Paper Monsters

I’m getting a good handle on most of the stuff that I’ve been sorting through. About half the items are toys or other assorted things of Emma’s which she doesn’t seem to miss- so those things will be easy to give away. And now that she’s 8, the toy clutter is waning and will be done altogether within a few years. So while I’m going to deal with those items, I don’t find toys to be the overwhelming issue they once were.

So while I’m going to be usher out a major clutter cause someday soon, I can’t say the same for paper clutter. Even though our world is becoming more paperless, I don’t think it’ll be gone for good soon. I’ve gotten rid of lots of paper since the beginning of the year. If I piled all the bundles I recycled, they’d be as taller than me. And this is very strange, but the fact that I’ve gotten rid of so much paper seems to make the remaining paper more prominent even though the opposite should be true.

night-office-shirt-mail

Photo credit: Pexels

Even though we’ve gotten good at quickly putting junk mail into the recycle box, it seems like papers find their way onto every flat surface in the house. School papers. Vet bills. Receipts. Lists from three weeks ago. User manuals. While I’ve been pretty proficient with going through papers and recycling them, the leftover papers which need to be filed are a problem. I always wonder about things like pay stubs so I end up referring back to this info.

Ironically, in my earlier, messier life I had a designated spot for owner’s manuals. The prior owners left us  the ones for the appliances, which almost made me forgive them for the hideous sponge paint and the large hidden crack in the living room wall. Since we moved in ten years ago, we’ve replaced every appliance except for the washing machine, so I got rid of the old manuals. But I have no idea where any of the current ones are. A few weeks ago we got a leaf blower as a gift and purchased a new lightweight vacuum, and both user guides keep popping up. I’ll put them with the ones for the appliances- when I find them.

My mom gave me a desktop scanner, which I haven’t set up yet because I have a small fear of gadgets. But I’ll do it soon because I think it will help, especially with receipts. Most of those go right into the trash but sometimes I need to keep them, but have no filing system.

I’m hoping to get some time this weekend to do some filing and scanning. Happy Halloween!

EmHalloween

My cute little witch.