Priorities

In the next few days, I am embarking on not one but two major trips. Both journeys have complex agendas, tight timing and no room for error.

So this past weekend, obviously, I devoted myself to fine-tuning my packing lists, grabbing a few extra passport photos and taking care of trip-related financial matters.

Right?

Wrong.

Instead, I devoted the better part of three days to cleaning the garage.

Oh gosh, I never intended for that to happen. The whole project started innocently enough with a trip-related search for my extra phone-sized screen protectors. I can't go out of town with old, scratched up screen covers, can I?

Obviously not.

I found the packet of protectors exactly where I expected them to be - in the upper left hand drawer of that green wooden cabinet, pictured above. 

But at the time, that green wooden cabinet was not sitting happily on this shelf in my garage work area.

It was buried under a pile of abandoned objects from various cleaning efforts in the past year. I have a bad habit of stashing stuff out in the garage and then forgetting slash ignoring it for long periods of time. Dumb. Clearly, the task of sorting good from bad, and getting rid of the unneeded stuff was long overdue.

Yet I wasn't satisfied just to sort and pitch. I wanted to declutter my space and restyle the shelves to be a bit more interesting. And, you know, no time like the present, right?

So my math books got a new home,

a few of my favorite projects, old and new, got some special attention,

 and I made space for the organizers and equipment that I use with my art students at school.

Also, I vacuumed up a ton of spiders, cleaned out Ranger's kennel, which lives under my work table, and dusted with abandon.

In just a few short days, I made a lot of useful changes on those two shelves in the middle of the wall, and I have big plans to finish off the effort when I have a bit more time.

But for now, you must excuse me because I have only a few hours left to throw some clothes in a bag and hop on a plane. There may be a bit of a mad scramble at the end, but I'll venture off into the world knowing that my home sweet home will be clean and orderly when I return. 

And that is my favorite way to travel.

* * * * *

I love to clean. And I love to tell stories about cleaning. Wanna read some more?

You Were Expecting The Mona Lisa?

Gonna Fly Now

Fruits Of The Spirit: Peace

Brown Sugar

Garage-Cleaning Haiku

Workbench Inspiration

A Major Overhaul

A Major Pantry Overhaul
Cleaning Frenzy
Perfectly Imperfect