The satisfaction of a low-stakes clean out
What do you mean, I shouldn't keep medicine that expired in 2013?
Lately I’ve been all about low-stakes clean outs. A low-stakes clean out involves an unemotional category of stuff no one in my house especially cares about, we don’t have a stressful volume to deal with, and with an hour of focus I can feel a sense of accomplishment. You may recall I recently celebrated my low-stakes cables and cords drawer rehabilitation.
With the seasonal change and winter illnesses suddenly upon us, I sensed it was time to tackle our over-the-counter medicine stash. There were some red flags suggesting the time was nigh:
Our stash existed in various drawers and cabinets in the kitchen and bathroom. (We all know each category should have only one home.)
I had no real sense of what we owned. (Some of it was purchased in Europe a decade ago with nary an English word on the package; other items had unknown origins.)
Whenever I needed a decongestant or whatever, I tended to go to the drugstore rather than diving into what we already had. (This is a sure symptom of the mild overwhelm of having too many weird things to dig through.)
My husband took the kids on a 6 hour adventure (!) out of the house one day recently and I knew this was a golden opportunity. (What, isn’t it everyone’s dream to spend a day home alone, organizing undisturbed?)
I started by pulling everything out of the various homes and piling it on the kitchen counter. Ack, it was so much stuff!
Before
First, I went through and checked expiration dates. This was an eye-opening endeavor. I found things that had expired long before my oldest child was born. I found expiration dates from 3 houses ago — I had willingly relocated some of these items multiple times while they were already expired. I found expiration dates from when I was in my 20s (I’m now 41). Clearly this organizing job was long overdue. Even more clear is that even the most organizing-obsessed person has blind spots.
I threw out everything expired. Learning from my apparent impulse to hang onto things I rarely use, I also de-duplicated some items, getting rid of whichever will expire first (how much Tylenol are we realistically going to use this decade?). I also tossed more exotic remedies and homeopathic tinctures I like the idea of but never actually used.
Then I took what remained and separated it into piles by category. I happened to have a nifty 3-section container to separate the categories: pain relief, sore throat & allergy, and cold medicine. It will live in an upper kitchen cabinet.
The remaining items I grouped into “First Aid” and put in a separate container that will live in a kitchen drawer. I guarantee my kids will be in college before we get through all the band-aids we own, so I might prune our band-aid collection in a future low-stakes purge.
After
It’s not gorgeous but it works, I know where things are now, and I won’t accidentally give my toddler 15 year old medicine. Not bad for an hour’s work!
Now You
What are other satisfying low-stakes organizing jobs to consider? Next on my list is kid art supplies…what about you?
Ideas for Quick Organizing Projects
P.S. I’m excited to launch our new logo and branding, courtesy of the talented Gold Design Co. It seemed high time to spruce things up around here.
Just a tip from someone with two Emergency Department physicians in the family: expired medicines generally aren’t harmful. They will, in fact, work long after they are past their expiration dates. They may just be slightly less effective.
So a good way to reduce your environmental impact is to actually use those OTC meds rather than replacing and tossing them.
We even have some of the “good stuff” from long-dead grandparents, which can be really helpful in unexpected situations.
Organizing/cleaning out the bathroom shelves has been on my list for like 2 weeks. I just timed myself doing it - IT TOOK 12 MINUTES.