The Minimalist-ish

Hubby went out one night with a friend so I decided to curl up with takeout and find a good documentary to watch. I came across The Minimalist.

Initially I thought I’d not last long as who wants to feel more guilty about the crap they’ve collected over the years? Not this gal.

Surprisingly, I stuck it out to the end and felt enlightened and motivated to purge. 

The next day I started with my damn Tervis Tumbler collection. I want to say I had over 20 in my cabinet that ranged in size and theme from Gators to starfish to Super Bowl year whatever. Gots to gooooooo. I narrowed it down to my favorite four large and favorite four small. Boom. 

Next was my storage bin of bags. Yes, I’m a bag and box hoarder- just call me the bag lady, (admittedly, so if you call me that in public, I won’t be offended). Think gift bags, old crumbled tissue paper, shopping bags from the mall, old gift boxes, and good bags that I swore I’d reuse or give away or tote my lunch to go in. I began pulling everything out and was astonished and embarassed and mortified. I divided up the holiday and birthday gift bags into sections to keep for reuse, and recycled all the random shopping bags, boxes and old paper. See ya!  

Then I went through my phone and deleted ALL the shopping apps I had. (All except for Amazon, because Prime is where it’s at folks). One of the things the documentary encouraged was concious purchasing. I definetly wasn’t always doing that while bored and lounging in the dentist office waiting room, clicking through the latest season trend alert and must haves then adding to my shopping cart. Buh bye!

I continued to the tuppaware cabinet, utensil drawer, and pantry.

I’ve done pretty well consciously keeping baby’s toys at a minimum and had just recently gone through my clothes, so they were both safe for now. Shoes need a second look soon for sure. 

Last on my list is my samples and overstock of random face and hair product. I don’t care if it says it prevents wrinkles while thickening my hair, makes me fly, or helps me live longer- If I haven’t used it in the last month, it’s going.

What I really took away from the documentary was not a sense of guilt, but a sense of responsibility to purchase consciously while really looking around at what I own and asking myself “does this add value to my life?”

Ultimately, I was motivated to rid myself and house of the excess and unnecessary. They weren’t pressuring viewers to get rid of their adored purses or favorite watch, as they said there’s nothing wrong in finding a healthy pleasure in an item (amen!) It’s the unhealthy pleasures in items that are dangerous. The idolizing. The obsessing. The attempt at filling.

They provoked me to think more about the items I have surrounding myself and family; the things that subconsciously add extra stress, clutter, distraction and confusion in my mind, the things that may serve as a false sense of security or fulfillment, the things that pretend to make me feel safe or happy. 

I can tell you it’s been liberating. My husband said he was worried him and the baby would be donated next. Not today sweetie, not today. 

All jokes aside, it’s made me really value what we have, and give away or toss what we don’t need. It’s helped me think more about what I purchase and why I’m purchasing it. The process has helped me sleep better and enables me to show up a little more clear for the day.

So now I refer to myself as The Minimalist-ish. Baby steps people.