed this rule things have accumulated and accumulated in my spare room. This is the room where all things without a home go to stay temporarily. Unfortunately once they arrive in that room they seldom ever leave. It is out of sight and out of mind until that one day when the room has become so scary it must be dealt with.

Some of the items came to be in that room from other cleaning projects because I just didn’t know what to do with them. My idea was to just leave them there temporarily so that I could finish cleaning a different room and then I would find them a home. But low and behold a year or more later they are still there sadly looking for a new home. There is the box of old computer parts that need to go to the recycle and four boxes of stuff that came out my old office desk. My golf clubs live in there along with the car cover for the Datson 240Z. The fire box I bought several years ago is in there waiting for me to put my important papers in it. There are piles here and piles there, piles piles everywhere!


The day of reckoning has come for this room and the cleaning adventure has begun. First thing to be dealt with is the fire box. My birth certificates, passport, pink slips and credit cards go inside then it is carefully stashed away. I take the flowers out of the vase, give them a quick cleaning and lay them on shelf in the bathroom. The tool box and gardening things are moved to the garage. Then it is on the pile by the closet. I put the gift bags and boxes away, pick up the hangers and sorted through piles. Red and gold ornaments head to the garage and a portable jewelry box goes into the closet. What is that I see… it is the floor! All that is left is some VCR tapes, the electronic recyclables and the boxes from the old desk. I will tackle the boxes another day and find somewhere to recycle the electronics. The next step is to wash the curtains, clean the window and dust mop the floor. It has been a busy but rewarding day.

Make a pact with yourself to only touch things once. By touching things only once you save time, energy and eliminate clutter. Put junk mail in the garbage now and not tomorrow, find a permanent home for items when you move them and not a temporary one. Join me in my quest against clutter. Make “touching things only once” part of your positively healthy choices everyday!