Fun in Bainbridge

Last weekend was a Seattle weekend without any plans. We ended up taking the car on a ferry ride to Bainbridge Island.

 

They have two lanes for driving cars on to the ferry. I think this is the point where I got really excited to drive on to a ferry and yelled "It's just like Noah's Ark!". 

View of Seattle from the boat.

This looks like a fake background with how blue the sky is and the perfect skyline including the Space Needle. It really was just a gorgeous day out. I've yet to visit Seattle in bad weather (cold yes, but not even any rain) so I'm choosing to believe that everyone else is just lying about how yucky it can get. :)

I didn't get any pictures of us on the island, but we went to the Eleven winery tasting room on the main street then shared some chips and salsa at a cantina across the street. We're quickly turning in to old people with afternoon drinks and early bird dinners. 

Living More Simply

Yesterday I took step one on my minimalism journey. Actually, we're changing the name of the journey to living more simply. I feel like minimalism has a set of rules to follow and is an actual movement. I'd just like to enjoy more free time and have less clutter, both physical and mental. So there it is - living more simply. Credit for that should go both to Mom with her "Live simply so others may simple live" mantra and the boyfriend who mentioned something about a more simple life when I was describing my closet clean out. 

Now the details. I tackled my two most used (and most overflowing) drawers this weekend: The t-shirt and the work out clothes drawers. 

I knew I owned way more t-shirts than I needed or can reasonably wear, but I had no idea I owned 56 tees. That doesn't include tops that I wear to work or out socially. Seriously, 56. Ridiculous. I now own 21 and my almost broken IKEA drawer might last the rest of the year until I move.

My work out clothing drawer has been a source of stress for a while. On the days I'm not organized enough to set out clothes in the evening, trying to find something for the gym or a run at 5:10 am is not the best way to start the day. This drawer was such a mess I forgot about a brand new triathlon suit I had purchased (for no good reason) last year sometime. Hello, ebay! 

Overall, I have a "keep rate" of 48%. I may be less of a consumerist pack rat, but I'll never not be a data nerd. :)

Keep: 48 (44 + 4 - I have four items of workout clothing that now live in Seattle)
Donate: 48
Sell: 1
Trash: 2 (I had two work out shirts that were too stained to donate and haven't been able to find info regarding recycling used clothing that isn't worth donating)

Stuff

This is not a post about a hodgepodge of things, but a post about actual stuff. Some time in late 2009 while blog hunting (yes, I am my mother's daughter), I came across a blog on minimalism. As tends to happen in the blog world, one post on minimalism lead to as many more as I possibly could have stayed up reading.

I'm not a minimalist and probably never will be. I appreciate things and enjoy a certain level of comfort. I don't desire to live with only 100 belongings or live a monkish life. But I also feel very overwhelmed by how much stuff I have. Picking out clothes for work involves fighting coat hangers and hand bags in my closet. Putting away the dishes involves the precise placement of plates and cups to make sure nothing bursts out of the china cabinet and breaks. I simply have too much stuff. Way more than I need. And now, I've crossed a new line to way more than I want.

My quest towards minimalism probably won't involve much more than dealing with my consumption. I'm not trying to get away from the working world or move to India with just a small carry on to my name. But I would like spend the year applying what I read on these blogs to my own life in ways that make sense. I'm starting with the closet. I've given my self three months to get it under control, one step at a time.