CLUTTER

Old catalogs are clutter.

I decluttered 15 of these today!

OUTSIDE MY WINDOW - update

Recently I wrote about the neighbor having some trees cut down, which looked like this ~

                                 

Things have been busy over there the last couple of days, and this morning it looks like this ~

It may be a little hard to tell since you aren't familiar with the house and yard, but 6 loads of black dirt was hauled in yesterday. I wish I had taken pictures of that. There were long rows of piled dirt from the front sidewalk to beyond the back end of house, plus along the driveway in front.

The neighbor attached 3 window wells - the brown patches on the black foundation. You can see those windows in the earlier picture. The previous owner had leveled the front lawn, and then there was a big dip down at the corner in the left side of the picture which is hard to see here. It was impossible to mow and ended up being weeds more than grass. Now that is all filled in and the side yard is raised to about level with the tops of those windows. He still has two piles of dirt to take care of.

My yard is the green grass and goes as far as the dirt. Actually some of that dirt is on my yard. If I owned it I would say something about it. I am sure the neighbor will take care of it by the time he is done, but the lawn boy had a bit of a problem mowing yesterday.

You can see my huge maple tree in the bottom picture, but you can't see how far out the branches extend - over my house and my garage, and over the neighbor's yard. The tree he took down was the same kind, but not as many trunks. Mine actually looks like it was 4 trees that grew too close together.

And right now it is raining. Thank goodness it is a very light rain or that dirt could be washing out and down to the back yard. The birds are sure enjoying looking for bugs and worms in that fresh dirt. I have even seen a couple of birds that I have not seen before, nor identified, as they were here and gone so quickly.

That was my 'entertainment' yesterday.

OUTSIDE MY WINDOW

More branches down on the yard!

                     

But this time, not from a storm. 

My next door neighbor had 3 trees cut down on Tuesday.  By the time I saw what was happening, they already had all those branches down. (above)

The guy in the bucket is WAAAY up there! That is a very old maple tree that is huge. I have one like it, even bigger, on my yard. Mine probably should come down as well, but I don't think the landlord wants to spend the money. It costs a LOT to have a tree service take out a tree.

They start out at the lower limbs and cut off the branches, and then work their way up to the top, then get a larger power saw and start cutting the thicker parts into more manageable logs that just fall to the ground.

I didn't get to see them take the bottom of the trunk out as I had company. By the time I got back there they had already removed the stump and were working on a couple of stubborn roots. All that is left is a big hole. The neighbor is lucky my tree is still standing or he might regret taking his down because he would not have any shade from the afternoon sun. The side of the house you can see is facing west.

At the same time the maple was coming down, another man with another boom truck was working on a huge evergreen tree at the front of the house. It was a very pretty tree and healthy, so I hate to see it gone as well. It sheltered a lot of birds and a rabbit or two. The bottom branches went all the way to the ground. I would have liked to see him just have the branches trimmed up 4 or 5 feet above ground. I saw several birds watching what was going on, and I am sure they were not happy. I hope there weren't any nests with eggs in that tree.

This picture may give you a little more perspective. You can see the back end of the first truck that worked on the maple, and the front end of the second truck working on the evergreen.

With the big evergreen gone I now have a better view of the street as I sit here at the computer.

I did mention they had 3 trees removed. There was a smaller tree or tall bush close to the foundation at the front of the house. I always did think it was too close to the house. That is now gone as well.

Now I wonder if he is going to build a deck where the patio door is. Time will tell.

This 'n' That - Decluttering Paper

DECLUTTERING PAPER

After I decluttered several magazines and catalogs, I had copies of Consumer Digest and a few Discipleship Journal magazines that I am keeping and needed to find room to store them out of sight, but still handy for referencing. So I then needed to make some room in a drawer of the filing cabinet. The most logical (so far) was the drawer where all the income tax files are. I still had every year of income tax papers from all the years since my husband Les and I were married, and that is almost 24 years ago! Time to get rid of all but the last 10 years. I can probably go even further and save only the last 5-7 years, but will go with 10 for now. It sort of gives me the heebee-jeebees to get rid of them, for fear that I will need them in the future (but never have so far).

Here is the stack I worked on.

And here is were that stack went:

And this is what I ended up with:

Two garbage bags full of shredded paper and enough room in the file drawer for those magazines. (maybe a picture of that drawer will be forthcoming after I have finished decluttering and organizing it, but I am not there yet.)

Today, as I write this, the garbage has been picked up by the city. I first dumped used cat litter in each bag, plus added all the other garbage for the week, dividing it all up between the two bags. I have read that it is a good idea to use the cat litter when disposing of personal information as well as old drugs, as that deters anyone from rummaging through the bags to dig them out. Never flush old drugs down the toilet as they then get into the city water treatment plant (or septic tank) and contaminates everything. Actually, the best way to dispose of old drugs is to take them to your pharmacy and they can dispose of them properly. 

Do you wonder what papers you need to keep and which ones you can toss? I can't always remember so have a list that I got from FlyLady. I know some of you are familiar with her. If not, check her out at flylady.net. She has a very good program for keeping house.

Here is her basic list of what to keep and for how long.

_________________________________________________________________

RECORD RETENTION

KEEP:

birth certificates

adoption papers

custody agreements

death certificates

deeds to property

divoce papers

list of previous employers

loans that have been paid off (canceled notes or other evidence)

marriage certificates

passports

photographic or video record of house and household contents

record of any governmental employment (e.g., armed forces)

income tax returns (supporting documentation may be destroyed after 6 years)

tax forms and supporting records relating to non-deductible IRA contributions

tax forms and supporting records relating to sale of a home

KEEP FOR AWHILE:

bank statements: 6 years

brokers' confirmation slips for purchases until security is sold

canceled checks: 6 years

contracts: 7 years after expiration

credit card statments: 6 years

receipts for home improvements that can be added to tax basis of home

6 years after home is sold in a transaction that is not a "rollover" transaction

insurance papers (all types of insurance): 4 years after expiration

mortgage records: 3 years after paid off

owners' manuals for appliances: until item is discarded

receipts for major warranted purchases: until item is discarded or sold

records supporting income tax returns and deductions (W-2s, 1099s, receipts): 6 years

warranties and extended service agreements: until expiration

THROW AWAY (shred):

owners' manual and warranties for appliances and cars you no longer own

receipts for credit card purchases if not major or related to a tax deduction

_________________________________________________________________

I might also mention that most of the things on the 'KEEP' list should be kept in a bank deposit box, including house inventory.

The IRS website does offer a different length of time on tax papers so you may want to check there for more information. The above list is a good guideline to begin with.

Have I done everything on the list? I have to admit that I have not. But I need to. There goes my procrastination gene again. Maybe some day. . . . .

This 'n' That - Decluttering

THIS 'N' THAT

DECLUTTERING

That is going really slow right now, but still working at it when I run across something I know I can live without. Right now I have been working on magazines and Penzey's catalogs. I went through about a year's worth of the Penzey's catalogs and ripped out the few recipes I want to try. Penzey's is a wonderful spice company if you haven't heard of it. Go to their website and order a print catalog to

get recipes. Maybe they have some of the recipes online as well. I have not been there for awhile. Since I don't do a lot of cooking (just collect recipes. LOL) I don't use the spices up very fast. They have some wonderful blends to try, with recipes using some of those spice blends. I have found that leaving the recipes in the catalogs is not going to get them made - out of sight, out of mind. Now I need to sit down and put some of those recipes in a menu before I get groceries again. Then I will have what I need on hand and gives me the incentive to make them. The catalogs also usually have a good coupon on the cover that can be used in their stores or online.

I also have tossed a few other magazines that I have read, so my pile is getting smaller. I am now caught up on all the Better Homes and Gardens past issues, as well as Good Housekeeping. I only have the latest issue of GH to read. The rest in the pile mostly a year's worth of AARP magazines and their 'newspapers'. There are some valuable info in them but I just never got around to reading them as they arrived. I am no longer a member so those have stopped coming and can't say I am sorry. There are also over a year's worth of Consumer Digest magazines but I do intend to keep at least some of those for future reference. I would use their website but that requires paying for it, and I don't want to do that. Initially, I got the magazine subscription at a really cheap price or I wouldn't have it at all. I think in the future I might read them at the public library and save that money.

No picture of the ones I have recycled. And wish I had made a count of them, but I forgot to do that. I am guessing around 18-20 that are gone! Yaaaaay!

This 'n' That - More decluttering

MORE DECLUTTERING

Before

After

 

 I showed you the 'before' picture in  this post . Now you see the hutch after doing some decluttering. Below is part of what I removed.

There was also a large stack of white dish towels and a small white platter that I gave my daughter. I think there were a couple other things she took too. I also took out some large coffee mugs that were put in another cupboard. Below is how it looks today. I am sorry I didn't get a 'before' picture of this part.

On the left is what I kept of the embroidered white flour sack dish towels (my favorite to dry with). In the middle are a few terry type kitchen towels that I use to cover bread dough as it rises, or the baked bread to help soften the crusts a bit while it cools. On top of those are what is left of my dish cloths. I transferred a couple of ratty ones to the rag box. I have a couple that I knitted that I have held back for gifts but I think I need to 'gift' them to myself! On the right side are kitchen towels with crocheted tops to hang on cupboard handles that a friend gave me, and some of my microfiber cloths.

Bottom shelf - small plastic serving plate, divided pickle dish and a covered candy dish on the left, a matched crystal sugar and creamer set (could as well get rid of that as no one uses them anymore), and then a stack of serving bowls, one wicker bread basket, and two salsa bowls. Those larger bowls are only used when my kids are here and we have a large meal, which is maybe twice a year. 

On the right side are some jar candles and an empty beer bottle. Why do I have an empty beer bottle? I use that when I make an angel food cake. I turn the cake pan upside down and put the center hole over the bottle to hold it up while the cake cools. It has been my experience that every time I make an angel food it rises higher than the little legs around the top of the pan, so when the pan is turned upside down, the cake ends up touching the counter and that is not a good way to cool it. Years ago I used an empty pop bottle but most are plastic now. (I don't drink beer - can't stand it)

The last picture is of some more books and magazines I have culled out, along with my wristwatch that no longer works. I think the battery is dead, which could be replaced, but the band is also broken. I had been wearing it with the broken link tied together with dental floss. Since I only paid $10 for it, getting a new band and battery would cost more than a new watch. So I have a new one that I like even better. The magazines are from a stack waiting for me to read, and these I finally finished. I cannot throw out a magazine that I have not read! The book "Jars of Clay" is one that I have tried to read a few times but just can't seem to get interested, so rather than have it sitting on the shelf and making me feel guilty every time I see it, I am finally letting it go and maybe someone else will find it a good read. I think I may have bought it at a rummage sale in the first place.

I am just getting started on the decluttering and organizing, but this is more than I have done in a long while so am feeling pretty good about it. You didn't get to see all the magazine articles and pages printed from the internet that I tossed out of the filing cabinet. Still not finished with that either but things are looking lighter.