Best Laid Plans
Spring Break. So many things that need to get done, and theoretically, I ought to be able to accomplish them. But the days are passing. Quickly.
And plenty is left:
- Heaps of laundry
- Unpacked groceries
- Bill organizing
- Book organizing
- Healthy eating
- REAL SLEEP
- Reading and writing
- Serious cleaning.
But here’s the rub. When you’re used to being overrun with too much stuff – emotional stuff, physical stuff, logistical stuff – it’s overwhelming! When you finally have a few days to yourself, those best laid plans seem, well… best laid aside.
Maybe it’s so you can breathe. Or so you can rest. Or so you can torture yourself over breathing and resting. Over the need to clean, to organize, to accomplish.
My storage problem
You ponder, you plan, you even plan your relaxation. Tic toc, tic toc. Hurry up and unwind!
Hello? How do I do that again? That relaxation thing? So the guilt doesn’t flood in?
Oh the pressure. And as for the cumbersome cleaning, the odious organizing, the mind-boggling bill paying – is there a gene to clean that I’m missing? A pill for which I need a salubrious script? 
- Do you plan your down time?
- Do you make plans to get tasks done, then find the pressure is too much?
- Is it easier for you to accomplish goals when you’re up against a deadline?
- Is your emotional storage at capacity?
- Is your physical space the reflection of an overflowing life?
So what do I do about the archival boxes piled in a corner of the den, still wrapped, destined to store scads of letters, papers, and drawings? What about the 14 stacks of magazines and books in my room alone? Where do I move them – again – when I haven’t space in the attic, bookshelves enough in the house, or real closets? Even storage systems require walls, don’t they? What if I’m simply out of walls?
And no – don’t tell me to give away my books. They aren’t old paperbacks from college days. They’re friends, references, family.
Capacity? Incapacity?
I’m thinking about cleaning something. Or everything. Or nothing.
And I’m even contemplating this undertaking with or without the proper storage containers, the attic room to hold them, the bookcases required, the proper closets and drawers to hold my lovely wardrobe (not to mention my shoes), the storage for my sons’ clothes, their possessions, my files, and all my assorted selves. Granted, we did transform one closet (of only two in the house) into a guestroom. Creative? Yes. Adding to the clutter challenge? Definitely.
So does this lack of physical capacity (and physical capacity) add to my physical incapacity? The chicken or the egg, or just a scrambled mess of mental space?
Is planning always the solution, or sometimes, is incapacity simply incapacity, necessitating that you throw your arms up into the air, and accept it for what it is?
Storage solutions?
When it comes to emotional capacity, I believe I will erect the shelving I need when it is required, the space to contain whatever dramas or delights are formed of family. In that, I know my capacity, and it is expandable. 
The real and tangible storage solutions remain an ongoing and bothersome challenge. I can configure and reconfigure in my mind, empty the one closet in the house if my strength holds out, make use of the garbage can to toss what is unneeded.
But space confines me and defines me. The space of my body. The space of my immobility. The borders of my bank account. And right now, pressing hard, this physical space in which I reside.
Organized home, organized life?
I know there is a solution here, somewhere – a way to reorganize and thus feel lighter, more capable emotionally, freer creatively and supremely focused professionally. But I stare at the stacks around me, the overflow of clothing with nowhere to put it, the kid projects, the piles of “stuff,” and I haven’t a solution. Worse, I’m overwhelmed. And overwhelmed. And overwhelmed.
I suspect there is truth to the adage that our environments reflect our lives. Organized home, organized life. And oh, how I long for one of those organized homes! Better yet, for anything resembling an organized life! I had one, once. Will I ever have one again?
© D. A. Wolf
Wow, spookey – do you read minds? This is my brain on my worst of days. Fortunatley, all days aren’t like this…
Lately – ALL my days are like this! (Someone please come unclutter me, so I can find my hot shoes again – and my energy!)
Oh, BLW! This is my downfall. No one would ever know I was a Virgo – a perfectionist – when they see my house. While Linda may be jealous of my huge laundry room, it is essentially storage space along with my garage (couldn’t tell you the last time it saw a car) as those are the only places I can have storage. My room tends to be storage also but I am working on that one. Need to put some shelves up to help a bit.
If I had a garage, it would be full. 🙂 You make me feel better, Nicki. And I’m impressed that you stick to it and are making progress. (Any words of wisdom to inspire me? Of course, some muscle would help… )
Yes. Yes indeed. Yesirree. A storage problem is my most central problem. For stuff. For ideas. For emotions. I am overloaded all of the time. And so, I address things as I absolutely need to. When B’s sleeping socks need to be washed, I wash them. When there is no milk, I buy it. I try to plan as much as I can, but there is always life to live. And the piles build up until I need to find something. And for five minutes I enjoy the lack of clutter. And then life comes again.
Exactly. (At least I’m not alone.) 🙂
As I saw your to-do list, it struck me – do we live in the same house?!
Storage I have. It’s the conviction and energy that I lack; hence the pile of papers and magazines and laundry and clothes in limbo and toys, etc. I will get to them tomorrow, I usually say to myself, which luckily and unluckily for me, there will always be one.
I’ve begun giving things away. If I haven’t used it in a year, out it goes. It’s been a slow process, but I’m finding it extremely freeing for myself and the rest of the family. You have no idea the weight of your junk until you’re out from underneath it.
Of course, I don’t know that we’ll ever be very organized. You need a right brainer for that and our home is sorely lacking!
I could probably send you some muscle, BLW. I am sure the oldest is getting sick of me telling him to start looking for a new job. LOL!!
Ha! Now there’s an idea. You know I’m used to boys. And I have a guest closet. 🙂
The closest we get to neat storage is flipping through the Crate and Barrel catalog before tossing it in the recycle bin. Sigh. And get rid of precious books? Sacrilege! Maybe they could go in the guest closet … Wait, maybe I need a guest closet …
Yes indeed teacher. Anything you “want” will be yours. Love the thought of clearing space and clearing clutter… Seems like a good step to clarity in other areas. Perhaps it’s time for a revisiting with Leo at Zen Habits…. Have fun, Jim
Ummm, there is Definitely a gene for cleaning; duh!
It’s revealing how we expand our storage needs depending on the size of our homes. In NJ our house was smaller and bursting. When I moved here I thought I had so much space. Now? Not so much.
I get really excited when I see closets beautifully organized and with all the cool compartments. Is that bad??
I don’t think it’s bad! (I think it shows our desire to actually organize if we possibly could.) Personally – I agree with you on the meticulous closets! I don’t mind some clutter, but not being overrun with clutter. Which is how I’ve been feeling for some time. 🙁
You know the theory about how high-powered executives visit Dommes to blow off steam and get release from the pressure of being so powerful all the time?
Well, I think that same principle applies to other things – like, I am super organized at work, everything in its place, color-coded, cross-referenced, ruled by Outlook and my planner.
So, I come home and kind of just…well…one of these days I’ll show you a picture 🙂
But I am AWESOME at uncluttering and organizing other people!
PS your son is welcome to come here and eat spaghetti tacos any time.
Pictures! WooHoo! Yes! (And I did actually clean something today. Phew. But not to worry – clutter still rules.) Spaghetti tacos? Really? Can you draw that recipe??
“… those best laid plans seem, well… best laid aside.” Exactement. On se sent épuisé seulement quand il y a assez de temps pour s’en sentir!
Oh, BLW, how you read my heart! The books, of course, can’t go anywhere. They are your friends. I love that! Me too!
Does any house ever have enough storage space? I’ve been a sneaky little organizer around here. I learned how to make every room in the house look perfect, and then I shoved all the crap into my bedroom and bathroom, knowing that no one would go in there if I had a party. Now it’s the family embarassment. But where can the stuff go from there? Goodwill? My antique mirror collection? All the picture frames I’ve collected? All the books I’m planning to read that won’t fit on the floor to ceiling bookshelves in my office?
Sick, I know.
Oh yes, so much easier to go to The Container Store and buy the cute stuff than it is to actually put them into practice. The ongoing feeling of being suffocated by stuff is one of the things that finally led me to sell up and move out. I have visions of cute, tiny houses with nary a thing out of place and nothing I don’t really need. That’s my goal and yet I’m still going to store and buying things I don’t absolutely have to have. Sigh…