Clutter is a 'Mutter!'
The Utter Truth about Mutter-Clutter.
Clean it. Clear it.
Let’s face it, Clutter is an ‘Utter-Mutter’ and can consume not only our space, but our mental health, behavior and actions. Clutter is nothing to joke about or take lightly. It can breed overnight, or in my home in seconds, and then wear on you for the entire day or evening as you continue to flail around in it, step over it, or have RBF (Keeping it PC) until your family, but most likely you, picks it up. Let’s face that ‘Mutter-Clutter’ head on!
There are several types of clutter that occur in one’s space. Let’s look at the physical aspect of clutter first. I like to think of the various breeds of clutter in terms of time lengths.
1. Transition Clutter- This is what happens when YOU are transitioning from one space to the next or when you are transitioning the SPACE to the next. Meaning, you are getting yourself and/or fam out the door in the morning and have all the ready-to go backpacks, lunchboxes, briefcases, soccer bags, thermos of coffee, school folders and purse piled on the floor in front of the garage door where you have just placed them to be taken out to the car for loading. It is to the point where no one can even open the door to get out to put on shoes and coats before getting in the car and the troops are arguing and complaining about who’s touching who or looking at them the wrong way. The other view of this is when you have to clear the kitchen table or island to transition from homework and laptops, to dinner plates and eating. Everything that was on the table is now on the floor or strung across the living room.
2. Tired Clutter/EOD (end of day) Clutter- This scenario is what happens when we get home for the day and everyone piles into the door and drops everything where it lands. Some of you may be blessed with a mud-room, but even the lucky clients that have them, still have the drop and plop happening. This can also happen in one’s bedroom or bathroom when it is time to change into jammies and the clothes remain on the floor, jewelry on counter or ledge, and sometimes the same jammies that were victims of the morning drop and plop are put back on from the floor versus new ones from the drawer or closet.
3. Temporary/24-hour Clutter- These are typically items that we will be using again within a 24-hour period. Some of the Tired Clutter/EOD Clutter also falls into this category and is used as an excuse to not put it away. Examples of this variation of clutter are car keys, purses, wallets, hats, chapstick, coats, shoes and mittens. Although all of these items vary tremendously in size, the amount of clutter caused by it overall still produces the same feelings. Don’t discount the smaller items as they are usually the cherry-on-top!
4. Situational Clutter- I find this happening when we are forced to make due with what we have in the space we have it in and we can be quickly overcome by piles of clutter that does not have a home because the current space does not allow for it. This can also occur when we have guests over or there are outside sports or activities going on for a period of time, thus crossing it over into the Temporary/24-hour Clutter category.
5. ‘I will never get to it’ Clutter- This may be the worst kind of clutter around! These are the piles we make on desks, shelves, in junk-drawers, in basements and crawl spaces that we put away for safe-keeping until we can ‘get to it.’ Guess What?! You will not get to it! Start with this clutter first and Clean it. Clear it.