Operation: C.R.A.P.

So, last week's Adventures in House Hunting spurred a flurry of decluttering activity for me. I've been noticing all the C.R.A.P. in our house, as well as the stuff that's not C.R.A.P., but isn't organized or displayed very well. This flurry of activity soon spread to the Pete, and both of us have been trying to organize and generally make the house look more spiffy. It's funny how seeing someone else's crappy house can open your eyes to your own home's flaws.

C.R.A.P., by the way, stands for Can't Really Appreciate Possessions.© When you can't really appreciate your possessions, they're C.R.A.P. Yes, I thought that one up myself. Somebody make sure I get the credit when the wordanistas start throwing it around and fly lady and other motivational organizers start using it in their literature.

The British poet and designer William Morris said, "Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful." If you are in possession of something that is not, for you, useful or beautiful (or has some other personal significance), than it's C.R.A.P. But remember, one man's C.R.A.P. is another man's T.R.E.A.S.U.R.E. (Totally Rad, Excellent, And Surely Useful Resource to Exploit), so donate your C.R.A.P. to your local charity or thrift store if it's still in good condition.

So, Operation C.R.A.P. involves the Pete and me getting the house de-C.R.A.P.ped before our V.I.P. guests arrive in early October to visit for a week. Maybe not every nook and cranny will be C.R.A.P.-free and totally organized, but we're gonna make a valiant attempt for the house to at least pass the Ninjanun Show Home test. The main question I ask myself when contemplating potential C.R.A.P. (besides is it useful, beautiful, or hold sentimental value) is, "If we were moving next week, would I bother spending the time, money, and energy to pack it up, move it, unpack it, and organize it in my new digs?" Another question to ask is, "If we were showing the home next week, would this item be worthy of display/organization? And if not, would I spend money to put it in short-term storage?" If the answer is NO, then out it goes. Some of the stuff will undoubtedly have to be put under consideration more than once, as it's hard to let go of things that sorta kinda hold sentimental value; like notebooks filled with mediocre poetry I wrote in college and which represent where I was at that stage of life. This, however, does not excuse the fact that it's mediocre poetry, bordering on Embarrassingly Awful Poetry, and is taking up valuable real estate on the bookshelf.

The Pete and I went to Ikea on Saturday, and bought a few organizing tools, such as little collapsible compartments to organize dresser drawers. You know, just in case potential home buyers a year from now scrutinize my underwear drawer while going through our house: they'll be blown away by how awesomely organized it is and offer us $10,000 over the asking price.

C.R.A.P.-free in 2008!