My husband always laughs and shakes his head when I say I’ve been cleaning in the bedroom I use as my office.He knows there are stacks of books, magazines, newspapers, folders, mail, and paper on my desk, the bed, a chair, and a table. He doesn’t realize that I’m getting ready to either throw a bunch of them away or put them in proper places. What I’ve already accomplished is lost in the clutter.

For example, I have a little cabinet with 24 compartments in it. The compartments are not very deep, but they are wide enough to hold files and booklets, etc. Beside numerous file folders, I keep boxes of labels, greeting card paper, post card paper, and business card paper in them, plus an assortment of other items. Until a few weeks ago, the files were crammed full. Some of them held instructions for various computer programs. I had printed them out through the years so I could refer to them when needed. The problem was I always had to pull out all the files and hunt for a solution to a problem I encountered. Or for something I’d forgotten how to do. I realized they were more trouble than they were worth. Why bother when I can just hit a help button or refer to the reference book I’ve just purchased. I spent about a day cleaning out those folders. I filled the shredder and the waste basket under my desk to capacity. Those folders looked flat and neat when I slipped them back in the compartments.

Then I tackled the telephone number booklets from various organizations. I had several from a now defunct dulcimer club with one dated back to 2003. When I received new ones for church, clubs, dulcimer groups, etc., I kept pushing the older ones back. It was time to dispose of those oldies. I did just that.

Something else poked into one of the compartments was a wad of address labels that had piled up over several years. You probably have your own collection of those labels organizations send you asking for donations.. They range from the patriotic with an American flag to others decorated with cute puppies, beautiful flowers, butterflies, and other assorted pictures. Since I had another accumulation in a container on my computer desk, I didn’t mind cutting up those older ones.

When I finished, I even had one empty compartment. For me, that was amazing.

Next, I’ll tackle the table with two shelves under it that holds the 24-compartment cabinet. It’s crammed with books, greeting cards, boxes of envelopes and a box of printer ink cartridges. That will be more of a matter of organizing than disposing. Then I’ll have some room for part of those stacks.

Slowly and with determination, I’ll see to it that the rest of the stacks disappear and everything finds its way to its proper place. As I said, I’m getting ready to have a neat office.