Hunting rabbits

 

Rest assured, no rabbits were hurt in this incident - at least not to my knowledge! I mentioned yesterday that the girls were on the hunt for a rabbit under the gazebo. I have no objection to rabbits, but could they live OUTSIDE of my yard where the dogs can't use them to hone their hunting skills? 

I let the girls out earlier than usual yesterday as I was going to be away in the morning. They got on the scent of this rabbit, and well, like a dog with a bone, they would NOT give up. Fortunately, they were quiet -- except for Lexi when she thought she was close and was yipping away, but in her soft voice. It was hilarious. 

At one point, when I went out, this was all I saw. 

Dog butts

I knew they were even further under the gazebo as I saw them crawl out. The gazebo is on a bit of a slope of the land, so one end is very close to the ground, and the other is more open. The rabbit goes to the far end, where the floor goes all the way to the ground, and he can get away from the girls.

 The dogs can't get close to the rabbit because there isn't room, but ONE day, they will push the envelope, and then they will get stuck. Then what? I'm not ripping up the gazebo to rescue them; I've told them so! I'll feel them scraps and water until they lose weight to get out! Just kidding -- I have visions of having to tip the gazebo over. But we really need to build a skirt around the bottom to keep them out! 

And it was hot yesterday morning, so they were panting like mad in their effort to get that rabbit. The rabbit is silly or very confident; I'm not sure which. 

Mom -- we almost had the rabbit!

This morning, I noticed a rabbit on the front LAWN. Yes, we now have grass in the front yard, but I think the rabbit was actually on the neighbor's lawn. 

A rabbit on the lawn this morning

I'll show you the entire front tomorrow and what happens with watering! 

My event went well, and it was fun to get out and show my stuff in person again! On the way home, I spotted this building. Yep -- that's a storage facility, and it made me laugh. 

A storage facility

Why? Because I'm trying to get rid of my stuff responsibly, NOT put it in boxes and then let it die slowly. I know that some people need storage lockers - they could be between houses, they could store their seasonal stuff there, BUT -- what else is in those lockers? How many are filled with JUNK! 

Here are some interesting facts about storage units. 

• 90% of storage units exist in the United States. Does that surprise you? It doesn't surprise me! 
• It's a $38 BILLION yearly industry! That is NOT a typo -- BILLIONS
• The average monthly cost is $90
• The number of storage facilities in the United States? 49,000 (that's facilities, NOT units)
• Percentage of households that rent a facility? Over 10%

Here are a couple of links if you want to read more. It would appear that our society is enamored with junk and just can't part with it. And one more link. If you search, there are loads of other links, but doesn't that blow your mind? 

We have become a society that NEEDS to own stuff to show our wealth? I don't get it -- if you aren't using the things you own, why are you keeping them? Granted, my mindset wasn't there for many years, but now that I see the light -- I want an empty house! I want to enjoy the few things I will eventually own. I'm tired of those things dictating my life, making me spend countless hours managing them and dragging me down. I want space; I want freedom from my STUFF! 

Unless I transition between spaces, I NEVER want a storage locker. 

So this happened yesterday. Again, another slow and methodical day. I don't have music on, no radio, no TV, no audiobook. Just silence (DH is away, and I seem to be able to clean better when he's away!) and my personal thoughts. It's so freeing. Zero stress, although MANY decisions need to be made. Keep, donate, or toss. 

I accomplished what I set out to do, and those boxes in Studio U are now GONE. The number of boxes in the hallway for donation has increased. 

Donation boxes

And then I did something else I said I would do. I emptied that white drawer unit and took all six drawers upstairs. See -- I am learning to not overdo the cleaning. Keep the stuff where it is and only work on it a bit at a time. Notice, there is NOTHING on the window seat? 

Six drawers to sort today

This is all paper, so it might slow me down somewhat, but I know one drawer is filled with receipts that need to go in the recycling box, and one is filled with family history stuff, so I don't think it'll take too long to sort through it all. 

BUT remember when I said that two of the four feet were off that cabinet, and it was literally propped up with the old carbon monoxide detector? Imagine my surprise when I flipped it upside down to discover that two wheels had come off, but not because they were broken. The weight of the contents and moving it probably popped the two wheels off. So I reinserted the two wheels and dusted the unit off. It's back in the office to await the newly emptied drawers. A good thing I did NOT buy any replacement for it!Good grief!!!

The wheels are back on the unit

Then I rearranged the space, so all seven remaining boxes on the floor are now together. I can't tell you how exciting this is --  yes -- who would have thought that having more floor space and seeing the pile of crap go down could be so invigorating? I swear that a small weight gets lifted off my shoulders for every piece of junk I throw out. I will keep at it for as long as I can stay motivated, but the difference is fantastic even if I stop now! I'm thrilled to bits and will soon be at the point when I get back to clearing off the tabletops; there will be NOTHING to fill up the space!!! And notice there is ONE more plastic tub that I can use downstairs! 

Seven boxes of crap left to sort

I'm not out of the woods yet, as once the floor and the two desk surfaces are clear, there's the filing cabinet, a buffet, a storage cabinet, and two bookcases that need to be sorted with more pitching and purging. At least that stuff has a home (more or less), and taking care of it will be slow and methodical, just like the rest of the junk.  

I never thought I would get this far, and I'm thrilled. Let's keep at it -- slow and steady. I WILL get it done. Did you think I would get this far? Honestly, I didn't know if I had the mental energy and the staying power to make it happen. But I blogged so much about it that I had no choice but to show you I could do it! If it means getting this monkey off my back, I'll take anything for motivation. 

I can't wait for the day I move, and I can put all my office stuff in two boxes!! Well, maybe a couple more, but I want this junk gone! I AM MOTIVATED!

There are a few things upstairs sitting on the other table that I haven't dealt with yet, but not much. One of them is this -- two trays of costume jewelry that belonged to M. I feel like I let her down by not teaching her the negative side of consumerism. These two trays are so dusty - I feel like dumping it all in a sink of soapy water. What survives can be donated, and what doesn't will be tossed. 

Two trays of  M's jewelry

She is BAD and had zero issues with collecting junk. And even worse, she never took responsibility for what to do with it when she didn't want something any longer. She is still bad today, and after she leaves, there is usually a pile of bags and receipts of stuff she bought. I'm working on that and will NOT let her do that to me again. The last time was better. But she needs to learn better shopping habits and let things go. There are still a "few" boxes in the spare room that belong to her, which need to be dealt with. I have no qualms about doing it, but I would prefer that she do it so she can learn. 

After being away from home for 7 years, I don't think she will need any of it. I might just make a box or two disappear! It's not that we need the space, but I don't want any junk in my house. 

Speaking of junk, we also have this problem area to deal with. Murphy -- don't try and hide! 

Mom - don't shame me!

Yes, Miss Murphy has TWO toy boxes filled with stuff. And we need to go through that! I might lay out all the toys in the family room. Whichever ones are moved in 48 hours, she can keep them. Whatever she doesn't touch must go! 

Mom -- I am a hoarder, and I'm PROUD of it!

Well, on that note, I'm off to walk the girls. And then we have two classes this morning -- well, mostly show and tell and some of the show and tell is AMAZING. In the Out of the Box class, where many people signed up because they were NOT creative, they are blowing my socks off!!

How is your cleaning going? What will I talk about when all this mess is cleaned up? Don't worry -- I still have a couple of months worth of cleaning to do, and then I get to go back to the top of the house and start over again! But this time, it won't take 8 years to get through the entire house! I don't know when exactly I started the cleaning process, but I think it's been about 8 years, which is a very long time. 

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!