Category Archives: Clutter

Cabinet-Free Kitchens? Bah!

By Claire Posted in Clutter, Small-House Living Tagged , , ,

I had no idea that there are people who are opposed to kitchen cabinets. I think kitchen cabinets are one of the greatest inventions of all time. If you cook from scratch, you require quite a few specific tools, not to mention staples and of course, dishware. And while I know it’s been popular to store those items on open shelving, I never liked the look. For one thing, that stuff will collect dust. For another, who wants to look at all of it?

If you have a small kitchen, as I do, you’ve probably learned that the more open empty space you can manage, the better it looks. Keeping things behind doors and in drawers (i.e. cabinets) is key. Having it all in the open would make you feel like you’re cooking in the middle of a pantry, I would think.

Another thing in that article caught my eye: the concept of renting small appliances. Why on earth would I want to make a trip to rent out a slow cooker (we old gals call them crock pots) and a bread maker when I feel like making soup and bread for dinner? Then, of course, there’s another trip to return them afterwards. Ridiculous! Why not keep only the small appliances you use and donate those you don’t use? Even in a small kitchen, you can find space for a few small appliances that are used regularly, if only once a month.

Mockery of Minimalism?

By Claire Posted in Clutter, downsizing, Simpler Living Tagged ,

Some of the commenters on this article say that this man who claims to have whittled down his worldly possessions to just 44 items and lived that way for a year is a scammer who mooches off of other people. I don’t know if that’s true or not.

What I do know is that no woman could do live with only 44 items for a year. We women have a wide range of needs. We need several different skirts and/or pairs of pants because our waist size changes depending on the time of the month. We aren’t going to live without our favorite bath or hair care products. We’re certainly not going to live with just a couple of outfits for a whole year.

You can take minimalism too far. Maybe he’s making a mockery of it. Or maybe he’s just an attention seeker. In any case, I’m thinking I couldn’t whittle down my list of necessities for a year to under 100, much less 44. I know a few people who couldn’t get their list under 1000. Ultimately, it’s kind of a silly exercise anyways.

An Eavesdropped Story

By Claire Posted in Clutter, downsizing, My Books, Personal, Retirement, Simpler Living Tagged , , ,

Overheard while looking at cards in the store the other day:

Couple in their 80s: How are you? I haven’t seen you in ages!

Woman around 70: I’m fine. I’m moving in two weeks. Have you heard?

Couple in their 80s: No. Where are you moving to?

Woman around 70: Oh, we’re staying in town but we’re downsizing to a much smaller place. I think we’ll be really happy once this is over and we’re settled in.

Couple in their 80s: I’m sure you will be. I’ve heard it’s a lot of work, going through everything.

Woman around 70: Oh yes. So much stuff from 40 years. But it had to go, and we’re even down to just one car and one truck. Our son finally took his motorcycles!

Couple in their 80s: We’ve had friends who downsized and they’re very happy they did.

Woman around 70: I’m already feeling better without all that stuff around me. I can’t wait to get into our new place.

Couple in their 80s: Who did you hire to move everything?

And the conversation went on in that vein, while I kept looking at cards. Then my antenna went back up when I heard the wife in the elderly couple say:

“You’re so wise to downsize. We’re thinking about doing it someday.”

Right. They’re already in their 80s. I’m thinking that line really means “We’ll let our kids worry about it after we’re gone.”

That’s not a very nice thing to do to their kids, who are clearly gonna need How to Clean Out Your Parent’s House (Without Filling Up Your Own).

The Lure of Black Friday and Cyber Monday

By Claire Posted in Clutter, Personal Tagged , , , ,

I’m gonna guess I’m not the only one who struggled with Black Friday this year, but it’s a first for me.

Since I avoid crowds, I was never one to go out on Black Friday, back when crowds stormed stores starting at midnight. I much prefer to sleep at night. Over time, it’s become our habit to buy most of our Christmas gifts online.

But this year, I kept finding things I wanted for me. I was inundated with sale-announcing emails, and I actually looked at all of them, and I even left tabs open on my browser all weekend with things I was thinking about buying.

That’s not like me. And all of a sudden on Cyber Monday I thought, “What are you doing??” And I closed every tab without buying a single thing.

I don’t need anything. I already have more fabric than I can use in a lifetime. I have more clothes than I need, especially given my hermit tendencies. But that’s the logical side of my brain talking. The other side was completely sucked in by all those Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, at least for a few days.

I guess that shows that even someone who’s very committed to keeping down the clutter can fall prey to a good copywriter….or dozens of them!