Preparing for 2010!

Starting fresh is a very important concept for me, one that I take literally to the bone when it comes to starting the new year. A true procrastinator at heart, I’ve been putting this off for a while now but we are only two days away from 2010 and I want to make sure I am well armed for whatever it throws at me.

The importance of order in the home (out with the old!)
If you are a neatfreak at heart, there is no way you are waiting until spring to clean out your closets! What better way to start the new year than with an organized wardrobe? Throw out anything you shouldn’t take with you into 2010. Consider the following: Is it over two years old? Have you worn it in the last appropriate season? Is it covered in lint balls? Are you only keeping it because it was a gift, and never actually to wear?  If the answer to any of these is yes, is it a favorite piece you can’t do without? If it isn’t, throw it out. Careful with downgrading pieces to “loungewear” because you cannot part with them. Your loungewear drawers will be overflowing within months (I should know!)

Orderly Corners
Another thing I love to do is go through my computer folders, deleting excessive files and photos (I have photos in my ‘inspiration’ folder from 2005…). I keep my bookmarks down to 100, so only the essential dailies. Anything else goes to delicious just in case!
I also go through my iTunes and delete songs that I usually skip over and I make new playlists or revise old ones.
Tame down crowded shelves and drawers; I basically go through them all over the house and throw away piles of things — if I didn’t remember I had that, or if I haven’t used it in forever, they go in the bin. If they are in good condition I put them aside maybe to give away.

Productivity Powerhouse
The desk is where some of the magic happens, if not most depending on your job and hobbies. I tend to be glued to mine (to an unhealthy extent sometimes!), so it needs weekly maintenance. Extra papers, clippings, pens running dry, little things you just don’t know where to put so you shove them in any drawer. All these need to go out! Keep only what you use actually on your desk, the rest should be filed away. Keep some sort of board up for calendars, important notices/reminders and inspirational tidbits! This year I’ll be keeping a physical inspiration folder of inspiring articles, and I’ll leave the pictures to be put up on the wall next to my desk. Whenever my creative juices are running low, I’ll just glance over at them and keep going! Things on my desk: this semester’s books and notebooks, a big bag of pens and markers, extra paper and my printer. Nothing to distract me here! Except for the laptop which I kind of overlooked. Set it on sleep and you should be good for a while (damn twitter!)

Put those Christmas gifts to use!
Those of you who have already received your presents can start the new year with brand new shiny things, yay! I will have to wait until January 6th as is tradition here for the big loot, but a few days can’t hurt I guess!

So now that your home is a wonderland of all things beautiful and new, all you have to do is wait for 2010 to roll around! That, and maybe write down your plans for it; big ridiculous plans, small details, wants, wishes…! Exciting!