Tag Archives: Emotions

An Ode to the Overwhelmed

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At a time when there is so much to do, so many little things to be taken care of, and solitude time, I wanted to pass along this wonderful poem from another Clutter Cleaner Coach (how’ you like that onomatopoeia?) Samantha Bennet. There’s a link to her site after the poem. Enjoy. And, of course, comments are welcome!


And as you stand there Overwhelm

Late again

Because you forgot to allow time to park

And the elevator was slow

And you left 10 minutes late to begin with



With your shoes that pinch

And your pants that are a little too small

Since you started eating white bread again


And as you paw through your bag

Looking for the suite number

That you’re not sure you wrote down to begin with


Let us now praise you.



You, the untidy.

You, the careless.

You, the easily distracted by sparkly things.


The money you spend on late fees alone

Could feed a family in Africa – Which reminds you that you meant to send in the kids’ Unicef money and

Forgot.


And that despite your best efforts,

You rarely eat a square meal,

You almost never get enough sleep

And exercise seems like a word that magazines have developed

Just to make you feel bad about yourself.


But you are good and brave. Superwoman

You, flying by the seat of your pants

Making it work

Putting out fires

Saying your prayers

And dancing your dance of now and later and maybe and

I’ll-have-to-call-you-back-on-that-could-you-send-me-an-email-to-remind-me-to-call-you-back-on-that?



As innocent as each morning’s sunrise,

You are a fount of good intentions.

Your good humor is as graceful as a baby giraffe,

Even if that joke you were trying to make to the hotel clerk fell flat

And your toast at the wedding came out sounding a little…funny.



But you have gifts that no one knows about.pyke 044

You have the strength to bend in the wind

You have the joyful spirit that loves a good belly laugh,

You have the wisdom to understand that everything will all come out all right in the end and

You have the faith to light a candle rather than curse the darkness.



That is, if you could find the book of matches from that romantic restaurant that you went to for your anniversary but since you didn’t have a reservation they made you wait at the bar for half an hour during which you had two appletinis and the rest of the night is a bit of a blur. 

So much for the overpriced lingerie.


You are beautiful.


You are beautiful.



Frazzled and overworked and underpaid

You are the one who forgot your wallet

And forgot your receipt for the dry cleaners

And forgot your keys which you just set down five seconds ago, so where could they possibly have gone? 

But you never forget to say, “I love you”

And you never forget to give a big smile to that nice parking guy

And you never fail to show endless patience when the

Too-tightly wrapped and overly-conscientious start to offer their

Oh-so-helpful suggestions about how you might feel better if you would just learn to alphabetize your spice rack.

Approving staff
You are beautiful.


So, wear the lingerie on Monday for no reason.

And why not just refuse to participate in the bake sale this year?

And give yourself a compliment for something you did well today. 

Because you are the most beautiful person I’ve ever known.


© 2014 Samantha Bennett  http://TheOrganizedArtistCompany.com

May you get through this holiday season flying high and filled with gratitude!

Declutter Your Life – Part 3

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And the last of the lessons learned when Dawn decided to simplify her life:

I had also been hanging on to a lot of books and notebooks filled to the brim from my graduate days in our basement even though I was no longer interested in continuing to pursue my Ph.D. or teaching. In looking through the notebooks and papers I had written, I remembered all the good times I had enjoyed while working on my degree. I had already put the bad times behind me and had chosen to forgive so getting rid of this stuff was the final thing I needed to do to let go. I kept my thesis work and a few writing samples and that was it. Upstairs, I kept sheet music, poetry I wrote, an art journal, Christian literature, my art books and a few special books from my childhood that I will pass on to our son, Hayden. Every book I own is now in one, medium-sized, clear, plastic storage container in our laundry/computer room. Since I seldom use even these books it felt right to put the bookshelf down in storage for our son, as he gets a bit older.

Our place looks so much better without all that surface-area clutter and requires much less dusting! I am putting together two 12 photo collages (one for pictures clutter_free_homeof my son, and one for family and friends) to go on the walls of the living and dining rooms and one 3 photo collage of our favorite wedding photos. This will greatly simplify the rooms and visual space. I am also looking forward to be able to look at all the people that truly enhance my life without needing to search through a lot of clutter.

Living simply for me also means not over committing my time, energy and money. I chose not to re-join a community choir because the rehearsal time is very inconvenient and I would rather spend that time with my family. Since I am fortunate to have the material things I need, I avoid shopping, especially looking at certain “trigger” sites online (something I used to really enjoy doing). That has been a hard thing for me to change but it saves money for our family and creates more time, which is better spent elsewhere.

Through my efforts to de-clutter and simplify, my husband was inspired to help me by pulling my stuff out of storage so I could go through it. As the chef of the house, he also went through all the kitchen gadgets and utensils. He even agreed with me to go paperless, as much as possible, with our files. My mom was inspired to go through her dreaded hall closet getting rid of many, many things. Although my husband still feels that there is no way that he would ever want to live in a tiny house, my decision and efforts to simplify have made a lot of progress for all of us.

So… you can live tinier and simplify your life without living in a tiny house. You don’t need to have everyone on board with you to make real progress both with your living space, your perspective, and your own personal growth. Your process will not look the same as mine as the journey you experience will be uniquely yours, and entirely worth it! Take care and live tinier. -Dawn Zimmerman

With thanks to www.TinyHouseBuild.com

Declutter your Life – Part 2

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With appreciation for Dawn Zimmerman’s post to www.TinyHouseBuild.org, here’s the second of three parts how one person decluttered their life.

As I was going through my knick-knacks and the like, I also went through my decent sized “collection” of art supplies. I had The-Art-Cart-Suburblesome top notch water color pencils I hadn’t even opened. Paints, drawing pencils, and the like were filling up a tall dresser. Beautiful materials I hadn’t used in over 10 years! I had even collected various other materials that were to be used for mixed media and sculpture pieces in a future that never happened, and wouldn’t happen. I realized as cool as it would be to create those pieces, I had lost interest in making them. I donated all the pill bottles I had been saving over the years to make a sculpture to some missionaries in the D. R. Congo that our church supports. They needed them because the hospital had nothing to put their patients’ medicine in. It amazed me that something so seemingly useless could make such a big difference for someone.

I only kept the supplies I had used here and there over the years. I gave away old artwork that I never looked at anymore to friends who liked the pieces for their walls. One art piece was donated. Both my easels went. It felt good. I even donated the old dresser that had held these art supplies as well as my childhood clothes, and even my dad’s stuff from when he was a boy. Now that dresser will hold someone else’s things and that makes me smile. I cannot tell you how much of a blessing it has been for me to give these things away to folks that will actually use it. When you think about it, for all those years, that tall dresser was storing up someone else’s opportunity to work toward their dreams. I now have most of my art things in two sets of small, plastic, three-drawer storage “dressers” that I already had on hand.

You may start to notice that as Dawn class out all the excess, her spirit and mental state begin to change as well. There are so many benefits to finding a class, hiring a coach, joining a like minded group. Don’t let your own excess stop you – there is help. If you’re wondering just what the best course is for you, drop me a line.

Fall Colors and You

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Here in the Pacific Northwest we have had a spectacular Fall. The variety and intensity of colors has been beyond magnificent. I found myself resonating with the golds and the reds against the green backgrounds. Have you resonated in this way?  If you have, you may been learning what colors make you feel positive, happy.  If the golds and the reds lift your spirit, consider your wardrobe. How much of it reflects those colors?  If they don’t, not to worry. Review the year and think of the colors in which season got you stoked – and then take a look at your wardrobe: how much were those colors reflected?  What you’re doing is learning the Feng Shui use of color which can help you realize you most effective, most nourishing way to dress. Play with this and let me know what you discover.

Synergize the new system

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Diving deep into our excess ‘stuff’ keeps showing me more and more levels on cleaning and healing that need sto happen before ou lives can Really be under our own control. But many minds are so much better than just one. Are you willing to jump onboard and help me? I want to know where you have the most problem – where you get caught as you try to clean up and clean out the clutter in you life.  Be specific so we can explore it together.  This is a very rich field, one ready for the mining. come help me unearth the Gold!  Many thanks.

Too Much!

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It often feels like we’re being hit by a tidal wave – of climate disasters, economic woes, scandals. And in my personal life, more and more keeps knocking at the door, saying “Look at me! Pay attention.” More and more things grabbing for my attention and time. I don’t know about you, but I notice how this slows me down, gets me confused too often, and leads to unintended and unwelcome consequences. Part of the project I’m working on is a system allowing you to lose weight. Not the extra pounds you may be carrying, but the extra weight of too much of everything. The success of the program is extraordinary. But I’m not unveiling it until it’s fit and ready.

Lighting as a Tool

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In the midst of the dark days of winter, you become intimately aware of how light affects mood and disposition. In Feng Shui, different qualities, color, and intensity can be used for specific effect. You know this when a candlelit dinner suggests romance and a dank, dark day suggests crawling into bed with a good book. Using lots of bright light can enliven a party, whereas bright fluorescent lighting can make you want to escape. Some people are actually nauseated by the wrong fourescent bulbs. What’s to learn from this? When buying a lamp, or reducing your electric use by using compact fluorescent bulbs, pay attention to the Kelvin rating of the bulb you want to use. [Kelvin is the temperature of the light ranging from cold to warm.] A good lighting store will have boxes where the same photograph is lit with different lamps. Find the one that you resonate with and use that. All of us are different and respond differently, but it’s worth the time and effort if you’re going to enjoy your home or business, rather than finding yourself in a poor mood.

The 12th Day of Christmas

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We’re through the holidays – now what? If we notice that Feng Shui follows the natural patterns of Nature, we’ll see that this is a quiet time, a time for drawing in. Nature is resting now, renewing. Covered in many places with a blanket of white, and in other with a blanketed in cold. In either case Nature is quietly rejuvenating. Follow the pattern, and let it be OK that we are not frantic with activity. A good book, a quiet fire, an intimate evening with friends – all these are incredibly nourishing. If you find yourself sleeping an extra hour a day or taking naps, Good!You’re allowing the natural flow of energy to slow, relax and rejuvenate. You’re recharging your batteries.

A gift Giving Thanks

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At a time when the corporate world wants to move us away from giving thanks to buying material things for “gifts”,  a friend sent me this. View it full screen. It is a gift and reminds me of just how precious this existence is. http://bit.ly/sXC0rU

Using Color to Change your World

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Using color is not unlike creating a meal. First what are you hungry for? With color, how do you want to feel? Next buy the ingredients. Choose the color that you think supports what you want. Start to cook. Add too much of this, or listen to too many other cooks and what do you get? Yuk.  Ask too many friends what shade to use–or better yet look at Pittsburgh’s 1,700 colors and chances are you’ll miss the mark.  Nice thing about paint though, you can always paint over.  But check out what you’re doing with your local Feng Shui master, because there’s an art and a science to using color to produce the mood, the feeling, the harmony you want. And you won’t have to paint it over!