On Fridays at 365 Less Things I share with you my favourite comments from my wonderful readers and my favourite web finds of the week. I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did.
Favourite Comments. Enjoy!
Decluttering doesn’t always come naturally and easily. But knowing we really would like to get rid of things usually wins out in the end. Andréia tells us how she is starting to enjoy the benefits of a decluttering space in this comment.
In this first comment from Sassy she tells us about her clever parents giving gifts that will be very helpful in the long term to the grandchildren.
Low Income Lady has had some space making declutter success recently. Read about it here.
Choosing not to exchange gifts can be a serious relief for some people doing it tough. Read an example of this shared with us by Jen.
Favourite Web Finds. Happy reading!
This link share on 365’s Facebook page by Jenny Anderson just goes to show how much our sentimental clutter means to us ~Â Wedding gown mix-up
Here is a great link that my hubby sent. If financial freedom is a good reason to stop buying stuff you don’t need then I don’t know what is.
Here is a link with a green/tech flavour ~Â www.smh.com.au ~ Sustain a green lifestyle with these apps
Here is a link to Organised Home with some Decluttering 101 advice.
And hot off the press ~ Mohamed Tohami is running a Simplicity Blog of the Year Award and 365 has been nominated. Click on this link to cast your vote for your favourite nominee.
Today’s Mini Mission
Roundup all the grooming product and tools that are scattered throughout your home. Once together declutter any excess.
Today’s Declutter Item
Vintage Rhinestone Brooch
Eco Tip for the Day
 Digitise your bills and pay them online. This not only saves paper but also the delivery method is better on the environment also.
ladies – I am slowly finding back my way to you. I have a lot to catch up… I did not forget you guys. I have been only enjoying my holiday after graduation (woooohooooo), and I spent very little time in front of the computer. Instead I went out, met friends, cleaned my place and started to tackle the final fate of a lot of decluttered things. Oh – and I treated myself with a 3000 piece puzzle, which I finished in a week. I think I will sell it again. I have been doing that successfully the last weeks:
thats why I need to brag now: I finally made the trip to the shop, where you can rent a shelf. I still have a lot so I guess there will be another trip next week with other stuff. I managed to sort into winter clothing and hopefully will sell there too jumpers, scarves, gloves, and a pair of boots… otherwise I managed to list books, games, DVDs, shoes, CDs, and other clutter online and sell a few items. My drawer is now empty, because I could rearrange my shelf and place the decluttered items into the bottom one. just before christmas, as a gift to myself, I will make a drawer-destruction party with a friend of mine, and we will jump on this stupid thing, until I can fit it into the next trash-container around the corner. I also got an unanounced but pleasant replacement for my old pots (crooked, broken, shabby), so I rearranged the kitchen a bit. lots of progress going on here…
Moni, I did not forget my promise to read up on the research on living behaviour (lol – weird translation again) but I havent managed yet, as I am correcting a friends thesis on cosmopolitism and transnationalism. that kind of requires my attention, I did however reserved the book at the library all will have a look into it during christmas holidays.
Lena – living behaviour makes perfect sense. I have been trying to think of a way to describe it. You must be very happy to have finished.
I am!! I am looking forward to the christmas holidays, when I will be able to read a bit more about the things I am really interested in. its going to be so interesting, and I will keep you updated on anything regarding clutter.
Lena, I am so glad you took some time off to rejuvenate. We certainly all need that from time to time. I may even take some time off from the computer over the Christmas period. That will give all my readers a much earned rest from listening to me rant on and badger them into decluttering stuff for a while.
I am also glad to hear that you are having some success with your decluttering at present. Good for you.
you know my computer was running a lot lately, because I listen to music via iTunes, and I skyped a lot too. I hardly sat down and started reading anything. I have a lot of catching up to do.
I destroyed my hated drawer, or more precisely, a friend of mine who needed just some release (bad break up) kicked it into little pieces. I have a huge empty spot now in the middle of my living room and it feels super spacious… I am hoping that I will get a new (cheap) sleeping couch as a replacement for my (really really shabby) leather sofa. I did get rid of a lot lately, and I am really looking forward to decluttering more next year. I fear there is a space addiction coming up, and the more you create, the more you want…
Hi Lena, I am glad you had some good stress release destroying that set of drawers. I hope it was very therapeutic for your friend.
Space addiction, now that is a new one. I wonder if anyone has ever had to go into rehab for that.
Go vote for Colleen’s 365 Less Things website over on Mohamed’s website Midway Simplicity.com.
He’s asking voters to nominate their favorite simplicity blog of the year!
Link to the voting: http://midwaysimplicity.com/nominate-your-favorite-simplicity-blog/
I immediately went over and nominated 365.
Done!
OK I must be having a senior’s moment! How do i vote?????
Thank Deb J and Moni also for your vote. And Judy you just have to name me with my blog address http://www.365lessthings.com in a comment below the article.
Thanks Colleen, going to do it now!
Thank you Jane and thanks for your vote. I only found out about this today myself. I feel honoured just to be nominated among that list of illustrious simplicity bloggers so I feel like a winner already.
We’re rootin’ for ya Colleen!
Thanks Jane I appreciate your support and enthusiasm.
Some great comments and links. I tell you, there are days when I wish I could just get in the car and leave it all behind like in the Financial Freedom link. I’d so love to get all of this medical debt paid off.
Hi Deb J, medical debt is a real problem in the US. I was so glad that when I lived there the Australian Government were paying for my families medical expenses. Medical insurance is so much cheaper here in Australia too.
It’s getting worse too. My primary care doc told me that they are getting letters from many specialists who will no longer be taking medicare and medicaid patients. That’s a lot of people who will really have to work to find someone to see them and they will have to wait a long time. SInce I am disabled I am on Medicare and I have also received letters from several specialists I see that they will no longer be seeing me as a patient.
Hi Deb J, that is really tough. Unfortunately for the doctors their insurance costs are so high because if they make “human error” it can be very unfortunate for the patient and costly for the insurance company. I think this is what we mostly pay for when seeing a doctor and I dare say they aren’t getting paid enough through medicare or medicaid to make it viable for them. It is a real shame. Mind you a little loyalty to their existing patients would go astray. Hopefully all the things you are doing to improve your health will reduce your necessity to see doctors quite so often.
Soon after starting to see my doctor for the first time 5 years ago she opened her own practice. For many years I had no trouble getting into see her at a moments notice. Then it took a couple of days and now it has stretched out to two weeks. Last time I went to see her after waiting two weeks she was running about an hour and a half behind. I took the option of seeing a different doctor at the same surgery. I think I will switch permanently to the new doctor if it means not having to wait until I am well again before I can get an appointment. How is it that they keep adding patients to the list until it gets so inconvenient to make an appointment. To me that is not good customer service or good patient loyalty.
I have found this too, the longer and longer waits to get in to see a doctor. I know that here in the US we have a lot less doctors than we need. They don’t seem to have considered that when they created the new laws for insurance. The problem is that the ones with the largest need will be the ones who are hurt the most by this. having been in the medical and health insurance industries I understand more what we are headed into and it isn’t good.
I think Deb J, that if we all took a more responsible approach to our own health ~ healthy diet, no smoking, limited alcohol, a little gentle regular exercise, and less stress ~ we could probably take some of the strain of the over worked medical system. Then the people who have non self induced medical conditions could get the care they need when they need it. Hence why the whole simplicity movement is such a good thing. Working to hard for stuff we don’t need while finding solace for our stress filled lives in unhealthy vices only leads to a downhill spiral.
Colleen, I so agree with you. If I had my way I would not have to see a doctor but 2 times a year for the regular checkup. I’m certainly working for this. Most of my diseases do not seem to respond to any interventions by the medical world so I’ve stopped seeing the doctors for them. The only thing I have to deal with is the ever improving diabetes and the thyroid issues. Soon I hope that these will be gone and it will just be occasional checkups. It sounds wonderful.
I hear you guys. Although I have to jump in for the doctors: they are not always in a good position either. Most of them are working really hard and are somewhere torn between pharmaindustry, insurances and personal commitment. the whole health sector does not seem to improve somehow. just like our environment. the prognoses are not looking good. in a hundret years some of our cities will be atlantis.
and then I sit there thinking about the responsibility I feel and I get a bit sad. and then I read here and be happy again, because here are others who are as rebellious as me and start to reconsider their own actions.
Colleen, I visited your Etsy shop and was so tempted by the vintage brooch. I have a thing for brooches but as I have about 15 and I never wear them I decided against it buying it! You have me trained too well!!!!! Sorry 🙁
Judy xx
Good for you Judy. I was a little reluctant to mention my Etsy shop for that very reason ~ that my readers might be tempted to buy something just to boost my confidence. Thank goodness I have you all trained so well. So don’t be sorry.
lol. what irony.
I just recently started “having a thing for brooches” as well.
However, I tend to wear them a little less conventionally – pinned to my crocheted hat or a jacket, things that I don’t necessarily wash after each wear, so I don’t have to attach it every morning but only once in a while. 😉
Of course, they’re not highly valuable pieces. Still, brooches kind of became my favourite jewelry. 🙂
Thanks for mentioning my comment Colleen! I am on my phone as I am working at the op shop today and it was a real surprise when I saw my name. It has made my morning!
My pleasure Low Income Lady. I am glad to have contributed to a good day for you. And as always thank you for your contributions that make my blog such a good little community of like minded people.
I voted for you just now – you deserve to be the winner!
Thank you for mentioning my comment! I reaaly wanted to share how easy somethings became. Now, every day I take 20 minutes and get the kitchen in order. Before, I always had mountains of dishes to wash and no matter how hard I tried, I never could put them away. I am feeling free in my own kitchen 😀 😀 😀 .
ahhh, Andréia. you just gave me the kick I needed. my kitchen has been horrible the last days (or even weeks). the november challenge started to completely fail as soon as I got into holiday mode. so I need to clean and get it into working shape again. I will do that now.
Actually Lena the November challenge taught me not to be so pedantic. If the only thing out of place when I go to bed at night is a few dirty pans in the kitchen sink then so be it. That being said I do like to reset my craft area so I can start afresh the next day. Being able to local what I need and remember where I am up to makes it easy to spend an hour here and there working on projects.
And a kitchen is a good place to feel free Andréia. I just glanced across at mine which right now has a half folded pile of towels out of the dryer this morning. The coffee was ready before I was finished and at 7am coffee comes first. There is also stuff all over the living room. Good stuff but. Hubby has been on a decluttering kick this weekend and has piles of things south and east. Not to mention the pile of thrift store cutlery ready to go out to a friend for her work. If someone walked in her now they would have to question what it is a blog about everyday. Never mind they are mostly things that are leaving for good so YAY for that.