I've lost weight. My knees feel better. I lost a shoe size - I guess because my feet aren't as flat or my toes aren't as chubby. I went down another pant size. So, with some new clothes acquired, I have to get rid of clothing in the spirit of the 100 Thing Challenge. I'll go through the closet tomorrow and cull the herd.

I've been playing darts with intermittent progress. I'm going to play in a blind draw tourny tonight - or maybe not. I'll go down and see what's happening. The bar is a smoker and I hate smelling like smoke afterwards.

In the category of "what was I thinking?" I almost asked a gal home last week.

I've been re-reading "Inevitable Illusion" for some insight.

At the butcher shop, today, I had a small sip of a local cab-shiraz. Delish. I picked up a bottle to take over the holidays.

The gutters must be done tomorrow. I must climb the ladder. I can do it.

I picked up a new scent from Aveda last month. Nice. I hardly wear perfume, but I'm feeling girly.

I'm also planting the bulbs (daffodils, tulips, gladiolas, and the nekkid ladies) in front of venus.

I managed to get a few shallots out of the garden with another harvest of parsley, oregano, and thyme. I'll be drying herbs this week.

It's Saturday night. Have you hugged your loved one tonight? Do so.

Must brave the cold. Must leave cave. I haven't been out of the house since Thursday afternoon. The wind is knocking the ice from the trees. Brrrrrr! No, Tigger, I said "Brrrr...not Purrrrr."

My holiday cards are finally done and ready for the post office. I have hot & sour soup in the crockpot. Constant Comment tea is brewing. I took the stale bread and made a bread pudding with eggs and milk. Cinnamon. Warm maple syrup. Crispy bacon.

Smart installation for the house: window well covers

I have a few things to knock off my 100+ thing list. Freecycled:
10 movies (video tape)
VCR
iron & board
hair dryer
furnace filters for old furnace

I have a few more gifts to buy my family. It might be a zoo. I have to drop my car off for repairs on Monday morning. It may cost a lot. I'm hoping not.

I posted a list of stuff (9 more things gone out of the house) on freecycle this morning and got rid of it all in less than 2 hours.

Final tally of things out the door (approximately 100):

Dress for Success:
1 black suit - jacket & skirt
1 pair patent leather shoes, need inserts
1 dark blue blouse
2 pair corduroy pants (green, brown)
1 blue/brown sweater with knitted fringe
1 brown sweater with half shirt
1 white blouse with ruffles

Freecycle/Goodwill:
3 pair jeans
1 pair black jeans
37 t-shirts (including 2 never worn, tags still attached)
12 "work shirts" with collars, but old/flimsy/faded
2 long sleeved tshirts
30 pair socks (crew & anklet, men's size 9-11)

5 undergarments

I found a bunch of stuff that wasn't mine. A mystery. I think this is the first time ALL the laundry in my house is clean and put away.

100 things gone. 150 items of clothing left.

Reduction: 40% of clothing

Not possible!!!!!!

So, revised goal:

Sort through every item of clothing (well over 300 items) and get rid of anything I haven't worn in a year. Closet is done - mostly work clothes.

Items so far to freecycle: 27

Exceptions:
College Varsity Letter Jacket
Little black gucci dress (for formal occasions when a black cocktail dress and pearls are indicated)

Currently sorting through t-shirts and play clothes.

I'll report back as a percentage of my clothing when I finish later this afternoon.

My starting point with obligatory supervision by resident feline:

( The pile )

This weekend I will attempt to get my clothes down to under 100 Things.

Guidelines:
1. A pair of shoes count as 1 item.
2. Matching items (like a suit coat & slacks) count as 1 item.
3. Undergarments will be culled for old, torn, etc. (Ew, TMI!) No decision on count yet <<-- loophole
4. On Monday: "Business" clothes will be donated to Dress for Success. Wearable (unstained, no tears, etc) clothing will be freecycled or dropped off to Goodwill.

My plan is to pull everything out of the closet, the bureau and the basement. Turn on some rockin' music. Stack it on the bed, take a picture, and start sorting. Dance. Dance? Dance! Only things I am keeping go back into the closet/dresser ala clean sweep. For things like the chemistry t-shirts, I will only keep a percentage of what I have. I plan to ask myself, if I could only keep 5 of these, which ones would they be? Which not?

It should work. It will work.

I started listing all my stuff in order to have some data. I don't see how this is doable. Guy Named Dave is smoking something. It must be nice to eliminate all the "family" stuff that you use anyway in this challenge, Dave. I have over 75 things in furnishings alone including artwork, 25 for the yard & garden, and 50 individual dishes/pots/kitchen items etc. For "personal" stuff (as defined by Dave), I may be able to do it. I have over 150 clothing items, 100 books, and plenty of assorted junk!

It might be more realistic to focus on reduction (perhaps a percentage?) of my possessions. I could start with a room or category (clothes) and ask myself, "Do I need this?" or "When was the last time I used this?" I can certainly whittle down my stuff being stored in closets. I can keep a running tally. For example, out of 25+ chemistry themed t-shirts accumulated over 10 years (wow, that's 2.5 t-shirts per year!), I will keep only 5 of them. Or maybe 10. I'll need to brace myself for the emotional storm associated with my clutter. I'll concentrate on what I'm keeping, not what I'm giving away. I may also get a little cash out of my stuff via Craig or a garage sale. This will work. I'll think on it.

Opinions welcome!