My dad used to tell us..."This table is not a catch-all...this counter is not a catch-all...this couch is not a catch-all...the stairs are not a catch-all!!!!!" That, and "Shut the door, you're letting all the bought air out!".
Now that I'm an adult, in my own house, I find myself have several catch-all areas...and it really drives me nuts! I think the main issue is trying to find the right type of storage, and a filing system.
We get so many papers daily in the mail. Most just need to be scanned and shredded, but we don't really have a place set up for that...so they all go in different piles on the table. Until we have guests coming over, then all the piles get piled into one pile and put on my desk or on the cabinet next to my desk.
This past week, we decided to sign another year-long lease in the house we're in. Oh Happy Day...we don't have to pack up and move!!!! We really do like this house, and we are going to fix a ramp or lift to be able to more easily get Max in and out the house, since every entrance has stairs.
And, since we are staying, that means we are going to do some re-arranging, to get these catch-all hot-spots under control! As I've mentioned before, Max and his bed have moved into our room, which leaves his "room" the true dining-room as a place for his equipment.
We are thinking of moving the table which is in our living-room area now, into the dining room, and Max's equipment, wheelchair, stander, and lift, into the living-room or the laundry room. Then putting my desk in the dining-room and setting up a system to scan and file or shred. It's a huge room, so I think we'll find it more useful that way, since Max is no longer sleeping in there.
We're going to be working on it in the next couple of days, so I'll post photos when we're done! Then hopefully the catch-all's will go away...until Abbey gets here anyway. ;) She's the QUEEN of using the stairs as a catch-all!!
3 comments:
I too, have catch all areas that get cleaned up weekly when company is coming over;I have Bible Study here each Wednesday. It is so difficult to deal with the mountain of paper coming into our home each day. Glad to know I am not alone.
Get a basket for Abbey. They make the ones that set on the stairs, but I suppose you could pick up a cheaper one somewhere. Tell her that when it's full, it has to be put away! Anything else on the stairs becomes yours. Mwuhahaha.
Congrats on not moving! The paper situation recently came to a head here. It was BAD. So I grabbed the box of manila 9x12 envelopes we had from Staples and started labeling them and organizing everything. It's better than folders b/c nothing can fall out. So far, it's been working (about 2 months now). Once a week I make myself organize the pile on the kitchen table, but it isn't bad when it's easy to see where everything goes. We do need a shredder though.
And then there's all the digital/virtual cleanup - inbox of email, desktop of screen, virus/ad scans....Now we have to clean in a 4th dimension! Barbara
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