Is your kitchen streamlined, efficient and a joy in which to cook? A couple of years ago, I took you on a pity trip and so many of you went with me! I loved all your responses and I think the "trip" helped many pare down the contents of their clothes closets! You all are so fun! If you didn't take that prity trip with me and if your clothes closet contains more than what you love and wear today, be sure and read my blog. Let’s Take a Pity Trip
Today I’m throwing a pity party and I hope you’ll have one too.This exercise is designed to help you dejunk your kitchen. Let’s pretend we’re going to throw a huge dinner party, only, just like on the pity trip you have to pretend you’re disadvantaged and this party is going to be as wretched as you can make it.
You’ll be Serving Bad Food
First, you’ll need to search in the cupboards and freezer for old food. You know any cans or packaged products with words like “best by 7/14,” and frozen stuff you don’t recognize (and never will). Of course all the bad food needs to go in the garbage, but there’s nothing stopping you from pretending you’re going to make a giant and disgusting casserole out of all of it for the big pity event.
Second, you’re going to look at all your serving dishes with new eyes. Are there bowls, and plates that you never use, not even during the holidays? Are your glasses foggy from age? A good way to look at your stuff with new eyes is to pretend you’re at a thrift store and ask yourself, as you look at each plate, bowl and glass, “would I buy this?” See if you can fill a big garbage bag with kitchen utensils, silverware, glasses, mugs, chipped bowls and plates, and pans you haven’t used since July of 2005.
On the 4th of July a couple of years ago, Terry and I had a dinner party for two other couples. As I was looking in my kitchen cupboards with entertaining on my mind, I realized there were so many serving pieces I just don’t use anymore and I promised myself that after the party, I was going to dejunk my kitchen of them. That’s when I decided to pretend to have a pity party. It helped me get to the bottom of why I wasn’t using a lot of what I passed over in preparing for the 4th.
Go Backwards
Thought comes before any tangible thing. If you want to change a circumstance, you must change the thought that created it and the circumstance will change. Every object in your home was first a thought and even the reason each thing is in your home, was first a thought. So metaphysically speaking, you can reverse it by turning the stuff you’re not using into thoughts, and you’ll quickly understand why you’re keeping certain things and realize it’s time to get rid of other things.
For instance when I looked at my big mixer, two thoughts came to me: 1. Joanna (my daughter) gave it to me for Christmas. 2. It’s too heavy to pull out and use, I’ll just use the hand mixer. One thought kept me from letting it go and one thought kept me from using it. Those two thoughts have kept that big, unused mixer in my cupboard for six years. And to think how it could have been used and enjoyed by someone while I've held it hostage.
There was one BIG thought that kept the ice cream maker up in the cupboard… unused, ‘Someday I’m going to make ice cream.’ Trouble with
that thought is, we no longer eat dairy. It was a nice thought 15 years ago, but now it no longer fits us.
Have fun with recognizing the thoughts behind your things. It'll help you have a very successful pity party. And don’t forget, to follow through with getting the contents of the pity party out of your house, so you’ll be ready to entertain with just what you love.
I can guarantee you, as soon as you do your pity party you'll feel better. And you'll feel better every day you look in your kitchen cabinets and see the extra space you have.
Speaking of feeling better. My latest book, The JOY of Being Disorganized, is loaded with ways to feel better right now, no matter where you are in your journey to get organized.
Love,
P.S. Please share this with a friend. Maybe you can have a co-pity party and help each other.