Cleaning House

Photo credit: distelfliege on Flickr

As I prepare for a pretty huge life change, I've been taking stock of a lot of things—from the books on my shelves, to the stuff that's been sitting in boxes for years, to papers I held on to for no discernible reason, to how I make use of my time.

This morning, for example, I spent two hours I could have been writing or editing staring at a blank screen trying to figure out what the hell to blog about.

I've gone through my read bookshelves and pulled books I won't re-read, books that I didn't really like that much, books that I mostly had just because I'd read them. I've gone through my to be read owned bookshelf and pulled books I lost interest in before I got around to reading them, books that are taking up space that—if I'm really being honest—I don't actually want to read anymore.

Yesterday I cleaned out my office and bedroom and tossed papers I had piling up that I didn't need, and boxes I'd never gotten around to tossing, and started digging through boxes full of stuff from prior moves—a project that still isn't finished. I also went through my closet and wardrobe and pulled clothes I'm not going to wear anymore to either toss or donate.

I've been thinking a lot about how I can adjust my weekly commitments to make more time for things with deadlines, things that pay my bills. I've been taking note of what I'm getting out of certain things I put time into and weighing what I want to change. And while I don't have any concrete answers yet, I do think there will be some changes in the near future.

It's a time of transition for me, which is exciting, and a little scary, but I'm moving toward positive things.

When's the last time you've taken stock of your things and commitments?

Twitter-sized bite:

When's the last time you've taken stock of your things and commitments? Join the discussion on @Ava_Jae's blog. (Click to tweet)