Halfway Point

We made it to Chattanooga Tennessee in one piece. We will be making the second half of the trip to New Orleans tomorrow morning. Even though I reduced all of my things to approximately 100 items I still feel heavy as I travel. My bag is stuffed to capacity and my suitcase is still overflowing. I think my problem was grouping things together. I grouped my socks, books and electronics together so now that is creating a problem. I also realized that my iPad charger charges my iPhone as well so now I have a duplicate charger. I don't have much stuff right now but I feel heavy and my goal was to feel lighter. This got me thinking about another challenge I want to start when I arrive to my destination and for the future. I'm going to create my own Five a Day challenge where I will be throwing or donating 5 items a day for one full month. This challenge will continue to reduce unnecessary clutter. Alright I'm off to meditate and rest up for tomorrow,

100 Items Challenge

Miscellaneous

1.     Bible

2.     Important documents: Passport/ Credit card/ Drivers license/ Social Security card

3.     Check book

4.     Teach for America Pre Institute Work

5.     Planner

6.     Notepad

7.     Keys

8.     Camera

Electronics

9.     iPad

10. Laptop + Charger

11. Phone + Charger

12. Headphones

13.  External Hard drive, Flash drive

Shoes

14. Brown boots

15. Black flats

16. Sandals

17. Shower flip flops

18. Running shoes

19. Toms

20. Pumps

Clothing Items

21.  Casual black dress (can be dressed up or down)

22.  Casual floral Print dress

23. Floral print dress

24. Dress

25.  Blue jeans

26. Black slacks

27. Blue Slacks

28. Kaki Pants

29. Casual black pants

30. Blue shorts

31. Kaki shorts

32. Dress suit

33. Socks

34. Underwear

35. Pink T-shirt

36. Striped T-shirt

37. Blue T-shirt

38. Beige T-shirt

39. White shirt

40. Vest

41. Navy blue button down shirt

42. White button down shirt

43. Navy Blue Cardigan

44. Beige Cardigan

45. PJ shorts and shirt

46. PJ shorts and shirt

47. Sweat pants

48. Sweatshirt

49. Rain jacket

50. Track shirt

51. Track shirt

52. Running shorts

53. Running spandex

54. Running spandex

55. Black backpack

56. Shoulder bag

57. Brown purse

58. Black purse

59. Sunglasses

Bed/Bathroom items

60. Body Towel

61. Washcloth

62. Soap Bar

63. Conditioner

64. Spray bottle

65. Shea Butter mix

66. Contact solution + Case

67. Toothbrush + toothpaste

68.  Glasses + Case

69.  Brush/ Wide tooth Comb

70. Lotion

71. Satin Scarf

72. Twin sized bed sheets

73. Blanket

74. Pillow

75. Iron

Kitchen/Bedding ( to put in storage)

76. Lamp

77. Sheets

78. Comforter

79. Pillow

80. Pan

81. Large pot

82. Small pot

83. Knife/fork/ spoon

84. Bowl

85. Plate

86. Water filter

87.  Stereo

88. Baking pan

89. Cooking Utensils ( measuring cup, spatula, spoon)

90. Coffee mug

Organizing the Process of De-Cluttering

I move to New Orleans in less than 24 hours.

I spent all day yesterday doing laundry, sorting clothes and deciding what exactly I want to pack. I’m at a roadblock right now and I have absolutely no idea where to pick up. Do I start with clothes? What about the other items? What do I do with books? I have decided that the only books I will take with me will be the Pre-Institute workbooks I need for Teach for America, planner and one or two notebooks. All other books will be bought and read on my iPad (graduation gift) from now on. Now, what am I going to do with the hair supplies? Should I group them into one “thing” or do I separate? My goal for today is to reduce, reduce and reduce! I refuse to burden myself with more useless crap. Inspired by the minimal student, I decided to make a list of 100 items separated by category. Then discard or store anything else. I realized that the best way to attack so much stuff is to list the things you want to keep and discard the rest. As I go through my things I begin to second guess myself more and more until I’m left with the same amount of stuff I started out with.  

Things to consider: I will need professional/ business casual attire for training in Atlanta during the summer. I will also need casual clothing items for weekends. Luckily, since the weather in New Orleans is generally warm year round I do not have to drag my hunkin’ NorthFace coat down there. Whew. 

Lessons Learned: 

1. Start at the end and work your way backwards. In other words, don't try to attack everything all at once. Make a list of what you want to ultimately end up with and then bag the rest of the stuff to store, donate or throw away later. 

Minimalism as a New Chapter in your Life

I've been trying to simplify my life for years now and it's a slow process. It started out as simply a purge of books, clothes, shoes and electronics and it led to the beginning of a more frugal lifestyle. I only went to the mall twice this year (not including the shopping malls I visited in Brazil), I became much more cautious of my spending, started meditating, ate out less and cooked more, and spent more time cultivating relationships with family and friends. All of this has created a solid foundation for fully embracing a minimalist lifestyle. I'm ready now to let go of all the junk I've been holding on to that I know are not important. I'm also ready to take that giant leap and plunge headfirst into simplicity.

Point.

Blank.

Period.

Moving to New Orleans

The past few weeks have been extremely hectic with track, school, graduation and preparations for moving to my new home in New Orleans. I'm driving from DC to New Orleans in two days and I have accomplished zilch when it comes to packing. I realized today that the reason why I have been avoiding this mountain of college crap is not out of laziness but more so out of fear. I'm afraid of the monstrous heap of laundry and I'm afraid of the ultimate and much needed purge of unnecessary items. I have fallen off of my minimalist journey a little bit and it has led to the acquisition of many things I know I do not need.

On that note, I am going to take this day and the time to purge. My plan is to reduce my wardrobe to half the size it is now. I want to start my new life in NOLA fresh and clutter free. That means I'm going to try and limit my possessions to 100 necessary items.

Point. Blank. Period.