Do you shudder when you enter a room, open a cabinet door or see your disorganized basement because you face “stuff” that you’ve postponed tackling? Have you procrastinated a project that you really want to accomplish? Looking back at her process of dealing with an accumulation of “stuff” in her basement, client, Lynn Amos journals:
CHAOS! How my disorganized basement gave me hives.
Well, not literally. One’s basement is out of sight, out of mind. So, unless I went down to do laundry or scoop the litter box, I really didn’t have to confront the teetering piles that had accumulated so that I had to shimmy and limbo to reach the far corner where the camping equipment bin resides. Over the years, when there was no place in the main rooms to store something, down the stairs it came and it rested wherever it landed in the basement. Slowly the space in which to move became smaller and smaller and with it my anxiety at the sight became greater and greater.
Could it be that I’m a hoarder?
Perish the thought! One day I really will fix those wobbly, mismatched chairs I picked up at tag sales with a vision of painting them different colors for my eclectic dining room. I haven’t put up a Christmas tree in my own home in almost 20 years (felines within reach; family afar). But I will again someday. At $20 the pretty green glass vessel sink for the bathroom was a great buy until I realized I would have to switch out the vanity and all the fixtures as well. What’s a frugal homeowner to do?
Finally, the stress that met me each time I descended the stairs was too much to bear; I had to bring order back into my life. It was time to call in the big guns!
I Needed Objectivity About My Disorganized Basement
Marcia worked with me in two three-hour sessions to sort through the mess and choose what to donate or discard. Her objective eye was invaluable. Early, during one session we put the artificial Christmas tree out by the curb (OK. I won’t really be using it again.) along with some other flotsam and jetsam with a sign proclaiming, “FREE.” By the time we were finished that day all items had been taken and were well on their way to living useful lives in other homes, out of the dark.
We uncovered more than a dozen paint cans. Marcia prompted me to identify which ones belonged to which rooms to label and save. We discarded the dried-out cans and put kitty litter in the others to let them dry before putting them in the trash.
The Rewards Are Immeasurable
Once we determined what items I really wanted to keep, Marcia’s organizing skills came into play. She has a keen eye for space – what will fit where, which items need to be most accessible, and how to store things so I’m more likely to put them back where they belong. She brought along her label-maker and we tagged the boxes and bins so I could easily find articles in their new, visible slots.
I am thankful for the organization Marcia brought to my home. I feel a great sense of accomplishment and am motivated to keep things in good shape going forward. But even more so, I’m grateful for the relief I feel each time I go down to do a load of laundry and scan my orderly basement that no longer causes me to break out in a stressful rash.
When it’s difficult to make decisions, and you value the support of a non-judgmental partner with organizing skills, consider working with a professional organizer to help. You can turn that fear into relief, and that furrowed brow into a smile.
What’s your next project? Is it a disorganized basement?
This story is true but the names have been changed to protect the privacy of the innocent.
