The GREAT Clean OUT

A couple of weeks ago I started to clean out "MY ROOM," my space, my inner sanctum.  You have to note that the rest of my house is NOT like this room.  It is orderly and neat but my space....

I started around my chair as that was starting to crowd me.  I began making piles and soon realized that I had created more of a mess than I had before.  You have to understand that I am the keeper of family history, my high school class crap, my crafts, my books, my family pictures, paper (love clean paper and empty journals, obsessively), more books...AND MY ART stuff like canvas', paints, cleaners, brushes...

This is not the first time I've had to clean out my room but honestly, it's the worst it has ever been and I was a bit ashamed and extremely overwhelmed. 

I put the S.O.S. out to my oldest, B and she dropped everything and flew over to assist as I was about to give up but I HAD to do this.  

What happened kind of created more of a mess than I thought and it spilled out down the hallway into the guest bedroom.  I had to get the art stuff organized and we moved all of it to the guest room.  Guess what, I CAN'T get into that room now!  EEK!!!!  It has been this way for a couple of weeks not, dodging the piles down the hall but on Thursday I got busy.  I purged probably 100-150 books so far.  I'm a book whore, what can I say.  See those cabinets that are closed, well they were full, FULL I SAY of books that I could not even get to.  One side is empty now, the other has art magazines, so far. 

Look, you can see actual floor, not floor in the hall or guest room, but floor. 

I also have a collection of Stuart Woods books.  I've collected everything he has written and even though his recent stuff is kind of crap, it is a collection and I am dedicated to it.  So instead of filling up my book alcove in the living room

I'm moving all to the top shelf in my room then moving hard backs and old books to the alcove.  Paperbacks that I have not read yet will be put in a side bookshelf that has NO DOORS.  When it is shut away, it is forgotten.  

Today I will tackle the closet that isn't quite as bad as before and I think I'll be able to purge a lot out of there too.  I HAVE to have this done by June 7 as I'm hosting Daniel Keys and the workshop art students here for dinner and an evening of visiting and I have to have my home studio in tip-top shape.