Anybody here understand "FLYLADY" advice?

[JanH]

Re: Anybody here understand "FLYLADY" advice?

Hey, I thought I had that book running around here somewhere from when I got started....anyway, 27 items. Suze orman did 25 so Flylady added 2 more to make 27--something about "moving multiples of nine and Feng Shui." Anyway, she did for herself and then when people asked about her methods, she told them what she did. So it stuck I guess. I have never done 27 at a time. But I have gone through the house and cleared out what I've seen at a glance. Keeps things moving on outta here. Supposed to only have left the things you love and use.

[TinyFish]

Re: Anybody here understand "FLYLADY" advice?

Mathew,

I like the bit about the dead parrots. Yeah, it is crazy how fast computer equipment becomes obsolete. Makes me feel very wasteful. Luckily, we have some good recycling programs around here and I know a woman who takes older machines and works with them to make complete computers (albeit slow) for people who cannot afford anything. She's always happy to have old computers that she can use to provide word processing machines for poor kids to do papers on or basic internet access for an older or sick person.

Regards,
Elizabeth

[Elgin526]

Re: Anybody here understand "FLYLADY" advice?

How could a normal family live with that much debris in their living areas????????

You've obviously never met my husband... ...the man has never met an item he's wanted to throw away. I'm no neat-nik but at least I go through my stuff about once a month (paperwork, mostly) and weed-out-and-file. Not DH. And it's not just the normal day-to-day things that are laying around. He CREATES stuff. For example: He gets paid via direct deposit and does not get a paper statement, he can view his paystubs online, going back since the day he was hired if he wants. What does DH do? Prints out a copy to file!

Another example: DH collects DVD's (a clutter issue right there...). Instead of just keeping them in their original cases, he buys jewel cases, prints out a homemade lable, and "organizes" them. The original cases are not thrown a way, but are stored in another area. I put "organized" in quotes because he is always "re-organizing them" and therefore are in stacks scattered all over the house. The net result being I can still never find a movie when I want one. I'll rent a movie from Netflix that we already have because it's too much trouble to find the damn movie!

And why does he do this with the DVD's? The jewel cases he buys are slimer and takes up less space on the shelf (this much is true). But it's negated by the fact that he refuses to toss the original cases, and we must find space to store them! I asked him to but since it's a collection they MUST be kept! Fine, then DON'T buy the fliping jewel cases! ARRRRRRGHHHH! (me -> <- DH)

Anyway, yes there are normal people out there with 27 items of clutter.

[Bookie]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Re: Why 27 items?

On page 28 of Flylady's book, Sink Reflections, you will find the following:

The Famous 27 Fling Boogie

"This is a fun, fast exercise. I practiced this daily for six months until everything in my home was something I loved and used regularly. In Suze Orman's various books, such as The courage to Be Rich, she suggests a simple tool. I have adapted it because I was studying Feng Shui principles for putting order in my home.

Suze says take a garbage bag and run through the house collecting 25 items to throw in the trash. I took it two steps further. I added two items to the collection tally because of moving multiples of nine and my interest in Feng Shui. This really doesn't matter, but it made it fun for me."

[boefixepa]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Go Bookie! I think if she were to read this thread she would say....DON'T GET CAUGHT UP IN YOUR PERFECTIONISM and then restate FUN FOR ME! It's just a tool...the end goal is to declutter.

[Mathew Green]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Re: Why 27 items?

...I was studying Feng Shui principles for putting order in my home.
...I added two items to the collection tally because of moving multiples of nine and my interest in Feng Shui.

So my hunch that "27" was used because of it being 3 times 3 times 3 is at root correct.

[/silly mode on!]

Score one for Mathew! Yippie! :

[/silly mode off!]

[Bookie]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Actually JanH posted it before I did, and I didn't notice the quote.

[TinyFish]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Huzzah for Mathew the math 'wizard'!

Yes, I think the main thing is not to get caught up in the number, but pick a reasonable number and stick with it.

Elgin, I think the DVD thing would drive me mental. Why does he have to keep the old cases? Is he thinking of resale value or something? When people get into saving all the packaging for something because it MIGHT be a collector's item one day I think of that as a 'clutter lottery'. They are banking that all the effort (and possible expense, such as paying for storage, or renting movies you already have) will pay off big one magical day.

I've convinced hubby to keep his movies and music in binders for the most part. He still insists on keeping the 'box art' slips of paper, which he never looks at, but at least they are easily stored in a manilla envelope elsewhere. So that works as a compromise.

But back to the original post. Found those 27 (or whatever) items of clutter yet? Is any of this helping?

-TinyFish

[mountainmist]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Huzzah for Mathew the math 'wizard'!

Yes, I think the main thing is not to get caught up in the number, but pick a reasonable number and stick with it.

Elgin, I think the DVD thing would drive me mental. Why does he have to keep the old cases? Is he thinking of resale value or something? When people get into saving all the packaging for something because it MIGHT be a collector's item one day I think of that as a 'clutter lottery'. They are banking that all the effort (and possible expense, such as paying for storage, or renting movies you already have) will pay off big one magical day.

I've convinced hubby to keep his movies and music in binders for the most part. He still insists on keeping the 'box art' slips of paper, which he never looks at, but at least they are easily stored in a manilla envelope elsewhere. So that works as a compromise.

But back to the original post. Found those 27 (or whatever) items of clutter yet? Is any of this helping?

-TinyFish

I'm not sure if I found the full 27 items, but I do know that simply reading all the responses got me motivated to simply keep on chugging.

I think that it is wise of you to keep those pieces of BOX ART, not because those readily available manufactured items will become collector items, but rather because I believe it is MUCH easier to sell any item at a garage sale at a much higher price when you have the original packaging.

And packaging, all those boxes & such, are simply SO easy to break down into flat storables that take up so very little space.

For instance, if you check the descriptions and the prices of videos at Amazon, you'll notice that people who can state, "PRIVATELY OWNED," and "original box art," can price their collection far higher than people who are trying to turn over videos they picked up at library sales or when blockbuster,et al sold their used videos at rock bottom prices.

So, I think that something so small is WISE to hang onto, and IF you have the room, like in the attic crawl space, or the rafters - simply flatten out any original product box of anything you purchase, and store them flat.

I'm really happy I read this advice decades ago, and followed it, because over the past few years there's been a real growth in consignment shops in my area, and the stuff that I had the original boxes & any inserts/instructions for, all of those itesm are far easier to place at consignment shops.

[PrincessPerky]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

But is he planning on selling them ever?

[lrjohnson]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Is anyone here a real fan? I have a book called Sidetracked Home Executives: from Pigpen to Paradise, see this link on the Flylady site. It looks like a precursor to the Flylady. If someone's really into it, PM me and I'll send it media mail. It's in good shape; it could be given as a gift but it does not look like new. It uses the old 3x5 card system; I think the book would be better for novelty than actual use. I picked it up at a buck-a-bag booksale.

[BCHGRL]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

I think the spirit of FLYLADY is that anyone can overcome a cluttered life-style. Her very first suggestion is to clean the kitchen sink. No more, no less. The idea is that perfectionism can paralyze you but you can get there with baby steps.

27 item fling may seem silly to some of us, but there are plenty others who would not be at loss to get rid of 30 or even 60 items. The "put on your shoes" advice might be great for some, perhaps those who do not have a full-time career. I don't see why I need to wear shoes when I'm cleaning when I have to wear shoes every day for work.

[TinyFish]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Perky,

In answer to your question, no we are not planning on selling any of our CDs or DVDs. If we decided we didn't want some of them we would probably just give them away, as we have done in the past. At most we'd yardsale them and not care how much we got for them, but I don't really see us doing a yardsale. It requires building up too large a supply of stuff, which we don't have room for.

Just to be clear, the 'box art' that hubby wants to keep (and that I compromised on by putting in a big manilla envelope) is just the little slips of paper that are inside the jewel case of the CD or DVD. Usually with a picture of the bad, movie stars, or something random. So it ends up being a reasonable compromise to keep them, even if I don't agree we need to. The envelope probably takes up about the same amount of room as a book and I'm sure I have an excess book somewhere in the house, so that's no big deal. And now they are tidy so I don't have to pick up the stack and dust around em.

Regards,
TinyFish

[PrincessPerky]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

Hey, if it keeps the marriage happy, why not

[Mabuisakura]

Re: Anybody here understand &quot;FLYLADY&quot; advice?

I love FLYLADY. But I don't really use her email. Lol. I keep it in its own folder and I keep certian emails until I am ready to use it. I think I am going backwards