TV-Netflix-Digital Clutter - STUFFology

Less TV for More of What Matters

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Being a mindful user of the abundant digital offerings, including the vast choices of streaming TV, enables us to reduce the digital clutter in our lives.

These days, while we wait for the vaccine to take effect via lower-reported numbers of COVID-infected people, we remain homebound. TV is the go-to escape to fill our hours yearning for outside activities.

If we choose consciously, we can find things that matter more than spending hours binge-watching Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Roku, and more.

TV-Netflix-Digital Clutter - STUFFology

If we take time to consider how we fill the hours of our lives, we will find other activities that provide more meaning. We can start doing those things we always wanted to do but never had time for. In focusing our attention on these other activities, we will rid ourselves of the mental clutter crowding our minds and make space for the things that matter.

Consider the books you want to read. Spend more time talking with family members without being distracted by TV or your smartphone. If family and friends are not near, take time to call them or have a ZOOM chat.

It will be almost six years since I gave up my DIRECTTV television subscription. Netflix would have gone the way of Blockbuster with customers like me.

Times Change

How do I feel today about what I wrote in Letting Go to Welcome In, six years ago?

With travel plans cancelled during COVID, I spend more time at home doing the things I had planned to do…  later.

Beyond reading and writing a LOT, I watch some TV.

When someone recommends a movie, I’ll watch the trailer and ask myself: Is two hours of my life worth giving up for this? What will the message be? What will I gain?

Sometimes, I enjoy a couple hours of laugh-aloud escape watching an animated film for children. Other times, I’m interested in more mature offerings that are closer to my life story.

A friend introduced me to a Netflix series that I began watching. Grace and Frankie, starring Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, two women, now in their 80s. They were filming these 25-minute episodes while in their mid-70s. Hurray for aging women and their male co-stars, Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston. They inspire us to age gracefully and if not, with humble humor. I am not a binge watcher; so, I’ll usually view two episodes at a time.

The older we grow the faster time passes. We have less time to do all the things we want to. By being conscious of how we spend our time with digital temptations we can fill our lives with meaning.

What digital habit can you let go for an activity that better serves you?

ICYMI: “When I get rid of this stuff, then I will…”

What’s in Stor(age) for You This Year?

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Storage bins are a great way to keep our treasured items from being damaged over time but often sit in a closet or garage or basement forgotten and eventually may turn into hidden clutter.

Since our life needs evolve with time, so too does our need to keep certain items in storage. STUFF you have stored away for later use should be reviewed periodically.

Consider a few examples from my own life so far this year.

My oldest daughter has been saving baby clothes, baby toys, and other baby items as her daughter grows out of them. Some she gives away to friends, others she keeps for future use. As you can imagine, such things accumulate rapidly.

The clothes have been stored in boxes, bags, and bins and have become quite disorganized. She recently started to reorganize them and purchased new storage bins for that task. Unfortunately, the bins she purchased are too small for what she had in mind. Pro tip, double check the measurements of storage items you buy online to be sure they suit your needs. She will likely return that purchase in exchange for larger bins.

I have toys packed away neatly in clear plastic bins that I am not quite ready to give up. For me, I do not yet consider them clutter because I rotate some of them to display in the house. Others I am saving to give to the grandchildren when they are older.

We have a sizable collection of board games that are now in the realm of clutter for me. I have kept them in boxes I obtained years ago which are slowly falling apart. I purchased new flip top plastic storage bins to declutter the boxes and better protect the games.

This tends to be a family project and brings back fond memories of where a given game came from and usually inspires us to play several of the games as we process through them. Reviewing your stored STUFF can be fun!

If something is stored away neatly in a storage bin is it clutter? Ask yourself that question today and you might be surprised at what is in stor(age).

What have you bin waiting for?

Brenda Avadian and her father Martin Avadian looking at pictures

“When I get rid of this stuff, then I will… “

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Years ago, I’d visit my father in Wisconsin after my mother died and he’d talk about his dreams of visiting Armenia, Russia, and Germany. He was Armenian, fascinated by Russia, and studied the German language in school.

Brenda Avadian and her father Martin Avadian looking at pictures

In his mid-eighties, he was in the early stages of dementia. I didn’t know it then. Even when he forgot my name, I chose to help him be independent and live with dignity.

When he shared his dream, I offered to help him. I even said I’d be willing to come along for an unforgettable father-daughter international adventure.

When I get rid of this stuff, then I will

Each time, he’d look around and take stock of his stuff. There were piles of (unpaid) bills and tax notices, notes, articles, and books near his desk. In the basement, he had an overwhelming array of tools and spare parts. With a sigh he’d say, “When I get rid of this stuff, then I will… ”

Almost two decades have passed since he died after living with Alzheimer’s; and now, I find myself saying the same thing. “When I get rid of this stuff, then I will…”

At age 61, I realize this mindset limits my potential. Aside from severely curtailed activities during this pandemic, I must learn from my father and get rid of more of my stuff.

What will I do once I am finished letting go of my stuff?

Once I realized the limits I was foisting upon my progress, a surprising question came to mind in the wee hours one morning: What will I do once I am finished processing my stuff?

This question scared me. It had a big answer—one, that I did not know. It took weeks to digest the magnitude of this shift in thinking.

Sure, I’ve lived through a lot of change—we all have, lately. Yet, to let go means releasing the anchor of my past.

I know better. I co-wrote a bestselling title on decluttering!

Managing clutter is an ongoing process. Many of us in my generation want to share our treasures with family as our parents did. It would make it so much easier. Yet, family doesn’t want these treasures. In truth, they are only things like thoughts that tether us to the past. While there’s nothing wrong with holding onto what’s familiar, holding on too tight to too many things and thoughts doesn’t allow us to enjoy more of our present.

Knowing this, I have been good about letting go. However, paperwork and books are especially daunting. Progress is measured at snail’s pace—inch-by-inch. Letting go of my parents’ furniture from the 1930s, will yield space for new experiences.

With each generation, we improve. Instead of thinking, when I get rid of this stuff, then I will… I will find the answer that makes sense for me. It may come in pieces but I will know what feels right when I ask, “What will I do once I am finished letting go of my stuff?”

Since a lot of my work is not tied down to a geographic location, this is truly a liberating feeling. And the answer will be the world’s unexpected gift to me.

Define Your Clutter in 2021

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2021 has arrived and is the perfect opportunity to START addressing the clutter in our lives.

The new year often brings with it grandiose resolutions that are frequently broken within days or weeks. Not terribly useful for our confidence and well-being.

Instead, I recommend you define your clutter today. That is, take a small-scale look at whatever clutter is bothering you in your life right now. Perhaps it is a basket of clean laundry that remains unfolded? Or a pile of mail that continues to grow on the counter?

Starting small will get you moving forward in 2021. Then build on that success by staying current with folded laundry, sorted mail, or whatever your specific issue might be. That sounds so simple because IT IS. But simple does not necessarily mean easy to maintain all year.

Clearing the clutter is an ongoing process. Do it now. You will be glad you did.

 

“You can’t reach for anything new if your hands are full of yesterday’s clutter.” – Louise Smith