Chapter 1 Honing your sensitivity to joy

As you know, I am a fan of the Marie Kondo book, The life-changing magic of tidying up: The Japanese art of decluttering and organizing.

Good news! A second book is a available. The title is Spark joy: An illustrated master class on the art of organizing and tidying up. Kondo discusses the differences between tidying and cleaning. It is noted that the term cleaning refers to removing dust and dirt, that is, products generated by nature. The term tidying refers to confronting objects, that is, the things in your home.

We are going to go through the book chapter by chapter. Chapter 1 is titled Honing your sensitivity to joy.

The term "spark joy" refers to the feeling of happiness felt when handling an object. Kondo suggests honing in on emotion by creating a pile of similar objects, giving yourself three minutes, and choosing the top-three things that spark joy.

Kondo also notes that thinking that some object might come in handy some day is prohibited. Again, refer to the expression "spark joy." If it doesn't spark joy, Kondo suggests discarding.

Please join me on a journey though the book. Next week we'll cover chapter 2, how to fill your home with joy.

See you next week,

GP

Source: Kondo, M. (2016). Spark joy: An illustrated master class on the art of organizing and tidying up. New York, NY: Ten Speed Press

New Healthy Homes App

Dear everyone,

Apologies for the blog hiatus. I will post every Friday by noon-ish.


Check out a new healthy homes resource! The Healthy Homes Partners app was created via a team effort involving me, the OSU App center, HUD, and USDA.

Opening page of Healthy Homes Partner's app

How can I get the app? Apple < App Store < Healthy Homes Partners. It's only available for Apple products at this time. Did I mention that it is FREE?

Why create a healthy homes app? The end user of the app is healthy homes stakeholders, that is, people that provide healthy homes education to clients. That includes you! The objective is to add value to current resources, such as the “Everyone deserves a healthy home” practitioners’ guide.

• Access the guide via this link: https://ptfceh.niehs.nih.gov/activities/assets/files/everyone_deserves_a_safe_and_healthy_home_stakeholder_guide_508.pdf

Everyone Deserves a Safe and Healthy Home (Practitioner's Guide)

Want more information? The Healthy Homes Partners app featured in the February "How Buildings Work" in-service.

• If you want to listen to the in-service, please follow this link: http://dasnr.adobeconnect.com/pzda4nvqwn8f/

We are working on a healthy homes app for youth, please stay tuned!

Thanks!
GP

Chapter 5 The magic of tidying dramatically transforms your life

Do you believe that tidying has a magic effect? What about at home? Work? In my life, when my home and office are in order, I feel efficient. I can manage activities, projects, and simple tasks better. A pet peeve of mine is having to look for something. I want to be able to place my hands on items quickly!

Put your house in order and discover what you really want to do (p. 174). Kondo argues that putting your house in order is a great way to discover yourself, “At their core, the things we really like do not change over time. Putting your house in order is a great way to discover what they are” (p. 175). And, "tidying is a way of taking stock that shows us what we really like" (p. 177). Finally, "your real life begins after putting your house in order" (p. 203).

Letting go is even more important than adding (p. 177). "Eliminate what you don’t need by confronting each of your possessions properly" (p. 183). Kondo infers that "being surrounded by things that spark joy makes you happy" (p. 200). I believe this to be true, 100 percent. In my office and home, I want the essentials. I am not interested in the superfluous.

Work/life/home balance? Did I just coin a new term? "Tidying ought to be the act of restoring balance among people, their possessions, and the house they live in" (p. 190).

Believe it or not, Napoleon finds joy in this small bin

Reference: Kondo, M. (2014). The life-changing magic of tidying up. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press.

Chapter 4 Storing your things to make your life shine

A place for everything and everything in it's place. We've all heard that a key to keeping tidy is to designate a place for each thing. Kondo describes the essence of effective storage as this: Designate a spot for every last thing you own. If you don't have designated spots for items, you may suffer from rebound. No need to purchase expensive organizing tools. Kondo states that the main equipment for storage is actually deciding where everything goes and actually putting it there. How's that for a concept!

Choose your belongings, then consider storage. Storage solutions are really just prisons within which to bury possessions that spark no joy (p.131). The key is to go through items and see if they spark joy. If not, then donate, recycle, etc. Once you learn to choose your belongings properly, you will be left with only the amount that fits perfectly in the space that you currently own (p. 133). Store all items of the same type in the same place. In other words, don’t scatter storage space (p. 138). Clutter is caused by a failure to return things to where they belong (p. 142). Kondo also suggests that you spend some time appreciating your belongings (p. 168).

Here is one trick that I use EVERYDAY. I empty my bag. It makes it easier to keep my stuff nice; plus I don’t have to go searching through bags looking for my belongings.

Small purse and work bag keeps things tidy

Reference: Kondo, M. (2014). The life-changing magic of tidying up. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press.

Chapter 3 Tidying by category works like magic

My wardrobe is pretty simple.  I never waste a moment trying to decide what to wear. I don't spend money on things that just don't suit me. Don't get me wrong... I enjoy clothes.

How did I get to this place of peace? I tidied by category!

Shoes (3)
1. Black patent leather clogs
2. Black cowboy boots
3. Brown cowboy boots

Jacket/blazer (1)
4. Denim

T-shirts (7)
5. Lavender v-neck
6. Lavender v-neck
7. Grey/black crewneck
8. Grey crewneck
9. Dark grey crewneck
10. Black crewneck
11. Long sleeve dark grey crewneck

Sweaters (12)
12. Grey cotton cardigan
13. Grey cotton cardigan
14. Grey wool cape from Ireland
15. Grey wool/cotton crew neck
16. Grey wool rollneck
17. Black cotton cardigan (3/4 sleeve)
18. Black cotton cardigan
19. Black cardigan sweater lined with cheetah fabric
20. Navy blue sweater with side zipper
21. Yellow cashmere crew neck
22. Yellow wool cardigan
23. Purple wool cardigan

Bottoms (9)
24. Denim pencil skirt
25. Grey tweed skirt
26. Black polyester pencil skirt
27. Black lightweight wool pencil skirt
28. Grey lightweight wool pencil skirt
29. Black double serge wool pencil skirt
30. Black knit wool circle skirt
31. Grey double serge wool pencil skirt
32. Black long wool skirt

Total: 32. Please note that fitness clothes, sleep wear, unmentionables, and jewelry are not part of the count.

Just a few items does the trick

These are all of my favorite things! Here are the most important part of the story:

• Everything fits beautifully
• Everything matches
• I wear all of it
• I stick to a simple color scheme. Grey all day everyday. Say what you like ... I love it!
• I know my true style and can tell you about it in just a few words

However ... When I put the contents of my closet into words, it seems like a lot. 

What about a 10-piece core wardrobe? 

This refers to 10 items that you wear day in an day out. Going to the opera? That outfit doesn't go into the count. Seem extreme? Some say, "liberate yourself with a 10 item wardrobe." Watch this TEXx Talk video to find out more about ... the narrator states it will change your life!

• Link to video: http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/The-ten-item-wardrobe-%7C-Jennife

I just might give it a go! Please let me know what you think.

Stay tuned...

Reference: Kondo, M. (2014). The life-changing magic of tidying up. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press.