I love a good clear out!! Yes, I agree a good clear out is very hard work, but when the job is done, there is such a wonderful feeling of accomplishment.
When we put stuff into storage, I mark the date the box of "stuff" was stored. If we open a box, we cross of the original date and add the current date. Everytime a box in storage is opened, the date is changed. When it is time for clear out, any box without a changed date goes - whether it be a donation to a charity, yard saled (rarely, I don't have the patience or time), given away, recycled, or tossed. The only exception to this rule are the boxes that hold the Holiday/Christmas items. But we go through each of these boxes as the items are used. I find this works well at keeping unwanted items in storage.
I used to have a 3x5 card that prompted an annual clear out. My sisters used to joke that my attic and basement were cleaner than some people's houses! But I find since we have moved to our current place, I seem to have a small clear out every 6 months. This place has an attic and basement, both filled with the landlords' stuff, so we don't use them. We only have 2 rooms in the house with closets. And they are teeny closets (5ft long by 3ft deep each), which we use to hold our clothes. So the 2 spare bedrooms have shelves/boxes along the walls. No matter what I do, they always seem messy to me, so I tend to weed through them often to see what I can remove from our lives.
I would love to have more pears to process. But I do have some apples that I want to dehydrate before we leave for ds's wedding. I am running out of time for getting stuff done!
Don't forget to stay hydrated and take your usual breaks, FF!
That's so great about visiting a nursing home with a dog- I'm sure everyone loves the pet therapy!
Just a quick question- when you move your plants inside for the winter, where the heck do you put them? Do you have a lot of south facing windows? I have 3 avocado trees and 2 large pots of geraniums that come in and fill our entire faux sunroom. Our mini potted stone pine Christmas tree also has to have a space since it can't freeze according to its tag. I just don't have enough windows!
Good job Sage!!! What a beneficial day for both him and the other residents. Such a win, win situation. Sorry the orchard was overrun with tourists. Perhaps you could call and pre order the cider? Then park right in front of the door for pick up.
Good to hear your plants are all moved for winter. I still have a few things I should get done here. But lots of time for us.