Parrot Nation

Going to charity. And I’m not done.

We all make mistakes. And sometimes those mistakes are shopping mistakes. We see something on sale and think, “That would work in my wardrobe.” Or, “I really should be making my own pasta.”  This happens a million times a day. I’ve done this. I don’t fall victim to it often, but it happens. And most often. it happens to me with shoes. In this case, I was a victim of the “Buy One, Get One Half Off” ploy. And I liked the boots I got. I really did.

There was only one problem. One pair was hellishly uncomfortable and the other was impractical. Best I stick to what I really do wear which is little semi-high-heeled ankle boots, tennis shoes and other assorted comfy footwear. I have one pair of absolutely fabulous suede high-heeled black shoes. They are wonderful. And I’ve had them for years. I kept those and intend to get them re-heeled once again. Why? Because I wear them  on occasion.

This jacket is an unfortunate purchase. I like the jacket just fine. But it’s just too big. Out it goes:

What’s wrong with it? It’s just too big.

You simply rid yourself of stuff you don’t need, don’t use or don’t love. Too big? Donate it. Too small? Pass it along. Or in the case of one of my very favorite pairs of boots, if it’s simply too worn out, throw it out. Broke my heart, but that’s just what I did with this pair of boots that I wore to death:

Pretty, right? Look again:

Yup. They’re shot. Out they go…

This isn’t an easy process. For anyone. But it’s a pretty good feeling to know that I’m trimming down my “Stuff.” It’s just less junk to have to wade through to get to what I really need. Your taste changes over the years. So do your needs. As you progress though life, you begin knowing what you like to wear and what you will wear. You stop worrying about being trendy.

I’m not suggesting that you stick to the polyester pantsuit look, just because you wore them decades ago, I’m simply saying that you simply don’t need the newest, hottest thing that hit this season’s runway in New York. Why? Because a year from now, it’ll be old news. And you’ll be stuck with it and won’t wear it again. And it sits in your closet taking up space and making you feel guilty because you paid money for it and feel like you should wear it.

Don’t do this. If you don’t wear it, get rid of it. Do not allow an inanimate object to manipulate you by making you feel guilty. It certainly doesn’t care about you.

When you lighten the load in your home, somehow, the “feel” of your home changes. There is a seismic shift of the energy in the space and your approach to how you feel about it and yourself. I can’t explain it. I just know that when the home is orderly and the space just flows, you feel so much better. I think that along with the closets and the cabinets, it unclogs your brain. You aren’t consciously thinking about all the crap in your life. And all the crap in your home somehow becomes crap on your mind. The less crap you have to look after and think about, the easier it is to simply live.

I suppose it’s a bit like defragging a computer or doing a disc cleanup. You are deleting unnecessary “files” and things you have to keep track of. Your computer becomes faster, more efficient. This is the same, really.

This is not the first time I’ve done a purge in my home. And it probably won’t be the last. God knows I’m no expert. But I’ve done it. I know how it feels.

And if you are choosing to follow along like a few of my friends on Facebook, please start small: Polish your sink. Steam and wipe out your microwave. Sort out and clean underneath just one sink. Do one small thing. Just one.  It’ll make you feel good.