My Overdue Spring (Summer) Cleaning Project

You would think after days and days of sorting through papers and shredding stuff, things would be more organized. Oh yes, this would be a logical thought. And yet after all this, I still feel like my room (and now the living room as well) is just as messy as before, even though in reality, it isn't. It's just that the piles on the floor make it look more cluttered, even though there is much less stuff than before.

Every trip to the shredder, I tell myself: "This is the last time. I've finally made it through everything shreddable. Now I can just file the rest." And every time, I discover new items that need to be discarded.

But good things are happening. All bills that I'm keeping have been separated and sorted chronologically. Each different category of stuff is its own pile on the floor, waiting to be given it's own file folder home. Tomorrow I plan to box up the cards I'm saving and start working through my financial info binders. This is all so positive.

I have come to the conclusion that the only way to stay organized in the midst of a busy life is to get rid of things (or put things away, whichever is applicable) the minute you get them. Junk mail? Force yourself to glance at it and discard/shred it before setting it down. Bills? Pay them the day you get them. Then file them. Filing one bill is easy; filling many is tedious. Clothing items? Hang them up or put them in the laundry basket the minute you take them off. This is all very doable. I really think if I can get to a place of sufficient organization, I can maintain it. It's getting there.

And then comes the office....