This weekend I did two things I've been meaning to do for a very, very, very long time. The first was cleaning out my actual closet, and the second was cleaning out my virtual closet, a.k.a my inbox.
The first was definitely the easiest of the two. I usually try to keep my actual closet pretty clean. Usually. I try to reorganize each season and I am pretty good about giving stuff away. Those of you who know me know that I hate stuff. Especially stuff I know I won't wear. This season however, I must say I had severely neglected my closet duties. I blame the weather. First it's hot, then it's cold, then it's raining...this summer has been a roller coaster of weather. So much so that no sooner did I put my sweaters in storage was I pulling them back out. Well no more. I found a way for both seasons to live together/ but apart. I also went through and really thought about whether I was ever going to wear some of the things I was holding on to for so long. Some because of memories, some because of labels, and most because I thought maybe someday I would reach for them. Well, not anymore. If I hadn't worn it in a year it was gone. Gone, gone gone. First to my sister, and the rest (including almost all my old work clothes) were set aside for a local domestic violence shelter that specializes in finding clothes for women who are trying to get back to work after abusive relationships. I can't think of a better place for these clothes (most of which were in very good condition) to go. My career wardrobe consists of jeans and flats, and my closet can no longer pretend it doesn't.
My second task, the cleaning out of my inbox was not quite as simple. Up until now 95% of the mail that I get is junk. Junk, junk, junk. Emails from every store I have ever bought from and all of their affiliates. I counted and one day last week I got 45 emails that were trying to sell me something I didn't need nor want nor ask for. 45! Well, no more. I spent both of the LM's weekend naps unsubscribing from every company that I didn't want an email from. It took about 4 hours but I was finally able to get my name off every virtual list out there. Guess how many unwanted emails I received Sunday and Monday? Yep, none. Now I know that when my blackberry buzzes at the park it is from someone I actually want to hear from. Novel concept I know.
It is amazing how much lighter I feel. Not in the physical sense but in the emotional sense. I love having things organized in my life and now both my closets reflect that. Now I'm off to tackle that storage and linen closets. I may not be nesting but that won't stop me from organizing every square inch of this place....
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6 comments :
eeek! smartbargains.com? i get about 11 emails from them a day!
I love how you donate the clothes to that charity- that's awesome!
i'm an OCD email chick- but with Gmail- its so easy to manage because you can just archive everything in different labels (and have the option to pick pretty colors for each one!)
And yes, we need to plan something fun soon!!!
It's amazing how satisfying it is to have a major clearout. I regularly sort through our clothes and donate them to a local charity, but I'm not as good with paperwork which tends to pile up.
I've just spent a few days putting all the rubbish from my garden into a big skip parked on the front drive, and that's been very productive. I can actually get down the garden path now!
Cleanouts, be they of the real or virtual kind, are good for the soul. They really are.
And I love your comment about your career wear now, which rings so true to me. Thanks for the inspiration.
it's liberating for sure, to get rid of both the physical and the virtual junk!
Ok Im putting my wardrobe on my list of to do's for this weekend.
I agree that a major clean out does wonders! Why is it that the email clean out always feels better than a closet though??
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