Domestic Geek

Wondering where I've been lately? As you may recall, a little less than 3 weeks ago, I posted that I was going to participate in the 30 Day Organizational Challenge over at I'm an Organizing Junkie!. Well, as per my usual Queen of Procrastination™ fashion, the contest officially ends in a little over an hour, but I can proudly say I am done! Well, there are always things that can still be tweaked and I have a little bit of work to do on my shelves yet, but the majority of the crap is gone and I have room to breathe and be creative! Thanks so much, Laura, for putting this challenge out there and giving me that little incentive and boost I needed to finally have my craft room.

If you'd like to see the full set of before and after pictures, head over to my Organizational Challenge Photo Gallery.

The biggest problem I had with the room was my desk. It was a cheap piece of junk that I picked up at Office Depot a while back. I've hated it since the day I brought it home. Marcus offered to get me the stuff I needed to make a desk. What an awesome guy I have! We procured a file cabinet (that was a fiasco story for another day) and a countertop. It took me over a week to get the countertop finished. I had to put endcaps on it. I've still got to put the laminate repair stuff on the edges to cover the chips, but I'm really happy with it so far. It is the perfect height for me to work, plus there is now room for the 2nd monitor that I wanted to use. I also have room to get out my Wacom tablet when I'm in the mood to do some computer graphics. It's currently being stored in the drawer under the 2nd monitor for easy access. I was going to toss that monitor riser and I'm sure glad I didn't. I'm really pleased.



To make room for the desk, I decided to move the bookcase into the closet. Since I mainly keep books and magazines on it, they don't really need to be out in the main room. I also purchased some plastic organizers that were coincidentally on sale at Target last week. Yay for sales! I'd like to get some more totes for the rest of the stuff in this closet as finances allow. At least I have a path and can get to anything I need. I threw out a lot of crafts I will never finish. It made me a little sad, but I'm glad they're gone.



In place of the book case, I decided to get more shelves. I was really torn about how to do these and I wanted to spend as little money as possible. Except for the melanine edging that I still need to put on the top two shelves, these are working out great, too! I'll finally have some place to put some of my Star Trek memorabilia. It's been in boxes for years because I had no where cool to put them.


Can you believe I haven't seen this carpet since I painted the craft room right after we moved back to Aurora? That's been 4 or 5 YEARS! Look, no socks, either!



This is the worst surface because it catches all the junk as you come into the room. I even had stuff sitting here from when I was unemployed back in July. That's how long it's been since I organized anything here. I had my old work bag sitting in front of this, too. It had all the work and notes I did at the place that let me go in July. Let me tell you, nothing felt so good as chucking all that stuff. Anyway, I bought a small 3-drawer organizer to use here to keep those small tools like needle nose pliers, tape, etc. that I always seem to need but never have handy.



This is what I'm most excited about. Marcus and our friend, Dave, bought me this great drawing table for Christmas many years ago. Unfortunately, it hasn't seen much drawing because it's always piled high with stuff that is not supposed to be there. Yay, I can finally open up the window this summer and sketch like I've always dreamed of doing!



Look, I have room to work on my WORKbench. What a novel concept! I love how I had set this up because I have under counter lighting and a convenient power strip. It was never usable because of all the crap sitting here. Most of it was projects I couldn't decide if I wanted to ever finish. Well, I decided. Most of them are on their way to the dump.


Here's the answers to the questions about the challenge posed by Laura:

1. What was the hardest part of the challenge for you and were you able to overcome it?
   The hardest part was actually getting started. I had all of this negative self-talk going in my head that there was no point in trying since I started late and I could never finish by the deadline, so why try? I finally kicked myself in the butt the other day when I realized it didn't really matter if I finished it before the deadline, it needed to be done and I owed it to Marcus for all he did to help me get the desk situation resolved. I also had a couple of friends who read this blog that kept asking how it was going, so I felt like I would be letting them down if I simple gave up. I also almost quit when I made a bigger mess than I had when I started. Fortunately, I worked through it.
2. Tell us what kind of changes/habits you have put into place in order for your area/room to maintain its new order?
   First, no socks or dishes back here anymore! Second, if it doesn't belong back here, it won't get stashed here. Third, when I'm through using something, it'll get put away. No more years' worth of projects out on every surface.
3. What did you do with the "stuff" you were able to purge out of your newly organized space?
   The majority of it was trashed. There are some things that I will be taking to Goodwill on Saturday. Everything that didn't belong back here is in the process of finding it's home.
4. What was the biggest lesson you learned from this experience?
   No matter how overwhelming the task seems, just start. You might be a little surprised at what you can accomplish in a relatively short period of time!
5. Now that you have completed the PROCESS, do you think having and keeping your space organized will make a difference in your life?
   Well, the process is never really done now, is it? It's definitely going to make a difference in my life having this room organized. All that clutter was keeping me from being creative, which was the goal of this room in the first place. I can't wait to tackle the rest of my clutter!

So, there it is! I did it! Of course, I'm going to pay the price at work tomorrow, but I'm so proud of myself I could burst! Thanks again to Laura at I'm an Organizing Junkie! for hosting this challenge and to Marcus for helping me. I can't wait to be creative again!

As a little side note, I really loved the quote Laura wrote in the post that stated what the final steps for the challenge would be:

Getting organized means freeing up time and money to spend on the things that really matter.....spirituality, emotional well being, physical health and loving relationships.

It's so true.

Laura over at I'm an Organizing Junkie! threw down a 30 Day Organizational Challenge:

Your challenge is to organize one room and/or one area in your home over the next 30 days and at the end of the 30 days post "before" and "after" pictures on your blog with a brief description of how you got from point A to point B.

In typical Queen of Procrastination® style, the challenge began on April 3rd, but I'm just now getting around to posting about it and getting started. It ends at 11:59 pm on Wednesday, May 2, 2007, so I've got to get cracking. I've decided to tackle the old craft room.


I have a whole set of before pictures over at my Organizational Challenge Photo Gallery. I'll upload progress pictures during the next couple of weeks and finished project pictures the beginning of May.

This room is intended to be my creative space. With all the clutter, creativity is the last thing that wants to blossom there. I've gotten lots of storage for the area, but I don't utilize it well. The biggest problem is that I try to have too many projects going at once and then I don't put things away that aren't currently being used. I've decided to implement a couple of new rules for myself to help keep this space organized: 1) I'm not going to allow myself to eat in there anymore so that dishes and stuff don't pile up back there. Also, 2) no more taking off socks. I get a whole week's worth piled up back there before laundry day. The biggest challenge with this room is it is where stuff gets stashed that doesn't have any other home since it's the farthest room towards the back of the house. When we expect guests, it's one of two rooms where stuff gets "hidden" behind a closed door. That stops immediately. The plan is to find that stuff a home or get rid of it. Also, my desk really sucks. Marcus has promised to help me get a better desk solution in there. We're going to Home Depot tomorrow to get supplies. I then need to find a way to better use the closet space I have. At the moment, there are just boxes thrown in.

So, this whole project begins the minute I publish this post by taking my dishes and socks out of here and putting them where they belong. Wish me luck!

I have a confession to make. I am out of control. I had some major revelations today. It's weird how something will hit you out of the blue even though its been staring at you in the face for months.

I whole heartedly believe that your life is what you make it. Unfortunately, I have a tendency to live in the "someday" and "if only" mode. I rarely live in the now and pay attention to what is going on around me. The truth is, I've been stagnant. Worse, I've regressed. My body, my finances, my home, my appearance...it's all in a huge state of disarray. I need to stop wallowing in depression and despair and get myself back on track. Right now. I've got to knock off the negative self-talk and the doubting and set some goals and get with the program. What I'm going to reveal here may shock some of you. Others may not be surprised at all. I just want to warn you that it's not pretty. It's also going to ramble.

The fact is, I'm good at using excuses to avoid doing things. It's one reason Marcus dubbed me the Queen of Procrastination™. I've got excuses for everything. My Christmas decorations still aren't 100% packed. First it was because we put the dog down, then I had to have help getting the tree down, then I had to wait for the snow to melt. Well, The lights have been down and in piles in my kitchen for well over a month. My tree stand is still in my bathtub. The snow has been melted for a couple of weeks, but the tree is still outside.

I've been using the underemployment and unemployment excuses for a lot of things. It's why I gained a lot of weight (bull), it's why I was too depressed to clean, it's why I haven't bought clothes or had my hair done or even wash my car. Well, I've been full time employed for almost 3 months, yet the problems persist.

I decided I needed to document where I'm at now so that I can see improvement. I grabbed Marcus' camera and started snapping pictures. As soon as my new blog is up, I'll post a link so you can all go look. I want my problems out in the open. Hopefully that will give me the kick I need to fix them. I was a little disgusted as I walked around my home. How could I let this happen?

I have to come clean. Literally. My house is a freaking pig sty. I've never had great housekeeping skills. It was something that was never instilled in me growing up. Our house was always a pit. I'm slipping back into that way of living. My steam cleaner still sits in the same place it did when I tried to clean up the urine stains from the dog. We're coming up on 4 months since we had to put him down. I haven't vacuumed the carpet in the family room in over six months. There's still dog hair under our dining room table. I have dishes on my counter from before Christmas. There are still piles of stuff that came over from storage. I've got paperwork all over the place. I haven't gone through my junk mail since before I was employed (I got the job early November).

I get my FlyLady emails every day and wish that I could have an organized home and be on time to work and all that. I tell myself what's the point of having a shiny sink? It'll be dirty again tomorrow. It's this kind of thinking that is holding me back. Marcus used to help me with housework, but I think he's given up, too. I can't blame the guy.

The sad truth is I'm not even crafting or doing anything creative (except for a few feet of popcorn garland that I crocheted at Christmas). All I do is sit and think and surf and wish and dream. If only I was rich...If only I was thin...If only....

I have dreams of getting my drawings on iStock or a t-shirt on Threadless. Still more excuses. My desk sucks. My mouse is broken. Nobody will buy them anyway. I wanted to open a design site, but the self doubt crept in. Too many people already do that. Who will want your designs? You can't even get your own design changed, why would anyone use you? It's appalling how my own worst enemy in all this is me.

I want to lose 150 pounds, but I can't ride my bike because of our neighborhood and Marcus is too busy to ride with me. I can't exercise in the house because of the dust and the carpet is dirty. I can't join a yoga class because I don't hae any money. Isn't it disgusting how I can always find an excuse? I wish I knew the answer to why I continue to participate in this self-destructive behavior. All I know is, I must cease now. I'm not getting any younger and I don't want to look back on my life with regret about the things I didn't allow myself to try or do. I know I'm an amazing and wonderful person. I have a kind heart and a brain full of knowledge. Why am I so afraid to let the real me come out?

The big picture is I've been complaining about the same things about my life since I was in high school. I graduated in 1984, you do the math. I've been afraid to take risks, had trouble making friends, been afraid to do what I want, resist losing weight, make excuses, procrastinate, blame others for where I'm at. Since the only constant in these many years has been me, it's seriously time to change something.

Anyway, I'd better wrap this up and get back to some cleaning. I have so much more that needs to be said, but it's all a jumble in the old noggin. I guess there will be a lot of fodder for the new blog.

Remember about a month ago when I wrote about a new prize search engine I had found called Winzy? Well, I didn't know it, but my friend Shalla signed up through my little button over in the sidebar. I got an email from Winzy today telling me that she had won a $10 Amazon gift certificate and therefore I was eligible for a prize, too. Yay!!! I took the iTunes certificate instead, so:Won't you become my Winzy friend, too? Just click the little button below and sign up. When you win, I win. When your friends win, you win. How cool is that?

Man, I'm getting the nervous jitters right now. It's taking everything I have not to chew my fingernails to bloody stumps. My interview is at 1pm. I feel like my whole future balances on the next few hours. I know I can do the job they are hiring for. I just have to convince them to give me a shot. The downer of it is that the initial hire period is part time. It seems that all design and prepress jobs are like that anymore. If I can get to full time, though, FULL BENEFITS after 90 days! Yes! I may have to do a night shift, but hey, I've done that for years. In fact, I do my best work after the sun goes down. I've been a night owl by whole life. WISH ME LUCK!

One a different note, I'm going to start my weight-loss blog this afternoon after I get back. Marcus set me up a subdirectory yesterday and I installed wordpress into it last night. My weight this morning was 294.2 lbs. I'm never going to be this fat ever again. I don't fit into any of my clothes. I hate shopping for clothes when I'm this overweight. A new job means I'll need new clothes, I want to get smaller ones. No time to start like the present, eh?