Re-Mixing and Matching

Okay - in truth, my first day of freedom was on the first. So I'm a teeny bit behind, but I'll do some catching up now. ;-)

So, on my first day of freedom...
I cleaned up the kitchen.
See, the toaster wouldn't take my bagel slice properly, so there were crumbs in it. I went to empty it out, but the bottom was loose, and there were more crumbs on the counter than in the toaster. So I had to wipe up the crumbs. Somehow that led to reorganizing the "brawn" drawer on the bottom. (This is where I keep all of my "Tool Time" props.) Then I take all the stuff off of the counter beside the sink and put it back beneath the sink, since our garbage disposal is now fixed. Afterwards, I look over at the other counter, and you know what, I've been meaning to go through that tray of stuff there, why not now? And so on.

I found a lot of duplication at work: many phone cables, picture hangers, tape rools, locks. Address labels that I'll never get around to using, since it takes me a year to get through one side of one sheet. (No, I'm not a dedicated snailer.) And flower pots - why do I have flower pots, when I possess a brown thumb at best?! Fortunately, I have a friend who has a very green thumb; I'll see if she'd be interested in a few flower pots.

Some of the duplication is unnecessary and redundant, so the extra items will make it into my giveaway bag. Other things - well, I'll hang on to them for now. I might need an extra phone cable down the line.


Yesterday was a bit more on track, as I cleaned up my ersatz art studio.
I collage a lot. I have collaging supplies - letters, papers, pens, stickers, etc., and more images cut out of catalogs & magazines than you could shake a glue stick at. All of it neatly arranged in front of the coffee table in the front room...in theory. In practice, not so neat. Threatening to overtake the main room with one good project, in fact.
So I tidied. And tidied. And tidied some more. Wound up reorganizing the whole setup.

I found a treasure buried out of sight: a plate that has a painting of a woman and the words "Dream Big" on it. I won it last year at a convention. I knew it deserved to be in a better spot than the floor of my main room, even if it was technically in my art space. So now it's on the little ledge above and behind the kitchen sink. I find myself smiling at the gentle reminder each time I take something to the sink to be rinsed off.

I will let my impulses guide me on where to tidy up next...