Had such higher hopes

Well, I guess I focused on the Detroit Lions game too much. Though they did not win, they lost by 2, much lower than the point spread of 14 points. Detroit, they call me a fool, but I still have hope for you. Unfortunately, the rest of my picks were pure poop. Ugh, they totally stunk--I only got 4 out of 13 right. I sit at third in the overall in the cumulative--a very distant third.

I also had high hopes for painting the last two big rooms (kitchen and living room) this weekend but I didn't get to them. I realized I needed a ladder taller than the step stool I was using for the upstairs--I found out after I started rolling out paint in the dining room that the ceilings were about a foot higher in the downstairs. And after tiptoeing on the step stool and straining my neck for the dining room, I realized that the I should make the $50 investment in a 6 foot ladder to do the other rooms right. But...I didn't get around to the hardware store.

On the positive side, we finally got our cards at the county library. Since we just moved here, they had to mail our cards and limited each person to two books to check out. The girl got what she needed for her Egyptian project for Social Studies and here is what I read this weekend:

With the heat finally broken (it's like someone saw that the "sweaty summer" switch was still on and said "hey, isn't this supposed to be off now?" and just went click!), it was so pleasant to read with the windows open and enjoy the cool 70s temps. I totally finished the book on craft spaces (which had a lot of pictures and general ideas for how to contain certain supplies but unfortunately, not overall organizing) but I really liked the other book, What's a Disorganized Person to Do? and taking more time with it so I don't miss anything enlightening. Granted, I have about half a dozen books on decluttering and organizing (in the unpacked boxes) but I'm really hooked on this one. It's written in a bullet point style that boils concepts down to simple ideas and tasks that are easy to digest and understand.

It had me in the first two points:

The first, was the habits of highly organized people. It basically boiled down to consuming consciously (i.e., not to stockpile--buying more than need to use), spending your clutter (i.e., when something new comes in, something old goes out, like clothes), and living within your space (i.e., not to bring more stuff than you have room for).

The second point really drove in the organizational principles. She points out that everyone knows where to get a fork and that the silverware drawer encapsulates the 4 most basic ideas of organizing--like items are kept together, everything has a single and consistent place, everyone in the house is on board with this location, and the item goes back to its home when done with it.

Bullet, bullet, got it. After reading these concepts, it seems so logical and obvious, and I know I've innately understood those principles with clothes, books, and the kitchen, but I realize that I haven't applied them to places like the closets for the bathroom and laundry, living room, and most glaringly, my craft supplies.

I'm looking forward (and daunted) to really getting my craft stuff in order with these principles in mind because I'd really like to improve on what I had going on in spare room in SoCal before the move:

(I know someone just gasped)

(now, someone has got a hand over his or her mouth while eliciting a horrified OMG)

(and finally, a rookie out there is throwing up)

Definitely room for improvement right? Though I'm still unpacking...

See, now you know why I hold out hope for the Detroit Lions--I'd guess the odds are pretty high against me on this given my track record, but I gotta believe it can be done. We can do it, Lions.