Coming Clean II

Today, I tackled the closet.  Just to put things into perspective, my closet was so crammed with clothes that I was not wearing, that most of the stuff got wrinkled just from being pressed up against the other clothes!  And good luck fitting everything in there.  Oftentimes, you'd find my shirts and pants hanging over the backs of chairs because there was just too much stuff and not enough space.  Well, not anymore.  I got rid of 25 shirts, and I have a few more that are in the "consideration" pile.  Now, Kondo does not suggest using a consideration pile, but I'm not quite ready to commit to just tossing or keeping...at least, not just yet.  What I've decided to do is put the items that are up for consideration back into the closet, and once I go through all my clothes, I'll do one more sweep and see how I feel about them at that point.

It was hard to get rid of a few things.  Mostly, because I really liked the item, but A.) It doesn't fit, or B.) It's out of style.  But, I'm feeling pretty good right now, even after a few of my old favorites went to the donation pile.  Kondo points out that this is okay.  The memories you had of this outfit will still be there, and what is the point of keeping a shirt you'll never wear again?

I'll be honest, I've never liked cleaning, but I'm feeling pretty exhilarated about this whole process!  It's exciting, and I like seeing the drastic change.  My usual procedure is to get rid of one or two things at a time, pause, wipe the sweat from my forehead, and think "Well, that was a job well done!" and then go back to my cluttered little life.  This was a lot more involved, but I feel much better about it.  Plus, I was able to find some old t-shirts that would make great pajama tops, and I can discard the pajama tops that I'm currently using.  It's a win-win :)

Next, I'll be tackling the miscellaneous clothing left on the backs of chairs and stacked in piles when I didn't have room in the closet.  After that, the dresser, and then I move on to my books.  I'll keep you posted!

Until next time :)

 

Julius Caesar and Sir Gawaine

This weekend is going to be fun, consisting of two projects and the looming threat of finals. First, I have been asked by my brother to help him proofread an essay on Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, and then I have to start a 5-6 page essay on Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a poem written in Middle English that retells one of Sir Gawain's adventures. Its going to be difficult, since I'm not using a translated version to read the play. I love Old English, Middle English, and of course, our modern idiom, but even so, its not the easiest challenge. The paper is due on Wednesday, but if I need some extra time, my professor said he would let us turn it in on Friday. I want to be done by Wednesday.

While all this is going on, I still find myself struggling with my own issues. First, I'm still not completely over Odysseus, and the more I think about what he's said to me, the more angry I get. He's really hurt me this past week, and I really wish I hadn't even given him those two weeks of my life. I don't honestly know if it was worth it or not. On top of this inner struggle, I have the looming threat of finals on the horizon, and I haven't had a good night's sleep in a week. I'm barely surviving, mostly relying on Moutain Dew to help me make it from day to day. I need the caffeine to function. (And speaking of Moutain Dew, they have three limited time flavors out, and they're actually pretty good :) You should check them out: White Out is citrus flavored, Typhoon is tropical, and Distortion is lime. Typhoon is the best.)