Boy, it was hard to go back to work today. My eyes are bloodshot. My head is heavy. And it’s only 8 o’clock. I kept myself alive by drinking lots of caffeine and busying myself with tasks that didn’t require a huge amount of thought. I stayed offline the entire break and so I came back this morning and marked all of my feeds as read–mostly.
Two things started to get to me over the break: the amazing amount of clutter in my house and my lack of exercise. We had my family over for Thanksgiving and of course, did a major cleaning of the house. As we did so, I realized how much stuff we’ve accumulated. We have a small house, so it’s very noticeable. We now have furniture and all kinds of stuff to get rid of and it’s not easy. Purple Heart comes for clothes about once a month. Given how much the kids are growing, we almost always have something for them. But the bigger stuff is more complicated. We could pay a service, but that’s kind of pricey. I’ve called Salvation Army, but it takes weeks, so we’re not on the schedule yet. Today, I cleaned out some of the kids’ toys and old videos. Much of that can go to Purple Heart too. I threw away a lot. I’ve vowed to spend 30 minutes a day clearing stuff out.
Another problem with the clutter is what comes into the house and what we generate. There’s mail and school papers. I’ve tried different systems and I just haven’t found one that works. I think I just need to suck it up and deal with it at least once a week. And then there’s recycling and trash. I can totally sympathize with Anjali’s post from last week. We do have recycling pickup, but it’s a crazy schedule. They do one thing a day, twice a week. So, one Monday is paper, then plastic on Thursday. The following Monday is glass, then cans on Thursday. They used to print a schedule, but they quit doing that, so I’m totally confused. I seem to always miss plastic so it’s piling up, and they don’t do colored glass. You have to take that in. It’s crazy.
The exercising problem is somewhat related to the clutter problem. I am not a hearty person. I don’t hold up well in cold weather. I used to, but I’ve become wimpy in my old age. So, I want to exercise inside. I could join a gym, but I’d rather be in the comfort of my own home. Problem is, I have no place to work out. There’s not enough room in any room in our house. We’ve shifted furniture around to the point where nearly every square inch is covered in furniture. I may have to cave and go to the gym. Sigh.
It doesn’t help that I was completely slothful over the break. I ate. I drank. I watched football. I did not run around, exercise or tackle the now four-foot high pile of laundry. One of these days, my house *will* be clean.
