Did she do it?

That is the question on everyone's mind, I know. Did Melissa successfully sort through her clothing? Last time I checked in, she was working on it. Her deadline is today and I'm rooting for her.

Now, I'm not very sappy, sentimental, or soft. Several of my friends refer to me as being bootcamp worthy. My friend Ally used to threaten her kid's with "Martin's Bootcamp" when they were getting on her nerves. BUT, I'm not heartless. I understand the difficulty people have when parting with their stuff. I have two pieces of clothing I have kept since the 1990's: a GUESS denim skirt that I was so HOT in and a Charles Barkley jersey that a friend sent me from Phoenix. I can't wear either, but they hold meaning and I keep them.

As for everything else? It's gone. We have to ask ourselves why we keep things. Are we too lazy to sort it all out? Are we scared of being without? Do we have mental issues? (Rude, I know! And I'm only referring to the psychological reason some people hoard, but I'm not qualified to talk about that because I have my own set of mental issues.)

Here's what we have to remember: Physical clutter affects us emotionally. It keeps us from enjoy our space, sleeping well, and feeling pressured all the time to fix it. I have a friend whose house is so full of crap that she only has a small living room she can maneuver in. The rest of the house is FULL. And what ever picture you have in your head of full, double it. One room is full from the floor to my waist of plastic bags filled with crap she can't even remember that she has. I kid you not. And on top of that, she never wants to be home, she doesn't sleep well because she sleeps on a loveseat every night, and she can't keep her life straight.

A clutter free home allows us to not only have room to walk and move around in, but it helps to clear stresses from our minds so that we can relax and be the person God intended us to be. People and loved ones are what is important, not how many books or sweaters or shoes we have.

LYMTAS

In high school we always signed our notes, "LYLAS" for "Love you like a sister." Well, Melissa was more than that. She carried my bassoon to the bus stop (I was a weakling), she forced me to watch WHAM! videos on BETA (for chrissake), and she lived 2 doors down so I could always escape to her house.

Well, Melissa has a ton of siblings and I have none. Her house was chaotic and loud. Mine was quiet and sparce of knick knacks. But who's house would I rather be at? Hers. So, I created this "LYMTAS" as my ending to my notes, IM's and emails. It stands for "Love you MORE than a sister." And I do. And because I do love you sweet Melissa, I'm going to take you through my organizational bootcamp. You will be amazed at how much an organized home helps to clear your aura and chakras and all that crap. And Derek's stuff is getting taken care of too.

Your homework assignment:
1. Collect four large bins (I KNOW YOU HAVE 4!) and label them Keep, Donate, Throw Away, Sentimental.

2. Bring all of your clothing into an unused room (Storm's) and begin sorting. Your first sort should be drastic. 3 seconds per garment. If it doesn't fit, you ARE NOT allowed to keep it. If it is damaged, you ARE NOT allowed to keep it.

3. AND because you are a softie, you need to keep sentimental items to a minimum. One (or two) per person you want to remember.

4. Shoes are a part of this process. Put on a pair of socks and try on all your shoes. If they don't fit or they are not comfortable, you must get rid of them. That is the only way to justify getting new ones!!


OK, girl, get moving!! You have until Thursday to finish this.