Tag: minimalism

Posted in Home improvement

Another shelf bites the dust

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Just so you know, these are not my shelves.

“What in the world was that?” The crashing sound came from the garage. It almost sounded like someone crashed into the garage door. But the overhead door was open. Maybe the neighbor across the street was working on something in his garage. No, it didn’t look like he was home.

When I stepped into the garage, I saw stuff all over the floor. A shelf had come down off the wall above my workbench, scattering boxes of nails and screws across the floor, dumping out another box of household batteries, and leaving the light, eero (wifi repeater), and echo hanging from wires. And the worst – the plastic box with all my fountain pen ink bottles.

Fortunately, that last box was still closed up. But a bottle had broken open, covering everything in blue ink. I fished out some ink cartridges and converters, and then threw the whole thing away. I couldn’t even tell which bottle of red, green, blue, or black was which.

After I got some better hollow wall anchors at the hardware store, I reattached the shelf and decided to put all the organizer boxes of nails, screws, nuts and washers in a workbench drawer. Lighter things like a can of WD-40, picture hanging hardware, the box of batteries, and some extension cords were fine up on the shelf.

I hadn’t planned on it, but this was a good chance to declutter my workbench area. It’s interesting how stuff accumulates in places around the house. Unless you intentionally declutter, stuff will take over your living spaces. I gathered up various screws, wrappers, rags, packets of seeds, receipts, dog toys and leaches, tools, pens and pencils which accumulated there. Since we enter the house through the garage, this surface is the catchall spot for just about everything.

Clutter happens. Decluttering is intentional. Sometimes I remember. Other times a shelf falls off the wall to remind me.

Posted in minimalism

The journey of decluttering

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Bloganuary writing prompt
Where can you reduce clutter in your life?
View all responses
Photo by Alexander Grey on Unsplash

My wife and I are students of minimalism in pursuit of the uncluttered life. However, on any given day, there is a drawer, a cabinet, a closet or some room that can be de-cluttered. It is never-ending quest. Where can we reduce clutter in our lives? Just about anywhere.

The normal rhythms of life constantly contribute to clutter. No matter how good I set up my filters, spam clutters my email inbox. We accumulate shopping bags with each trip to the store. Books we’ve read and will never read again fill up shelves. Dog toys are strewn around the rooms of our home. Souvenir pens, extra birthday cake candles, and unused plastic forks accumulate in kitchen drawers. Receipts from the store, records from the veterinarian, and daily-arriving tax documents suddenly generate a pile on my desk. Dumbbells litter the floor of the garage gym after a workout. One bedroom closet is cluttered with items from decluttering efforts that we intend to sell or donate.

Where can you reduce clutter in your life? Do it right where you are. Put something in its place. Throw something away. Add an item to the donation pile. Sort the mail over the recycling bin. File away the important receipt.

Don’t think of reducing clutter as a destination. It’s a journey.

Posted in Travel

Our first time in a tiny home

Posted on by William Douthwaite

We’ve driven by tiny home and wondered what it would be like to live in one. By definition, a tiny home is one less than 400 square feet, not including loft areas.

I booked an Airbnb tiny home for this year’s Christmas visit with my son in Texas. We’ve stayed in hotels, four bedroom homes, lakeside condos, converted garage efficiencies, and a loft above a horse barn. Once we saw this listing, we knew we had to try it.

It is, in a word, tiny. This one has a 200 square foot footprint with a lofted sleeping area. That’s smaller than our 18×12 patio room. It’s about the same size as my son’s kitchen/dining area.

When we come to visit, we only sleep in a rental. We spend the rest of the time doing stuff with the family. The reader might ask, “Why not stay with them?” With four children, their home is full, so we don’t mind sleeping down the street or around the corner.

This tiny house is parked in a driveway off an alley behind a two-story suburban home. The backyard and driveway are surrounded by an eight foot wooden fence, providing security and privacy.

The bathroom takes up the back four feet. Standard toilet, decent sized shower, miniature sink, shelves for stuff. water drains into a small septic tank in the yard. The water supply comes from a hose from the house. Lots of pressure for nice hot showers. I’m not sure how they run in electric, but we’ve got plenty for the range, space heaters, and a hair dryer.

Kitchen cabinets line the two sides of the home, with drawers for storage as well as a sink, range, and a mini side-by-side refrigerator-freezer. Dishes and condiments all live on open shelves. The front half of the house has a sofa, stacked storage cubes, and a few stools to sit at a small table. A flat screen TV is mounted a bit too high on the wall above a large window.

When we first walked in, it felt so cramped. But after a few nights we’re getting used to it. The stairs to the loft are tricky, especially in the middle of the night. It’s a good way to use space, but you better be agile.

That’s the whole thing. Bathroom is through the door. Bed is up the stairs.

We’ve read stories of people who lived in tiny homes with children for an entire year. I’m not sure how they do it, unless they have an outdoor sitting area and better built-in storage.

But it’s ok (and cheap) for a few days.

Posted in minimalism, Stuff

Could you throw more stuff in there?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

It was a beautiful, cool evening when Lisa, Samson and I headed out for a long walk. As we rounded the first turn at the end of our block, my wife exclaimed, “Check out that garage!”

At first I didn’t see it. Then I caught what she was talking about. A person who was into “maximalism.” I doubt they could fit anything else into that garage. It’s not like they just moved in and had to empty out the moving van. They’ve been renting this house for at least two years. That’s a lot of stuff!

I’m in and out of my garage all the time. We use that entrance into our house much more than the front door. I go in and out with lawn care equipment, tools, holiday decorations from the attic, to check the hot water timer and have the AC tuned up. I can’t imagine not having access for any of that.

The guy who lives there was standing in the driveway. I tried not to be too obvious when I took the picture, but I think he saw me. I’m sure he didn’t care. Maybe he was hoping that I was casing the place and would break in and clean out his garage!

Posted in Life, minimalism, Travel

Forget about minimalism when a hurricane comes

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I’m not the best minimalist, but I’ve adopted a few habits that have decluttered and simplified my life. After I read a book I donate it to a library. When I purchase a new item of clothing, I get rid of something older. I’ve stopped accumulating bolts and nuts and screws and nails I might (but probably won’t) need someday.

hurricane-3But when the hurricane is breathing down your neck, you urgently have to accumulate things. Gas cans (4), extension cords for the generator (2), battery-powered lanterns (2), disposable plates and utensils, candles (#?), bottled water, ice (5 bags from our own ice maker), a new cooler, a new fan (a life-saver), chains for the chain saw (2), a yard rake, a new pair of work gloves, and calming toys and bones for the dog (3).

We ended up using most of what we bought. We never lost water, so I donated it to a semi headed for south Florida. We didn’t really need the ice; our generator kept our refrigerator running.

Clutter during the storm? We didn’t mind it so much. On the plus side, we won’t have to buy those things again. But now I have to store all of that away. Somewhere. Because there will be another storm. Someday.

I wonder what people will do with all the bread and water and chips people bought before the storm. The shelves at the storm were empty, so their houses must be full of those items. Did you really eat that much bread before? Are you really going to eat that many peanut butter sandwiches now? How much food will be thrown away in the next few weeks?

If I were in a flooded area and I lost just about everything, would I try to replace everything? Or would I downsize, just getting what I need and use? I don’t know. We didn’t lose anything this time. This storm added to our possessions.