I’ve survived another five days of our Minimalism Challenge. I feel like it’s been easier this time around, although maybe I need to adjust my expectations. It’s going to start getting a lot harder and fast. For now, I’ve been able to go back and forth between focusing on a specific area and just grabbing things as I walk around the house. I’m continuing to apply the approach to consumables as well as this stuff I’m actually getting out of the house – using up the foods or toiletries we have or tossing them if we really aren’t going to.
Here’s how I did with days 6-10.
Day 6: I’ve been pretty envious of some of the others in the challenge because on top of their own stuff, they’re also working with their kids’ stuff or their spouse’s. Me, I’m not even looking at Kevin’s stuff. He’s pretty low-key when it comes to collecting things and he routinely goes through it and turfs the things he doesn’t need. He’s especially good with his clothing, although he likes to hang onto shoes. My point is: I am only dealing with my own stuff and haven’t been able to pluck from the stashes of others…until day six when I bullied the cats into giving up a bunch of their toys. Since many were barely, if ever, used, well donate them to the New West Animal Shelter. In addition to those (I counted the baggie as one item) I also turfed a box I’d been hanging onto for too long, a Leafs patch and a doughnut pool floatie.
Day 7: Clothes. Some warms sweaters, t-shirts and pajama pants. If there was ever a time people could use a little warmth, it’s now.
Day 8: A thermos, a well-used water bottle that just doesn’t hold the capacity I need it to, a hot chocolate mix, a little bag, dollar store dry erase markers I should have known better about and a little crate.
Day 9: More clothes. Mostly socks and t-shirts.
Day 10: I loved this Workjam bag when it was given to me, but I brought it home and never used it. The water bottle came from a race expo in San Antonio. I parted with a five nylon bag collection because I hate nylon bags and I added a paperback and an unused address book to the building’s library downstairs. Just to add to the randomness of this day’s collection: a pizza cutter that doesn’t really compare to the one we decided to keep.
You can read up on days 1-5 here.