Books & Music...

As I was sitting on the couch last night watching Michael Phelps win another Olympic gold medal by beating a field of swimmers that looked so slow in comparison that maybe they were wearing floaties, my wife organized our cutlery drawer. The ensuing conversation went something like this:

Me: “Look, honey. Michael Phelps just won another gold medal! This dude is amazing!”

My wife: “Look, honey! I just organized all our forks and knives!”

I had goosebumps as Phelps took the stand for the national anthem; my wife expected me to place a medal around her neck for her monumental achievement as well.

Before you think I’m ripping on my wife, you have to understand that I equate physical feats of dominating the world in a certain sport with one’s ability to organize, particularly a cluttered drawer. Last night, my wife took gold, too--only her veins didn't bulge out of her neck as she celebrated, unlike Phelps.

So, how exactly does clearing out our clutter translate into eco-friendly living and a greener lifestyle? Janet Luhrs reminds us in “The Simple Living Guide: A Sourcebook for Less Stressful, More Joyful Living” that removing the clutter and keeping it out of our lives helps us avoid buying unnecessary items:

“’Equilibrium’ means that things are balanced. It applies to clutter in a big way. Once you complete your search-and-destroy mission in your house, keep things in equilibrium by never bringing in more than you take out. Take your hall closet, for example. After you have simplified and organized it, do not, I repeat, do not buy anything new in that department until you remove the same number of things as you plan to bring in. Why do you need another jacket or hat anyway? Think of each space (closets, shelves, drawers) as finite. Nothing else will fit in them. Period. If you take this rule to heart, it will stop you in your tracks before you go out and buy more stuff.”

For me, that means giving away clothes the next time I want to buy something new. For Phelps, it means removing those silver medals from the house to make room for the gold.