Project Unclutter: Day 2

  A day and a half into Project Unclutter, I now have a clean closet, a reception station to hang my keys, coats, and purse, I can see the surface of my desk, and uncluttered my bathroom.  Now I'm working on establishing routines, so I never again face the mess I was facing.  My pile of things to sell at a yard sale this spring has grown from a hill to a mountain.
  I am behind on one thing: my office.  I work from home.  I also live in a modest apartment.  That means storage space is limited.  Added to that is the fact that my husband and I are both pack rats.  Therefore the study has been used for extra storage since we moved in.  Today I am supposed to be sorting through my paper clutter.    I should get rid of the papers I don't need and scan papers I need the information from, but don't need the hard copy.  This will take more than the limited time I have today.  Hopefully, I'll at least put a dent in it.
   It may take longer than scheduled, but with the skills I'm learning, I know I will eventually live an organized life.

Project Unclutter: Day 1

  It's Monday afternoon, and I'm half way through day one of Project Unclutter.  It seems to be going well so far.  I can now actually walk into my closet and close my drawers without a struggle.
   In her book Unclutter Your Life In One Week, Erin Rooney Doland starts Monday off with the wardrobe.  This is a difficult one for me.  I am always worried that once I get rid of something then I'll want it again.  Some of my clothes have been around for decades.  Ms. Doland provides a useful tool, guidlines designed to help weed out what you don't need.  For example I have a cute blue sweater that I have had for many years.  I like the sweater.  It's comfortable and warm.  The only problem is that I don't have anything it really goes with.  I sometimes take it out and make a futile attempt to match it with something, but end up putting it back.  One of Ms. Doland's guidelines is "The item should work in coordination with a minimum of two items in your wardrobe."  It is now sitting in my yard sale pile.  (Before you feel too sorry for me I have the exact same sweater in black.)
   Between the purging, sorting, and relocating the process took about 2 hours.  The second task is my office.  This is going to be even more challenging, but I am looking forward to seeing the results.

Recipe: Berry Delicious Green Smoothie

   I don't know about you, but I have trouble making myself eat enough vegetables.  It's not that I hate them per se.  I just prefer to eat other things.  In the past, I have enjoyed V8 Splash which it turns out is full of high fructose corn syrup, and V8 Fusion which is healthier but still expensive.  Recently I've learned of this recipe.  Like V8 Splash and V8 Fusion it uses fruit to mask the taste of vegetables resulting in a sweet drink that's actually good for you.  It really helps me increase my servings of veggies and adds a nice little snack to my afternoons.

• 1 cup apple juice or water (I use water, it's cheaper and has no sugar)
• Handful of spinach OR collard OR kale leaves (In my experience, spinach is the best)
• 1 frozen banana (previously peeled and frozen) (you can use a room temperature banana if you don't mind your drink a little less cold)
• 1/2 cup of frozen blueberries
• 1/2 cup of frozen strawberries
• optional: 1/2 cup frozen raspberries (actually any frozen berries will do)

 In your blender puree the juice/water and greens first.  Then add the frozen fruit and blend together with greens until creamy.  If a thinner smoothie is desired, add more water until desired consistency.  Can also add ice for a thicker, colder smoothie.  For a sweeter smoothie add more berries.

 Note: I have no children, but I have heard that this can be a good way to sneak some veggies to picky kids.

New Years Resolutions 2012

   In a blog about changing your life, I would be remiss if I did not write about new years resolutions.  Tomorrow is New Years Day. It is the time when people everywhere promise to make changes in the coming year, but few of them last until February.  Does this mean we should give up on the whole resolution business? No.  We should instead examine our previous attempts and fix whatever we did wrong.
   One common error is that we often make our resolutions vague.  Without a clear plan of action, we almost never achieve what we set out to do.  For example, we may say we want to loose weight, but if we do not plan how we are going to bring this about, we will probably to loose anything.
   Another common error is to set unrealistic goals.  In our weight loss example, if I say I want to loose 75 pounds by the summer, I am setting myself up for failure.  Instead I could try to loose a more reasonable one to three pounds a week.  As long as you are taking steps towards your goal it is okay if it takes a while.

 
  Finally, don't be discouraged by your mistakes.  One of my goals for last year, was to learn how to keep a container garden for vegetables and herbs.  I have always had a bit of a black thumb and for years I gave up on growing plants.  But last year I decided to give it a go.  Well needless to say it did not go well.  After I planted we had a freak rain storm that completely swamped my pots and killed my little plants.  I was very discouraged, but now I know not to put the pots where they get all the runoff from the roof.  I don't know if I will succeed this year, but even if I fail, I will learn from it.
  So what are my resolutions this year.  I am not going to count my three goals as resolutions, because I am already doing them.  Instead, I am making smaller goals to help bring about the larger ones.

Resolution 1: Once again I am going to attempt to grow my own herbs and vegetables.  Do the upside down tomatoes really work?
Resolution 2: Pay off my car.  I'm not sure if I can actually do this in a year, but I can at least pay off most of it.
Resolution 3: Finish my novel. Okay I confess I've made this resolution every year since 2006, but with all the time management skills I'm learning I can pull this off.
Resolution 4: Remember to send people birthday cards this year.

What is your New Years Resolution?

Project Unclutter: Book Review

 One month ago, I wrote about Project Unclutter.  The first step of Project Unclutter was to read the book Unclutter Your Life in One Week by Erin Rooney Doland by the end of the year.  Well here it is December 28 and despite holiday madness and an increased work schedule I managed to make it.  In case you did not read my previous post, in Project Unclutter I will follow Doland's advice and see if I really can unclutter my life in one week.
  I initially scoffed at the title of this book.  I have been trying to get organized and uncluttered for years.  How can it be done in one week?  I still have my doubts, but with the guidance of Unclutter Your Life in One Week I should make tremendous progress.
  The first thing that won me over was Ms. Doland's testimony.  She admits that she was not always organized herself.  As she put it, she was "surrounded by stacks of papers, piles of shoes and clothes, and dozens of boxes of sentimental trinkets."  This is key.  Over the years I have read many articles and books on getting organized.  The only ones which have been of much use are the ones written by people who have actually changed their lives.  Someone who is born organized has difficulty understanding those of us who are not.  However, someone who has been unorganized herself knows what they were doing wrong and what they did to fix it.
  The book is organized by the days of the week, Monday through Friday with the weekend grouped together.  Each week day is divided into three parts: morning, at work, and evening.  This breaks the enormous task of organizing your life into manageable bite sized pieces.  I also liked the fact that she includes work.  I work from home now, but I can still apply her principles to my home office.
  As for the specific advice she gives, there is so much useful information that I could write about.  Some examples are, making a 30 minute playlist to clean to, and scanning information in your computer so you don't have to keep stacks of paper. There is much more, but instead of sharing it all now, I will let you know how it works after I've tried it.  Starting on Monday, I will begin the year by putting Unclutter Your Life in One Week to the test.  When I can, throughout the week I will let you in on my progress.
   Despite my initial scepticism, Unclutter Your Life in One Week is a very useful book.  I still doubt it can be done in a week, but I believe it will be a great help in my journey towards an organized life.

Project Unclutter: What it is

  I have discovered a new website: unclutterer.com.  So far I'm really enjoying it.  It has helpful tips and a bit of humor.  In exploring the site I found reference to a book Unclutter Your Life in One Week by Erin R Doland, Editor-in-chief of Unclutterer.com.  My reaction to the title: "Yeah, Right.  Like I could really get rid of all my clutter in one week."  But I did look it up on amazon.  The reviews were mostly positive and the sample pages looked like they contained helpful advise.  Plus I had another order to make and this book would qualify me for free shipping.  So I ordered despite my doubts about it's claims.
  It was then that Project Unclutter was born.  I decided that instead of just scoffing at the prospect of uncluttering in a week, I would put her claims to the test.  I have the first week of January off of work and I can devote that entirely to uncluttering.

   Project Unclutter will come in two parts.  First, I need to read the book.  I'll do this between now and the end of the year.  I plan on writing a review of what I find in a subsequent post.  Second, I will put it to the test.  I chose the week I was off, so I fully test the theory without distraction.  I will let you know how it goes.
   I still doubt I can completely declutter in a week, but I can at least make a dent in it. I know it's very early for a New Years resolution, but I will make mind now.  Here's hoping 2012 will involve a lot less clutter.  Who will join me in Project Unclutter?

Recipe: Texas Chili

  A couple of months ago my gym hosted a talk from a nutritionist.  In addition to all the helpful information she provided, she also gave us several recipes.  This is one of my favorites.  It is different from most other chili recipes I've tried, but I love it.  It's not spicy but very flavorful.  I added a couple of notes of my own to the recipe below.  It has quickly become a favorite in our house.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

1/2 lb ground turkey (omit for vegetarian)
1 small onion chopped
2 cloves of garlic
1 can of diced fire roasted tomatoes (I use 1 cup fresh diced tomato)
1 can sauce
1 can of black beans (drained and rinsed)  (If you cook your own 1 1/2 cup = 1can)
1/2-1 cup water
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 green bell pepper (chopped or chunks)
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 yellow bell pepper
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder

In a large soup pot cook meat, onions, and garlic together.  If not using meat, add some olive oil to cook the onion and garlic.  Cook until onions are tender, add the rest of ingredients, stir and bring to a boil on medium heat.   Turn down to simmer for 30 min.

1/2 cup serving w/ meat and beans is 19g protein, without is 9g protein.
1/2 cup serving w/ meat 225 calories, without meat is 125 calories.