I'm so proud of myself right now, haha. Over the past month or two I've donated about 20 trash bags full of stuff that was hiding around our little apartment! And it feels awesome! After hearing about that book "the Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo on NPR one day, and coming across a few links online that talk about her concept, I was really intrigued, and just kept thinking, "Man, that sounds so interesting, I really want to read that book." Well I was out browsing at Barnes and Noble on a book binge and I just stumbled across it. (Well not really stumbled, it's in the best seller or hot new arrivals section or whatever) Anyway, her one principal for whether you decide to keep items in your house or not is by asking one simple question: "Does this spark joy?". You either have to have a resounding "Hell Yes" to keep it, Hell Nos are a no brainer, and Maybes automatically fall into the Hell No category. By this one simple method, you're not only getting rid of things you don't need that are taking up mental space, but you're making your home a kind of sanctuary. Imagine living in a world where you were constantly bombarded by things that spark joy in you, that's a pretty happy place to be. Anyway, a couple months into that journey and it's going great, and has even sparked a greater curiosity in me about minimalism and having just what you need and love. I've always been facinated with minimalism, especially for traveling, but coming across this little path has really freed up a lot of things in my life. I spend less time managing all the stuff cuz now I don't have the option to let dishes pile up, cuz I only have a few; I don't have to do a ton of laundry on laundry day, cuz I don't have as many clothes. Cleaning and dusting is way easier just because there are more empty spaces and things are finding homes to go back to into the house. It may have been a bigger initial effort, but it's sure is simplifying my life in the long run. I've always been the messy creative type and embraced that, but it's pretty awesome to feel like I have way more free time and mental space to BE CREATIVE now that running a house isn't so burdensome, but actually quite joyful. If you're one of those people who find you hate doing house chores, you should check out this book! You might end up beating the system, haha.