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Book Cleanse

 

Illustration by Tom Gauld

Discussion

8 comments for “Book Cleanse”

  1. Petra Zimmermann says:

    I wanted to answer yes and no. Yes because it’s time, no because I just did this the other week! I have never binge watched a show until Tidying Up with Marie Kondo and boy, did I get to work. I made some changes to her categories, but I did start with clothes and books, the two easiest for me to declutter. I regularly cull clothes and books anyway. Much harder was health and beauty items! But I did that (and cleaning supplies over the weekend). Can’t believe how much crap I had! Sayonara mini gifts with purchase.

    My clothes closet is quite small, so I have to manage it and keep it in check. But I truly love everything in it now.

    Books? I love the look of both is on a shelf or in a bookcase ( I have a bookcase dedicated to food and cooking books), but I’m done to fewer than 125, from a high of over 150. Took some to my monthly vegetarian potluck and they were grabbed up. The rest will go to the Friends of the Library sale.

    Next up: refrigerator and pantry. Freezer will have to wait until spring when temperatures are warmer.

    And I’m saving the worst for last: paper.

    So, one of my goals this year is less, but more mindful, spending.

    • Petra says:

      Petra I am a bit of a KonMari evangelist 🙂 I read the book right before a move two years ago, did the whole thing, and it was amazing. (To be fair I was between jobs and had a week off to focus on it) I’ve gotten neater as I’ve gotten older but for the first time I didn’t move stuff I didn’t know what to do with. Unpacking was swift before everything went in the boxes organized and was easy to find places to put away. Now keeping my house neat and clean is pretty easy. Everything has a place and I don’t keep unnecessary things and I’m much more choosy with what I bring home. My final obstacle is putting away clothes. I don’t fold and put away immediately because the folding method takes longer.

    • wendy says:

      In less than 3 weeks, my building is being fumigated for termites (called “tenting”.) It’s a huge deal. Everyone has to vacate for 4 days. And in preparation, we have to double wrap anything in our apartments that we either eat or swallow. The only upside is that it will force me to do a major purge of my freezer and pantry.

  2. Meghan says:

    I’ve recently signed up for Audible and really like it. Actually I did the three month promotion and just cancelled, but I now have about ten books more books to listen to (I went crazy at their Black Friday sale).

    Anyway, this is to say that I’ve found a way to have a lot of reading material in very little space.

    I wonder, though, about listening to a book vs reading it. I love listening bc it’s enables me to get through some very dry but very interesting books that I’d have never finished had I read them in paperback–including the memoirs of Bill Clinton, G.W. Bush and Obama (both of Obamas). It seems like I might have said this on another post. Oh well.

    However I think that I probably also retain less when I’m listening and not reading.

    I’ve watched most of the Marie Kondo, too, on Netflix. I’m amazed at these people who’ve allowed us all to come into their homes and witness all of the shit that resides there. My sister and I laughed and criticised and then laughed some more at these people. –All those fucking clothes, man!

    I don’t think I’d let such a huge number see mine.

  3. Meghan says:

    Because I’m doing so many other things while I’m listening. My mind goes in and out.

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