A Keen Slate

Sometimes I'm admittedly unproductive. Sometimes I need rest, or perhaps a little distraction. Sometimes I need fun, humor, and silliness. I believe it is important to acknowledge -and occasionally indulge in- these things.   But that's sometimes. Most of the time, I am what others might call 'productive'. I make a to-do list and check items off as I complete them. Unless my plans are somehow derailed, most tasks are done at the end of the day. But even with derailment, I still complete other, more urgent tasks.  So why does it feel like it's never enough?  Because, considering everything I do each day, it is, or at least should be. Waking up early to pack lunch for our daughter, driving her to and from school, looking after and playing with her, grocery shopping, cleaning, laundry, cooking dinner, cleaning up, errands ... Not to mention filling out arduous, time-consuming job applications, drafting professional emails that need to be, in my perfectionist mind, '

Last week I completed my first 2023 donation roundup. After several weeks of going through our closets and totes in the garage, I filled a total of seven boxes! This is the biggest set of donations since moving to NC in July of 2022, which I consider a pretty big win.   Upon arriving in NC I learned that the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), despite having thrift shop, do not pick up donations here. Since the VVA had been my go-to for donation pickup since 2019, this was disappointing.  Of course, I say this knowing the risk of sounding incredibly spoiled and lazy (Why can't I just drop off the donations myself?!). You're right, I can. But I have my reasons: 1) When my daughter was really young I've had the experience of taking what little 'free time' I had to load everything up and drive to Goodwill, only to be told they're full and not accepting donations. Talk about disappointment! In my experience, pickups will only happen if the organization has the space,

Lately my general response when I open boxes that have been packed away for years is, "Oh my gosh ... I had completely forgotten about this!/I still have this?!/I thought I donated this?!" Which, based on my reaction, likely means that the item/s were not so valuable (if not completely vexing) to me. Despite the feelings of overwhelm they incite, it also means that sorting through it all is probably a good thing.     Yet, there are those relatively rare moments when a long-lost item does, as Marie Kondo would put it, "spark joy". Over a decade ago, I visited an antique store in Zionsville, IN, with my sister, nephew, and my parents. There I found a whole trunk full of black and white celebrity photos , probably from old magazines, that some meticulous soul had taken the trouble to laminate. Since many of the images were gorgeous and so reasonably priced, I (a broke graduate student at the time) couldn't resist. I was most attracted to photos of glamorous actress

With the 25th being my next donation pick up day, it's go time! This past weekend I worked at the  decluttering station  in my garage and packed up four boxes of stuff. I also took pictures of items I will attempt to sell on my neighborhood facebook group. Like I said, no obligation or urgency here, whatever sells, does, and whatever doesn't will be donated or posted for free.   Although I've been feeling really good about my progress, sometimes this mean voice pops up and makes me feel like all my efforts are just weak sauce, and nowhere near enough.  When this happens, I need to remember that this is where mindfulness can work its magic. I mean, it's not really magic , but more about being truthful, acknowledging. And I have to acknowledge that I have come a long way. That is a fact, mean voice or no.   So, it's time to take a deep breath, and deal with the stuff (and the emotions that accompany it) moment by moment. Because that's the only place where progres