Awesome Day Eight: Belated Spring Cleaning

For the last eight years of my life, I have moved at least once a year--sometimes across the street, sometimes across the country, sometimes across the globe.  Every.  Single.  Year.

While it's exhausting and time consuming and generally soul crushing, moving is also cathartic.  It's the one time during the year that I am forced to look at everything I own, and ask myself "Why the hell to do I have all this stuff??"  What begins as packing turns into cleansing; by the time I actually make the move, I'm left with less than half of what I started with.  And it feels great.

(I dream of ridding myself of most possessions and traveling through Southeast Asia for a year with only a backpack, two sets of a clothes, and a single pair of shoes.  But that would be too cliché.  And I really like heels.)

Anyway, this is the first year in eight years that it looks like I will not be changing residences come September (let's all collectively knock on wood--life is life, after all), and I've noticed my organizational skills have taken note.  We have a second bedroom in our apartment, fondly referred to as "The Office," but more recently it has taken on the nickname of "The Shitstorm" or "The Black Hole".

It is the room in which most of my clothes are kept (clothing lovers need separate closet space, obviously), but it is also receives any "I don't know where to put this" junk.  It is where unpacked suitcases go to die. (I will humbly admit that I didn't unpack my bag from safari in Zambia in May until about three weeks ago, and only because I had to re-pack the same bag for a trip the next day.  Pathetic, I'm aware.)  It is where craft supplies dry up, and unfinished projects are forgotten about.  Unused pillows, unread books, untouched Christmas presents, unopened junk mail--it all goes to the office.

In an attempt to regain control of the room (and of a small piece of life), I committed myself to cleaning it.  Not just cleaning, but organizing.  Cleansing, if you will.  There would be a Goodwill donation drop-off trip at the end, so help me God.

Now, this is embarrassing my friends, but in order for you to understand the true amount of Awesome that was Day Eight, I think a before picture is necessary.  So, here it is, in all its glory (mom, please look away before you disown me as your offspring):

But, after a few hours of tunes on Pandora and only minimal Facebook distractions (high five to me), I am happy to announce that the office has been resuscitated and brought back to life.  Check it out:

As I write this, I am sitting at the desk, typing on a computer, using the office for office-y things.  And not having a claustrophobic panic attack in the process.  It is a belated spring cleaning miracle--and an Awesome one at that.

Some lucky clothing donation drop off site will be receiving about 30 pounds of gently used clothing and shoes, as well (some with the tags still on them.  I disgust myself.).

(Side note:  This whole process really reminded me of a board game my brother and I used to play when we were kids, where the whole point was to clean up a messy room for the Berenstain Bears.  Genius purchase, mom, but I guess the whole "cleaning can be fun" point that game was supposed to drive home didn't really stick--until now.)

Now excuse me while I go take a deep, Awesome breath to appreciate my somewhat settled and nicely organized life.