Help, I'm knee-deep in clutter!

52 PICKUP for SEPTEMBER 2008

• Daily Anticlutter Routine: Each night put grooming products away and hang up all the towels in the bathroom (1min).
• Pickup Project: Fire safety (1 to 2 hours).
  Place smoke detectors on each floor, test the batteries each month, and replace them once a year; keep a fire extinguisher on each floor; and remove fire hazards, such as big stacks of papers and oily rags. Store flammable materials, weed killers, and pesticides away from heat sources, and, of course, make sure that charcoal and ashes remain inside the grill until they are 100% safe.
• Quickie Cleanup in the Dining Room: Clear out clutter (15 minutes).
  Take everything off the dining room table except for a decorative item. Look around the room and scoop up miscellaneous newspapers, DVDs, and clothes. Take five minutes to put them where they belong. Then, quickly straighten the chairs as well as all items on cabinets and on shelves.

• Daily Anticlutter Routine: Each night put grooming products away and hang up all the towels in the bathroom (1min).
• Pickup Project: Set up for emergencies or evacuation (2 to 3 hours).
  Make sure that you have plenty of extra bottled water and a three-day supply of nonperishable food and pet food; a change of clothing for each person, including rain gear, gloves, blankets, and sleeping bags; health items, such as a first-aid kit, extra prescription meds, and extra eyeglasses, contacts, and dentures; baby care items, such as formula and diapers; tools and supplies, including flashlights, extra batteries, and matches; and sanitation products, including toilet paper and towelettes.
• Quickie Cleanup in the Bathroom: Where's the TP? (15 minutes).
  Are you always running out of things? Make a list of all the items that you need to stock up on then head out to the store for extra shampoo, hair rinse, shower soap and moisturizer, toothbrush and toothpaste, dental floss, razor blades, and, don't forget the toilet paper.

• Daily Anticlutter Routine: Each night put grooming products away and hang up all the towels in the bathroom (1min).
• Pickup Project: Set up vehicle emergency supplies (1 hour).
  Get ready for a potential car breakdown and snowstorms. Be sure that you have comfort aids, such as bottled water, tissues, blankets, and an old jacket and boots; emergency equipment, including booster cables, flares, flashlights, and a first-aid kit; winter weather items, including antifreeze, deicing spray, windshield brush and scraper, and a small shovel; a tire repair kit and an air pump; and tools, such as an ax, hammer, screwdrivers, and rope.
• Quickie Cleanup in the Bedroom: Shoe patrol (15 minutes).
  If your shoes end up scattered around the bedroom or tossed in a pile in the closet, you'll find it's worth the effort to get them all together so you can find them easily. Line them up by such categories as sandals, sports shoes, flats, slippers, and evening shoes.

• Daily Anticlutter Routine: Each night put grooming products away and hang up all the towels in the bathroom (1min).
• Pickup Project: Store important papers (1 to 2 hours).
  Put together a packet of documents to be stored in a safe-deposit box. Include your will, insurance policies, passports, birth, marriage, and death certificates, and a list of your household inventory. File copies of important papers in a tote bag that you can grab and take with you if there is a household or evacuation emergency. Include copies of insurance papers, medical info, a list of useful phone numbers, extra cash, and credit cards.
• Quickie Cleanup in the Basement: Sweep the steps and landing (15 minutes).
  Start at the top and dust the ceiling, corners, and around any windows and doors. Next sweep the steps and landing and even under the steps. If you have time, quickly run a mop or sponge over the area.

Help, I’m knee-deep in clutter! by Joyce I. Anderson