I discovered a new television show over the weekend - Celebrity House Hunting. I love House Hunters, and the celebrity version is awesome since it combines the guilty pleasure of seeing how the 'stars' live, and the enjoyment of seeing potential houses and guessing which will be picked (they never pick the right one). The show starts with a tour of the current home and of course the places are gorgeous. But once again, just like in MTV Cribs (yes I watched that religiously too)I noticed that there was no sign of anyone really living in the house. These houses always see more of a showcase than a home.
What I mean is where are the piles of books (or even one) sitting next to the chair/couch/bed ready to be picked up? How about a stack of magazines? Pile of newspapers? So they don't read - how about the remotes? Knitting bag? Some sign of a hobby somewhere?? I look around my house and see a number of bookcases crammed with books, books leaning against the sides of them, books nearby begging for space. I have no less than 3 knitting bags each with a project I am part-way through. My husband has his tablets, etc. piled right within easy reach of where he sits. His n-scale trains are set up in the back room, where all the jigsaw puzzles are stacked. But in all these shows, it looks like people don't do anything in their homes. I guess they get it all cleaned up just for the show - but where did they put it all? We have several large closets in our place, and they are filled with our hobbies. Canning jars, sewing supplies, fabric, rug hooking projects and supplies - the list goes on. So there is no where to stash the extra. Do they have a storage unit? Well, so do we and that is full with Christmas decorations, tools - the list could go on there too. Is it all out in the yard? But we get a tour of there as well, and the garage.
These thoughts come to mind each year as I make my resolutions about organizing better. For a long time, it was a New Year's tradition for my family to clean the basement on New Year's Day and I still tackle some problem area now that we don't have a basement anymore. It is also a New Year's tradition that I put out a "Beat the Clutter" display at whatever library I am working at. It is always the single most popular display of the year. Clearly there are lots of people just like me that have lots of interests, lots of collections, not quite the space to store them all and are looking for some ideas on how to manage them a bit better. (Did I mention how much I miss the show Clean Sweep?) If this sounds like you, revel in the fact that you are not alone, and stop by an check out some great books on how to manage it all so that you can enjoy it more.
