Throwing Out Your Tidying Up Trash Properly

Throwing Out Your Tidying Up Trash Properly

One of my favorite things to do is clean. For me picking up, organizing, and deep cleaning is therapeutic and rejuvenating. When my husband first talked to me about the book The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up I was thrilled. He initiated the first step that author Marie Kondo suggests by gathering all of your clothes in the entire house and putting it in a big mound. His mountain of clothes was impressive, yet expected. If you don't know him, this means that it was pretty tiny. Then you touch each item and decide if it sparks joy or not. If it does, you keep it. If not, you thank it for what it provided you and then get rid of it.

The clothes you keep are to be folded with care and placed in a drawer so that when you open the drawer each piece of clothing can be seen. And now, for the past five or so months he has stuck to the KonMari Method of folding and hasn't wavered once. He even told me last night, "I used to hate folding with a passion, and now I look forward to it." If that doesn't make you want to read the book, then maybe the new series on Netflix will spark your interest! Tidying Up is a great show that is refreshing and real. The show is based off the teachings in the book and it showcases Marie Kondo herself. Marie goes into different peoples’ homes and guides them through tidying up. It truly is life changing and most certainly magic.

As I have been watching it though, I wanted to remind anyone who is participating in this fabulous cleanse of the proper way to discard your items. Nothing is worse than seeing someone throw out perfectly usable items. Can anyone say pet peeve? Of course you can. Now can you please never be guilty of this? Thanks. Therefore the first item of business is to DONATE.

Donate

The concept of donating clothes, and other items, should be somewhat second nature. I am surprised and saddened to see that it is not. The biggest reason for donating is that it helps the environment. Along with donating clothes to thrift stores, buying clothes from thrift stores helps the environment. Less demand for new clothes means less demand for new textiles, which means a better environment. Another big reason is employment. By donating you are helping to employ someone. If you aren’t sure where to donate, search “donate near me” on Google. There will be something. Other ideas are to donate to organizations, churches, schools, etc. Get creative and more importantly, be proactive!

As I have not yet read the book and my husband has, I have been informed that a key aspect to the KonMari Method is to let go of the things that don’t spark joy as soon as possible so you don’t change your mind. When you decide to take Marie Kondo’s challenge of tidying up, please set time aside to immediately take your items to the nearest donation center rather than throwing them in your trash.

Recycle/Reuse

The phrase from The Grinch comes to mind here, “One mans trash is another mans potpourri,” and I just know that although you have junk that seems completely useless, it is not. Donate this item so others can reuse it. If an item truly is unusable, make sure to recycle it when possible. To read a detailed list on what can be recycled, read this article. The article teaches us what to do with metals, paper, cardboard, glass, plastic, batteries, bulbs, and electronics. Do your research before tossing something. The same website also guides you to where you can go to recycle unwanted items. Click here for quick access. Again, please be proactive and responsible!

Sell

The final option requires some work, but has a direct personal profit. Selling your items is a great option, especially if it cannot be donated or recycled very easily. If you don’t want to go through the hassle yourself, there are companies that will buy your items from you and then sell them. Facebook Marketplace is one in which I have had great success. A similar idea is to post it to your social media.

Be proactive. Get creative. Take Initiative. Be responsible. Do the right thing, and take care of the items in your life that don’t spark joy by donating, recycling, or selling them. Please oh please think about your effect on the world for good and for bad. Just as the picture I took in Betsy Ross' house, our steps have a lasting effect, whether we live to see it or not. Let’s work together to put our trash where it belongs and make a positive mark on the world!