writing

Prompt: 11 Things. What are 11 things your life doesn’t need in 2011? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 11 things change your life?

Author: Sam Davidson

50 Things Your Life Doesn’t Need
@samdavidson

reverb10.com

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Only eleven? Ha!

This list is both easy (so many things I don’t need) and difficult (how to narrow it down? how to make this significant?).

So – here goes.

1. Clutter. I have so much crap. Not as much as some people – I’m definitely not a knick-knack person, or a collecter. My stuff is all useful – lots of kitchen stuff, mostly. I want to spend 2011 getting rid of everything that is not being used and does not serve a purpose in my life/kitchen. If it doesn’t have a place to live in the kitchen, then it needs to either a) find a place or b) go away. This could be a weekend project, if I would just freaking do it! I need to organize and throw away! And when I no longer get frustrated because I cannot find that knife that I know is in this drawer somewhere, I think that will make everything a little better.
2. Toxic friendships. I worked on this a little in 2010, but it still needs more work. I need to minimize time with people who make me feel bad about myself, people who need drama to survive, and people who cannot be happy. My plan for this is to just cut back on time spent with these people and work on building myself up instead of letting them tear me down.
3. Excess weight. The architect & I are on a maintenance plan through the end of 2010, and then we’re both going into weight loss mode. This will be nice, because we’ll be working together to lose 15 lbs each, and will (hopefully) not sabotage each other. There will be less going out, and more salads. Smaller portions and fewer beers.
4. Debt. If all goes according to plan, by this time next year, I will have no debt other than the student loan and the mortgage. I have spreadsheets (of course) and payment plans. I will be going out less (see #3, as well) and saying no more often. Once that debt is gone, that money can go to other, more awesome things. Like vacations! And shoes!
5. Work stress. My job is wicked stressful right now. To the point where I dread going into work and hate being there. I don’t want it to feel this way, because that makes me desperate, and desperate people make stupid job decisions. I am going to make a plan. The plan will probably involve spreadsheets (because that’s how I roll), and pros & cons. There are things that I want in my next job that I need to remember in my desperation to get out of a situation that is making me increasingly unhappy. Unfortunately, now that I don’t smoke anymore, my go-to methods for handing stress are a) eating (sabotaging #3), b) drinking (again, #3), and c) shopping (which doesn’t help with #4). So – my management plans are twofold. 1) Find a better way to handle stress. I’m thinking yoga & possible taking up meditation; and 2) start mindfully looking for something new. Something that has what I actually want instead of just being not where I’m at right now.
6. More lawn. This drives the architect crazy, but I’m a grass hater. My goal is to get rid of as much lawn as possible & replace with things that are either beautiful or edible (ideally, both). I have landscaping ideas that should be awesome – if I can find the time to do it.
7. My favorite jeans. They are practically falling apart. I love them so much, but they have a giant hole in one knee and really look kind of trashy. Getting rid of a favorite pair of jeans is almost as hard as throwing away a favorite pair of shoes, isn’t it? I have purchased a (hopefully) replacement pair on eBay. If they fit as well as my current pair, I will throw away my old pair (or put them in the rag bag, more likely – I am not a thrower awayer) and my life will look slightly less trashy.
8. The guest bed. It is old, and not very comfortable (unless you’re coming to visit soon, then it’s just fine). I would like to get rid of it and replace it with something of higher quality, and really make the guest room a welcoming place to stay. This will be a battle with the architect, as he is exceedingly fond of that guest bed.
9. Books. “What?!?” you gasp! “Amy wants to get rid of books?” It is all true. I have a number of books in piles that I did not like and will never read again, and they just take up space. I need to box everything up and take it to Powell’s. More space is always good. Less to dust (like I dust – ha!) and less clutter (see #1).
10. Extra computers. There are many, many extra computers & bits in our house. They need to go away. Two extra CPUs that don’t really work, two laptops that no one uses (due to being pieces of crap), and a CRT monitor that takes up way more space than is necessary. This will also help with #1, of course.
11. Shoes. This is nearly as shocking as #9, right? But, there are a lot of shoes that I will no longer be able to wear and rather than have them sitting about taking up space, most of them are in good enough shape that I should be able to sell them on eBay & make a little money (thus helping both #1 & #4).

So – eleven things that I don’t need. With plans to eliminate (or replace) them. My whole goal is to simplify my life so that I can concentrate on the things that really matter – friends & family – which is where happiness truly lies.