clutter

The Minimalists – Less is Now

The Minimalists: Less Is Now (2021) - Netflix | Flixable

I’ve been on a “minimalist” kick for a few years now. Our family regularly “purges” household items by either discarding or donating them. But after recently watching “The Minimalists-Less is Now” on Netflix, I decided to do their 30-day challenge: Day 1, get rid of one thing from your home. Day 2, two things, and so on.

I’m on Day Ten and it’s getting challenging, but I’m also seeing a nice difference. I no longer look at the same useless items in my desk drawer and push them aside to find what I need. Minimizing clutter can also facilitate your other goals (work productivity, health, etc.)

Page 26 of “Chloe the Clingfish”*

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She stood there and stared at the boxes. How could she be so excited to buy them and now feel so ambivalent? Her heart fluttered. She had no more credit for purchases. And her clutter was leading to less and less room in her home.

To get her mind off of her problems, she decided to watch some TV and have a snack.

Good Form

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Artist:  Josie Wipff (in her art class)     December 25, 2017

This is an etching my daughter gave to me for Christmas. It’s created by painstakingly scratching the black off the etching paper with extremely sharp tools. Pushing too hard or going too fast can ruin the effect.

It reminds me that beauty and harmony can often result from taking away, and not adding:

  • Remove the resentment, disappointment and anger from your part of relationships.
  • Remove clutter in your living space.

But do this with great care.

 

 

Unroll.Me

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photo by Domenico Lola

I unsubscribed an email I received the other day. And then another. I don’t even remember signing up for these emails. Sometimes, they are a hindrance. Solution: Unroll.me.

This is a free service. All you have to do is go to their website and submit your email address. You do have to allow them access to your contacts and email (of course) and they will process for a few seconds.

Result:

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You pick and choose through your current subscriptions:

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If you’re getting too many unwanted emails, check them out!

https://unroll.me/

Periodically, they’ll tell you they found more subscriptions and you’ll get an opportunity to refresh and review. It’s a great way to quickly whittle your inbox down!

The Magnificence of Margins (Or, Superb Space)

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Pablo Garcia, Mexico – Unsplash.com

On a document, we have margins or space to define boundaries between text and the edges of the paper. It’s aesthetically pleasing. It the words went to the edges of the paper, we’d find it a bit distracting and perhaps difficult to read.

Space devoid of things or noise or thoughts can bring joy, calm and purpose.

When you complain to me, if I take the space of time to process it before I respond, I’ll probably come up with something more equanimous than if I reacted immediately.

A room cluttered with things might bring a sense of anxiety or disgust.

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If you clean it up and there is physical space to sit, lie down, and walk, it will be a more welcoming room.

When I meditate, I am focusing my attention on my breath. This allows me to not think any thoughts. The more I practice this, the easier it is for me to enter this state of space and calm. This is good. When something bad happens, I do not need to react. Also, when a good thing happens, there is no need to go crazy. “This, too, shall pass” means life is a rollercoaster and the secret to happiness is to not react to the crazy.

 

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