Tag: help a veteran

A Dad’s Guide to Decluttering

Posted on by Jordank

Father’s Day is June 15, and — like most people — #dads sometimes need a little help with #decluttering. Whether they’re #minimalists when it comes to extra #stuff or irrepressible #packrats, there’s always room to streamline.

Of course, every dad is different. Some are juggling family, kids and career in starter homes with little space to spare, and others may be dealing with the weight of a lifetime of accumulated paperwork and other #stuff post-retirement.

His hobbies will have an effect on the level of #clutter. If Dad is a woodworker, mechanic or tinkerer, he may have hundreds of tools and parts to #organize. He may even have duplicates! Help him sort out his favorites — the ones that really get used — and #donate or sell the rest.

If he’s an avid athlete, sportsman or musician, he will probably have more than one piece of specialized equipment that takes up a lot of space when not in use. And even if Dad just likes to read or listen to music, chances are he has a lot of accumulated books, papers and media.

Young dads with kids may not have as much stuff of their own, but struggle to keep the family #organized. Brooklyn’s Tidy Dad believes that #decluttering, #cleaning and #organizing responsibilities should be shared in a household, since everyone contributes to the #clutter and mess.

His advice? Know what makes a space seem #messy and #cluttered. Reassess the “hypothetical someday” to determine what’s really in use. Find a balance of possessions, space and everyday life. Schedule #decluttering on the calendar. And make #tidying tasks manageable and routine.

Ultimately, he says, #tidying is more than decluttering — it’s a way to create space for every part of your life. Young or old, the idea is for dads to have “just enough” #stuff and systems in place to make it easy to maintain an equilibrium.

Once you’ve helped Dad declutter, tidy up and organize, contact ClothingDonations.org for a #free #donation #pickup. He’ll be happy you helped, and in turn, happy to help the nation’s #veterans with his donation. #DadsDecluttering

Decluttering Can Be a Great Summer Project

Posted on by Jordank

One #household project that’s good to perform no matter what the season is #decluttering. Outdoors or indoors, rain or shine, your #home life will be healthier and less stressful if you don’t have a bunch of #junk you don’t need in the way of the #stuff that you use. Taks advantage of the warm summer weather to clean the #garage — or use a rainy day to #organize the basement. You’ll probably find lots of old #clothing, tchotchkes and other things you don’t really need that you can #donate to ClothingDonations.org. Call or click for a #free #pickup, and contribute those items to fund valuable #veterans programs! #SummerProjects

Shop for Cookout Tools at the Thrift

Posted on by Jordank

Missing some essential #grilling tools for your upcoming #Memorial Day #cookout? Look no further than the local #thrift and #secondhand shops supplied by generous #donations to ClothingDonations.org. Thrifts are a great source for the dishes, bakeware, tools and small appliances that make #cooking a breeze — and a great source of festive holiday decorations, too. You never know what you’ll find at the thrift, and the proceeds from your purchases go toward essential #veterans programs. What better way to observe Memoiral Day? #MemorialDayHacks

How to Shake off Your Winter Hibernation

Posted on by Jordank

The trees are budding and the first flowers of #spring are starting to pop up — depending on your location, sometimes through a lingering snow. But you may still struggle to get energized for the warm weather, having been in human “hibernation” through winter.

“Humans cannot actually hibernate, but in the coldest months of the year, many of us are drawn to something similar,” writes Katherine May in Wintering: How I Learned to Flourish When Life Became Frozen. “We want to batten down the hatches, preserve our energies, lay on fat.”

Now, it’s time to shake off that hibernation and meet the sunniest months of the year head-on. You can shed that winter weight, tackle long-overdue warm-weather projects and reinvent your outlook for the rest of the year. Here are a few ways:

Move your body. You don’t have to start training for a triathlon, but any activity that gets your blood circulating will help you snap of the winter doldrums. Get off the couch and commit to move every day, even if it’s just a short walk.

“Moderate exercise will release endorphins that encourage you to move a little more next time,” says Optimi. “If you can be outside when the sun’s shining, all the better. Sunlight provides a variety of health benefits you don’t want to miss, including creating your own supply of immune-building vitamin D.”

#Declutter and #organize. Not only can #decluttering get you moving, it can also lighten the psychological load of a crowded, chaotic space. Simply having less #stuff to gather dust will make it easier to find the things you do like and streamline your home life.

Contact ClothingDonations.org for a #free #donation #pickup, and that extra #junk will be out of your life for good. Your mood will brighten knowing that #donating lightly used goods helps fund programs benefiting the nation’s #veterans.

Deep-clean. They don’t call it spring #cleaning for nothing. Shake out the rugs, wash the windows and scrub the baseboards. A #clean, fresh-smelling and bright home is a more pleasant place to be; it will put the spring in your step and may even inspire you to let some fresh air in.

Whatever gets you moving, socializing and planning again after a long winter is fair game. Just know that you no longer have to bundle up, huddle on the couch and binge Netflix. Spring has sprung, so go out and take advantage of it!

Observing Boxing Day Traditions

Posted on by Jordank

The Organizing Blog’s favorite holiday is nearly here, and it isn’t Christmas, Hannukah, Diwali or Kwanzaa. It’s the day practically everyone pays attention to how much stuff they have and where they’re going to put it — Boxing Day!

Observed on the day after Christmas, Boxing Day got its start as an occasion for wealthy English landowners in to present servants and tradespeople with #holiday #gifts. The box — filled with seasonal delicacies and trinkets — was a gratuity recognizing their contributions over the year.

Boxing Day continues to be a holiday in many parts of the former British Commonwealth such as New Zealand, where anyone working gets time-and-a-half. And retailers in the United States use the occasion as an excuse to mark down merchandise and shore up holiday sales figures.

We regard Boxing Day as having a meaning that’s arguably closer to the original and more literal: a day to box up your holiday decorations and extra merchandise and give it to a worthy service provider or charity.

You can observe Boxing Day on Dec. 26th or any day of your choosing. Have some empty boxes ready to collect extra decorations and household goods, clothing that didn’t quite fit this season, books that have been read — whatever you no longer need.

Sort those things out as you bring a close to the holidays. As you see the boxes fill up, set them aside in a special location. As the boxes start to pile up — and this will happen faster than you might imagine — #schedule a #free #donation #pickup at ClothingDonations.org.

Put anything you will continue to use back into their proper, designated places in closets, drawers and bins. And know that you will be getting rid of some of the #clutter that has built up and be able to start the new year more #organized.

Your #donations go to a good cause: supporting programs that help the nation’s #veterans. And thanking #veterans — those who served — by giving merchandise is about as close to the original meaning of Boxing Day as you can get.