Divest- June update

Divest- my one word guide to declutter my home of stuff and myself from negative thoughts and behaviours which impinge on my mental well-being .

June like May was BUSY! So there was no plan, just a question of enjoying life and seeing how lessons already learned panned out!

And yes it has been fun but totally exhausting. Home maintenance continued well..new shower installed, new bed delivered, and new bedding bought. Endless gardening..weeds dug out, plants planted..all gifted by a friend’s husband who got carried away with packets of seeds and his new potting shed. I even fixed the trim on my windows, all by myself. My sons put up a bee house and insect hotel for me in the garden.

Fun was had..my usual groups, a trip to see The Lion King in Bristol ( it was fabulous), a Vintage Postcard fair, a summer garden party, a walk, a visit to a National Trust House, a family BBQ here and my first overnight guests post moving here and the pandemic.

But what of divesting? Well the overnight visitors meant I had to have a jolly good sort out.. guest beds make excellent dumping sites you know. I cleared out the fitted wardrobe ..turns out I was using quite a lot of space for empty boxes from when we moved in. So I did a run to the municipal recycling centre, and as the boxes didn’t take up all my car boot, I went to the garage and took along an old printer, an old coffee making machine and lots of rubbish. And once the boxes from the wardrobe had gone, there was plenty of space for my not yet started projects to go. I also emptied a rather handy four drawer plastic unit full of ancient DVD’s and wires that was languishing in the garage and gave it a good clean before taking it to my craft room..meaning I could stop using the floor quite so much for storage.

Meantime the book “Dostadning .the gentle art of death cleaning” by Margareta Magnusson has finally reached me from the library, she suggests I start with my clothes. Now theoretically I did this earlier in the year but deep inside me I know I wasn’t terribly thorough, so maybe I should do it again but properly this time.

And what about the procrastination and anticipation of problems which was putting me off doing things in a timely manner and caused so much unnecessary angst?

Well on Saturday morning I was feeling pretty smug, everything on my tick list was nearly done. I’d even cleaned the garden furniture. And then I went in the summer house to take out the picnic table.. I noticed that we still had a play tent in there..think 15 years old or more..why ever had we moved with it. I wondered if the grandchildren might like it out in addition to the new paddling pool I’d got for them. I moved it to one side and there it was a chewed hole in the floor..Rats! B***** H***! Again! I found a large piece of wood in the garage and covered it up.. From the lack of mess inside I don’t think Mr Rat had stayed there long which is a Good thing.

But it’s something to fettle which I’d not banked on.

This morning I had two new tyres fitted on my car.. More smug mode at staying on top of car maintenance. On the way home up flashes a warning light telling me tyre pressure had changed.. I know… they changed the tyres. All this worry over AI and the car computer can’t recognise new tyres..you have to reset the darned computer. Great! As if I know how to do that, and even if I did would I trust myself to do it correctly. Course I wouldn’t!

So much for feeling great because for once I’d got things sorted. All this means I have just spent the last few hours giving myself a reality check. These minor inconveniences are going to keep on happening. It’s life. No amount of lists and proactive action can stop them. I mean I have just had lunch, that’s not it, I shall want dinner, then breakfast, then lunch. Again! And I’ll need to keep on dealing with these issues, just like I need to keep eating.

So the problem isn’t only procrastination or anticipation of hassle, it’s life itself.. It is to coin a phrase One Darned Thing After Another. And the sooner I come to terms with this the better.

I am pretty tired today. It’s been exceptionally sunny and hot for weeks and I don’t function so well in the heat. I have remembered to rest when I could but I am aware that I need to do some serious thinking for a few days. July and August are quieter months as the holiday season kicks in. I am going to spend sometime thinking over things and taking a few decisions.. Sadly I think I shall have to cut back on all the groups I joined. I’ll be back with my thoughts on that later.

Meantime I have a car and Mr Rat to deal with.

Joining with Carolyn and other one worders here. https://youronewordblog.wordpress.com/2023/06/26/checking-in-6-23/