Sunday, October 28, 2007

Goin' Another Round With The Yetzer of Clutter

My house is a mess. My house is now such a mess that I have realized that the mess is actively preventing me from doing mitzvot. To wit:

1. On Friday, I wanted to light for Shabbos, but I didn't, because there wasn't a clear surface it seemed safe to do so on.

2. On Saturday, I wanted to go to shul, but I got distracted by how bad the clutter was, and didn't go.

3. I know I have things in my house that could usefully be given to various charitable organizations, but I don't know where the heck they are.

4. I am not paying my debts on time because I lose bills.

5. I am not able to organize my finances so that I could donate to tzedaka in a useful way because I lose bills.

6. I am feeding myself and my husband junk because cooking is hard when the kitchen is such a dive.

The list keeps going.

So, OK. The Balabusta has gotta take a stand here. I believe that somewhere under the chaotic terrain of my house is a nice, tidy Jewish home, with gleaming candlesticks and the smell of homemade paprikash and noodles, and the laughter of small children--OK, that last one will take longer to get to, but you get the idea.

Today, I'm at work, dealing with the chaos here (taking advantage of the quiet and calm to do a level ton of grading). But I'm also trying to figure out how I'm going to make this happen.

Time. Energy. And love for the finished product as it slowly emerges.

6 comments:

Eliyahu said...

as to the bills, the only way i manage them, is to put them in a folder immediately when they come in the door. it works for me. the desk clutter, however, is still the yetzer of clutter, and that's where i work! oy!

Anonymous said...

I wrote a guest post on DovBear dedicated (unofficially) to you CA and BOTH.

Anonymous said...

sorry that was a dedication to Tzippy

Shira Salamone said...

Sorry I'm late to this party, but eek!

"5. I am not able to organize my finances so that I could donate to tzedaka in a useful way because I lose bills."

I'm with Eliyah on this: Get yourself an accordion file from your friendly local stationery store (Staples, Office Max, whatever) and *put every single bill you receive in that file as soon as you receive it, without fail!!!* And make sure you store that file where you can find it!!!

Shira Salamone said...

"4. I am not paying my debts on time because I lose bills."

Double eek!! Not paying your bills on time is a good way to get your utilities turned off! So unless you *like* being without gas and/or electricity, and/or getting a bazillion late fees and ruining your credit record . . .

I set up an Excel file for the precise purpose of keeping track of the dates on which we receive bills. Over the course of a few months, I was able to get a sense of when we could expect to receive various bills. Nowadays, if I don't see a bill within 3-4 days of when we expect to receive it, I can ask the hubster whether he's seen it and, if not, ask him to call the biller or go online and get another copy. I'll be hanged if I'm going to pay a late fee just because we never got, or lost, the bill!

Miriam said...

lol Another coined phrase.

My husband coined one too back from his yeshiva days: Yatzer haShleppiness.