Two things. (aka Inertia is contagious)

One of my favorite places to spend quality time is on a soap making forum called the Soap Dish Forum. Not only do I get inspiration to make new and unique soaps, lotions, bath bombs and the like, I pick up ideas to simplify my life.

Around Christmastime '09 the topic came up about the Great Decrapification of 2010. Everyone has crap. Don't lie. If you say you have no crap you're full of crap. A few dozen "dishers" took the challenge and have been organizing, donating and just plain trashing the stuff that has accumulated in their homes and offices. We each confess every few days. This causes other dishers to catch the tossing bug. It feels really good.

I am no stranger to decrapification - or collecting crap. Last year I spent the first month of my retirement going through every nook and cranny of my home and organizing. I found bags and bags of old paperwork that we didn't need any more. Sorted and filed all of the user guides and tax info in waterproof boxes, junked pens and pencils that no longer worked. You get the drift. I found $241 in loose change and around 50 Euros in the process. It was good. I try to keep up with cleaning, but crap just multiplies on its own.

Doing a major decrapification is a pretty big undertaking. Another Dish thread introduced the notion of keeping things simple. Just toss 2 things a day that you no longer need. Over the course of one year that would be 730 pieces of crap out of your life. It's so doable. Truthfully, you can make the 2 things a day with a pair of holey socks or pens with no ink. What generally happens is you look at things a bit differently. As you explore areas of your home you'll find far more than 2 things. In no time you've emptied a lot of crap that had no meaning to you but took space and time to clean. An added twist is to toss 2 things for every one new thing you bring back into the house. It makes you really think about purchases.

Here's where I'm at:
Day 1: Bathroom Vanity. Junk piled 6 jars of lotion and hair product that I didn't like. Oddly it had been in there so long most things had started to separate. 3 Mascaras that had dried up. Eye shadows that didn't suit my skin tone. Air freshener that made me sick to my stomach. That was more than 12 things in 2 minutes. Open shelves and a clean vanity top. Good start.

Day 2: Kitchen - Baking cabinet. I pulled a chair over to stand on to survey the top shelf and discovered 3 jello instant puddings, 4 jello gelatins, 1 box of gourmet cake mix, evaporated milk, 2 boxes of crackers, Cake decorations, frostings an industrial size container of garlic powder all expired. At least 15 things in 2 minutes. New rule: I am not allowed to use the top shelf for ANYTHING!

Day 3&4: Soap Studio. I've been feeling constricted lately. I shouldn't have to add on to the house to make soap. I'm not so big as to need that room. My studio is 15 x 20 with cabinets and countertops on 2 full walls - plenty big to do whatever I need to do. The problem: the cabinets were full of crap from when we moved in. I pulled out 5 frying pans moved from upstairs when I replaced them with new non-stick and stainless steel. A coffee percolator for parties, cru de te trays, computer parts and keyboards. The worst was my own stockpile of little bottles, cans, containers and such that I kept for temporary molds. Really? Will I ever use 6 pringles cans for soap molds? I love making logs. Out they went. Essential oil and fragrance bottles. That was harder. Sometimes I like to huff from bottles to compare scents between vendors. Some went. Some are honestly still there.

I added four stacking 8 foot wall shelves to line up the curing soap. Moved all of the empty molds to one location and arranged fragrances in wire shelves along the wall. I can now see exactly what i have and how much of it. I added 2 more spice rack type of wire shelf where I mix everything up. Nothing on the counter except the mixing pails. Added cork squares on the cabinet doors to pin up the recipes I'm working on. I made 2 batches of soap with all the space in the world. No more tipping over bottles in a cramped space. I feel so energized! Creative juices are again flowing.

Tomorrow: The storage room. Sweet Jesus I am not looking forward to it. If I just focus on 2 things. Two measly little things, perhaps I'll get the job done. 2 Paperback books. 2 coffee mugs. 2 old dog blankets. I can do that. In about a month that room should be back in ship shape. 2 things.