Thank you guys!!!

Thank you!!!

Thank You Miquel!!

Danielle,

You just gave us a fantastic gift! Thank you for taking the time to share what you learned, what guided you and how we can find our own path, our own unifying principles.

This makes a lot of sense to me: it speaks to my mind but more importantly, it speaks to my heart.

What a wonderful way to start a new year (and a new decade of my life), with Quest-ions!

Good luck on your de-cluttering these papers,

And a big hug!
Cat

This is wonderful, Danielle, thanks for sharing. It’s given me some good things to think about.

A lot of good, interesting food for thought, Danielle.
Thank you!

May all that is unresolved in your heart be greeted with compassion, kindly curiosity and an ongoing sense that there is order despite the apparent absence of same. Blessings on you in 2012.

Wow Danielle – this is an amazing post. Thank you so much for sharing this here with us. I really appreciate this a lot. And I like the unifying principle idea. It is very similar to our values instead of goals isn’t it? I will sit down today and think about mine. Being a lifelong learner and simplifying my life are two of those. But I want to think more about the others as well.

Have a wonderful first day of 2012,
Sarah

Hi Danielle and all,

I started to think about my unifying priciples and feel that this is really important and challenging. So far I came up with:

- being a life-long learner
- simplifying my life/ minimalism / frugality
- love and accept myself through loving self-talk/ positve thinking & nurturing regeneration actions
- nourish & cherish the relationship with my partner
- gratitude for the many blessings in my life
- marvel at the beauty of nature
- exploring and enjoy my path of personal growth
- enjoy nourishing food & energy from excercise
- foster my creative side through singing, photography and journal writing
- foster relationships with family, friends and inspiring people

I will think more about this but found this really important right now.

It would be great to hear more from others about this.

Best,
Sarah

Sarah
Wow – these are great! And they certainly sound like they come from the heart. And there is no magic number to aim for, nor do they all have to be figured out at once.

You are right – “values” are the same thing as unifying principles, and distinction between this concept and goals. Core values underlie all goals and “to do” lists.
Danielle

Sounds pretty nice! I hope it was nice weather for you and your family :-)

Wow, 100%!
I didn’t think anybody ever got 100% on anything. Obviously I was wrong! Good going!

I may have helped you by not being around to “help” you.
Like the contractor who says the price is $100 – and $150 if you watch; $200 if you help.

I bet Grandma is thrilled!

Skimming your post without reading very closely —> “WHAT? There are landmines in the woods in the midwest?!”

Nice one. My family in the Midwest have been telling me about the weather. It’s annoying, as teasing them about how awesome it is in Sydney over the holidays has become a yearly tradition for me, and it’s not as fun when they’re not huddling inside during a snowstorm. :)

COngrats on both reports Danielle! I hope that when the weekend comes you will feel the full goodness of your accomplishemnts! I also know what you mean about the special things of your parents. I think that is beautiful, and admire the way you process things xo

A brave move, Danielle. Their memory will get a new energy in the next theatre production that utilises these outfits. The liberation you feel will be immediate.

Congratulations, Danielle! I am impressed. It took me 17 years to donate some of my grandmother’s things… And I have plenty more memories in my attic.

Thank you for sharing, and good luck to you!
Cat

Liesl – I’m hoping that the community theater will do something like “South Pacific” so I can see these old uniforms in action!

@Cat – well, I must admit – I did keep my dad’s old WWII flight jacket and aviator cap, but I am thinking about donating that to the local museum. I still also have some of my Grandmother’s things – still wondering about those. I’m going to all the stuff of hers in one box, then go through it and only pick out one or two items at the most that I can actually use and they not collect dust (like a quilt that i will actually use.

Same goes for other boxes of memories. I decided to have one old medium-size wooden box that holds my treasures (like my ticket to the Beatles concert in 1964 and my autograph of all five rollng Stones that i collected when I was president of their fan club in the 60s- how could I part with that!?!). But all the treasures will be limited to just this one box. So I will have to choose what’s most important.

Wow!
And Wow again!!!

OK, if we are all really-really good with our de-cluttering, will you send us a photo of your treasures?

Cheers,
Cat

Cat
It will take me a while to pare down to one box of memories! I’m also thinking about the same technique for my meditation supplies and trinkets – I mean how many little Buddha statutes do I need when the really important one is a small 4" statute I got in India? I didn’t bring a whole lot back with me from India, but I think my most precious item is a simple leaf from a Bodhi tree that I put in a frame.

I’m working to learn from all these decluttering lessons I’m teaching myself. It’s slow but I am actually enjoying it.

Tomorrow with the help of my brother I’m going through a store room of at least 60 boxes – mostly paper from previous jobs which I haven’t even looked at in 5 years. I doubt that I will want to keep ANY of it. I’ll have the “burn barrel” right outside the door as i go through the boxes!

Very impressive, Danielle!
Is there a paper recycling program where you live, that would take those 60 boxes of paper?

Mary Ann
I’d have to haul it into town – there’s one place in the county that takes paper (at least I think so because the Town I work for has a paper recycling program and SOMEBODY picks it up). That’s a good suggestion. The little building where all the boxes are stored is right next to what we call a “convenience center” or “trash dump”. I already asked and they only take newspapers in the bin there — too bad, I could virtually walk the boxes over.

I REALLY don’t want to do this, but my brother wants to help, so that’s a motivation. Well, they have been there for 5 years and by tackling this I have tackled something BIG right at the beginning of the year. It can probably be all done in two days. Delays are of my own doing.

I’d rather focus on the HUGE pile of clothes on my bed tomorrow. In my effort to rethink some spaces in my house – I bought a great 1920s wardrobe for my dressing area off the bathroom today (no closets near by) and eliminated two other pieces of useless furniture there. I NEVER hang my clothes up because the closet is at the other end of the house. They are draped everywhere. So this wardrobe will hold a week’s worth of clothes – chosen on Sunday night. Already it looks better – except for the pile of clothes I collected from every hook and chair and put on my bed!

I got this idea from a book on decluttering for people with ADD – it kept saying LOOK at your clutter – WHAT is it and WHY is it there? Change the system or habit that creates the clutter – in my case not hanging up clothes because the main bedroom closet is not convenient. Can’t MOVE the closet so I created (bought) a very pretty one with drawers, mirrors, and a place to hang clothes. The book also recognizes my dilemma of “out of sight/out of mind” – stuff has to be out where I can see it or at least contained near the function, i.e., getting dressed in the morning.

One thing the Habit Course taught me is thinking through the WHYs and the triggers before acting on trying to change a habit, i.e., hanging up clothes.

Interesting to hear how you’re working through this, Danielle.
What’s the name of the book on decluttering for ADD?
My husband is pretty ADD, and I think I’m a bit that way, too.
Would love to see a book like that. :-)

Mary Ann
The book is Organizing Solutions for People with Attention Deficit Disorder by Susan Pinsky. I ordered it on line and at first I thought I would be disappointed – seemed too simplistic, but actually it does get right to the core issues for people with ADD. One thing she says is “eliminate systems that are too complex, unwieldly, and tedious and replace them with systems that are simple, functional and CONVENIENT”. That’s where I got the idea about WHY my clothes are strewn about the house. She also says forget the beautiful and go for the efficient – it’s OK to have stuff stored on open shelves where you can see them.

You can go to Amazon and have a look through some of the pages. I must have a dozen books on organization but this is one of the first that tackles the ADD issues head on.

Mary Ann
PS – clutter is one of the biggest issues for ADD people – we can step over it endlessly and procrastinate forever in tackling it. But I’m learning it’s not hopeless – it just takes more time for us to “get ur done”. We are smart, creative people – so using our brain is actually an asset and key to solving the issues.

Thanks, Danielle. This looks like a great book.

And now I want caramel corn too.

Yay you!
And you’ve been SICK, too!
Triple points! :-)

I hear someone did quite well, too…:-)

grins That class would have been much harder without you :) (I admit, I’m also proud that I still would have passed fairly well, but — so much easier with your help! You’re a good teacher.)

Yay! :-D

It sounds like it’s the same thing, because we’re all finding ourselves wiped out, even as we seem on the surface to be better. I’m trying not to be frustrated with myself for lying on the couch.

Don’t be — this sucker wipes. you. out. I managed about three productive working hours yesterday, not counting the time spent on my final — which came after a long break and rest.

Thanks for putting together the metatalk post.

I’ve quit smoking (ok, there’s still an occasional bummed cigarette—but I’ve not bought a pack in 3 months.) I’ve also started couch to 5k since I wanted to do something with my new super lungs. Plus, I got myself to the dentist after a six years hiatus—flossing everyday for 2 months built up my confidence. It still sucked, but I did it.

More than anything, HM’s keeps me from feeling disappointed in myself when I don’t meet my personal standards. Some goals happen very slowly. Baby-steps are ok. My tendency, like many others, is to beat myself up over imperfections and missed goals. With HM, I just record it, and it’s done. I can move on. I can ask for fruit, or not. It’s just a life point, not proof that I’m a failure.

The support system (social aspect) is great. We’re all here to be healthier, not to judge. So my vicious, internal critic gets outvoted by helpful voices.

I thought it was an awesome post, btw, drlith. Thank you! Also we are getting tons of new folks!