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Traveling is a time to let go and to let the course of events just take us for a ride. But that doesn’t mean you have to live in a mess. If you’ve read Seven Tips for Packing Light, then you know the key to traveling in comfort is contingent upon how much you bring. But what if your toiletries and clothes are always scattered across the hotel room, friend’s couch, hostel bed etc.? Even 20 items can begin to look like a mess. Let’s break it down based on the essential items that accompany us on a trip:
1. Toiletries
The problem—The following items have a tendency to be left sprawling on countertops
- toothbrush: find a traveler’s toothbrush that can fold into itself
- toothpaste: a small traveler’s container will suffice for the first part of the trip. Depending on the length of your stay, you might want to purchase a larger tube at your destination.
The solution—a mug or glass
Find a cute mug or glass at the local thrift store that will house your toothbrush and toothpaste during the duration of your stay. It’s better to air dry your toothbrush in a mug so that it doesn’t grow something strange in its container.
2. Clothing
The problem—Shirts, pants, skirts and dresses build up on a guest bed in a matter of minutes when you’re having fun on a trip.
The solution—categorize and rank
Take a look at your clothing and decide what you will be doing in them and how frequently. The most straightforward example: a bathing suit will be used for water activities and possibly a visit to a spa. If I am in Hawaii, I will be swimming often so this is something I should keep hanging so that I can: 1) keep it dry 2) access it. A fancy dress (I like to bring one wrinkle proof dress) might only be worn a couple of times during the week. Items like these can stay in the traveling bag.
Hanging the clothes you will be wearing frequently will keep them in plain sight. This will also help air them out as a light packer will be wearing items more than one time.
3. Dirty laundry
The problem—dirty laundry can pile up quickly when you’re packing light. It can also be hard to organize when you don’t have a hamper.
Solution-Bring a mesh bag for your laundry for easy hauling to the laundromat. Shirts and pants can stand to be worn a few times before washing them.
Top 3 Reasons for Staying Organized on a Trip:
- Who wants to come home from the most incredible day on vacation to find a bed (that isn’t even your own!) covered in your clutter?
- Being organized means everything is accessible. This is the key to utilizing what few items you brought on the trip.
- It makes packing to go home or to your next destination extremely easy!
Clearing out the basement. A dreaded job, really. Many basements have a neat row of boxes stored on shelves on one wall; the other wall often has a big area of clutter with tons of stuff piled high. No shelves, boxes, no sense of order. In short, chaos. We are all guilty of leaving things in our basements for years, untouched and unused.
To tackle this kind of job requires lots of lighting, strong arms and gentle care. The basement is often treated like a “free for all” clutter area. We bring into the basement a mix of valuable and not so valuable items. It’s good to be careful as you sort through these items, there may be fragile items in the pile that are improperly wrapped up and unprotected.
If there is no rhyme or reason to the storage then everything is susceptible to damage, mold, or deterioration and more importantly, lack of use. If you live in a humid area, there is always a chance that something could get moldy. It’s helpful to put a de-humidifier in the basement.
Let’s start:
Good lighting is imperative. Open the access doors to the outside and bring in some light. Set up lamps if there is not enough light in the basement.
Set up three areas:
- Keep
- Give Away
- Trash
Keep in mind your current needs: Do these items fit in to what those needs are? It is always my desire to help people get rid of things they do not need or want or use. The basement is an excellent place to start learning these techniques. Partly because we have stuff stored there for a long time and are not currently using those items. Also, we are often trying to make sense of the basement as a possible good storage space or a great place to set up a work area.
Whatever your needs or desire for the basement, keeping it clear of excess stuff and unused items will give you a good foundation for the rest of your home.
Setting Up Proper Storage in the Basement
If there is no system set up to keep everything in order, devise a plan.
Here’s a list of common basement storage categories:
- Gardening
- Tools
- Household items
- Storage for someone else
- Snow Removal
Whatever you need to store, here’s how I recommend it be stored:
- Keep heavy and frequently used items near the door for handy access
- Store occasionally used items together in the same area
- Keep like items together, i.e. garden hose with gardening tools
- Clear storage boxes make it easier to see what is stored
- Label each area
So many of us would love to tackle the mess of a cluttered room, but we hesitate.
Why? For many, it’s because of the emotional attachment to these items. Even from afar and from a distance of time, we can tell where our thoughts will go when we open up that “can of worms” clutter area.
Clutter clearing brings up lots of emotions. This can be very difficult whether you are sorting through your own things or the things that were bestowed upon you from a relative or friend and especially items that come to you at the time of someone’s death.
Some times these items come too late. You wanted them when you were starting out in a new home, or moving to a bigger house. Be aware of what works for you now. Notice the things that no longer work for you. Sometimes you receive an item you wish you had received when you once loved it and now longer have a use for it.
How do we deal with these items? I deal with them one at a time. I take the item into my hands and see if it resonates with me at this time of my life. It may be that the item means more to me now than ever. In other cases, it is just no longer useful to me. In many cases, if the item has been stored away for some time, it no longer carries an attachment or emotional charge for us. This is good. This is an item that can be given away or sold. This you can place in the “Give Away” pile.
A sensitive tip for some of our older subscribers:
Some of the items you are now holding onto for your children may not be the items they can appreciate later on in time. If you are no longer in need of the item, consider giving it to them now. Timing is everything. Let them enjoy the item now if you are done with it. This opens your life up for new things to come your way. Think about what you are keeping in your home or storage unit that you could give away or sell. Why pay storage fees when you can gift out the items or make a few extra dollars with them.
Maybe it’s a bike, a desk, a pie chest, a pair of shoes, a car. What can you give away?
Here’s a website that helps people give things away: http://www.altruists.org/projects/ga/
I know, there’s a real iPhone mania… but truly, there are some excellent reasons to own an iPhone.
For all you iphone addicts and for those of you who want to be…
What does your iPhone do for you?
Applications you can use to de-clutter you life, purse, briefcase and desk top: Seriously, I have given up my appointment/address book, collecting business cards and invoicing on the computer:
- iCal: syncs with your computer and gives you reminders a year in advance or just a day or minutes. Some may prefer to be reminded of birthdays each year as well as appointments each month, week or day. Whatever your needs, the iCal on the iPhone is a powerful tool to get you where you need to be.
- BC Reader: This handy application is an excellent tool for when you are at a convention, conference or business meeting… it takes a business card, scans it and places it in a “Card Holder” file within its own application and also in your contacts list.
- Bump: For those clients that have iphones there is an application called “Bump”. This one requires that both iphone users have the app. If you both have it, simply go to the app and bump phones to each other. It’s that simple.
- Timeworks: is an application that enables you to bill your customers from your iphone. Simply write up the work items and invoice and send it along to your customers email address.
- Facebook & Twitter: Some communicate business ideas and blogs through Facebook and Twitter, these apps are available as well.
- Notes: on the front page of your iPhone is “Notes”. It has become an essential tool for me. No need to look for pen and paper… this is a fast way to takes notes while with a client.
I admit, I love my iPhone. It is incredibly useful and a lot of fun. I store a huge amount of photos and information on it. Not to mention the uber easy access to my email accounts. I am indeed hooked.
Any iPhone addicts out there among the fittobetidy.com crowd? Do you have a favorite app that you use for organization? Let us know.
