I started this blog with the intention of documenting my efforts to decrease the stuff in my life. Like most things I endeavor to do, the project took many strange and paradoxical turns along the way and it seemed I was adding more stuff to my life rather than reducing it. Today, I am happy to report that I am finally making some progress.
This week's project: reduce the paper in my life.
Although I do not cook, I am always collecting recipes and cookbooks. I like to think that someday I might learn to cook and when that happens, it will be critical for me to have a recipe for caramel apple cake from the October 1998 issue of Cooking Light.
The same thing with magazines. I harbor some odd paranoia that in a few years I will want to buy a pair of boots that I saw in Lucky Magazine in 2008 so I keep the magazine (or more often a clipping) for reference.
For months piles of these clippings have been building up all over the house and totally draining my mental energy.
The solution was simple, but it took me a long time to implement it.
I started by picking up a Fujitsu scanner (I realize the sad irony of buying more stuff to have less stuff). If my documents were just black and white (and I was unethical person who did personal work on company time*) I could have used my scanner at work but many of my documents are color so I went with the Fujitsu).
The I started the process of scanning the piles. The recipe files I've placed in DropBox or Evernote. Magazine inspirations I've been posting over on my Pintrest board.
I'm only 1/4 of the way in but already I feel lighter. I've even thrown away a few things without scanning them!
My progress so far!
* technically I may have brought my scanner to work today to work on this for a bit, but I've done lots of work stuff too - I swear.
