Although I cannot actually perform the dance well enough to link you to a personal YouTube video demonstration, I encourage you to go be entertained by those who can. I saw some pretty cool videos on there and it looks like a lot fun. You move your feet as you scoot to the left, and then to the right, and then criss-cross, and then another little funky move... you get the idea. There doesn't seem to be any real script to how you put it all together, you simply move to the music.
It's very similar to when I start working on just one room of my house. I shuffle some stuff to this room, and then to that room... and then I have to criss-cross the furniture to fit the new plan. I can look very much like these folks dancing, moving in circles but not going anywhere. One move they do looks like a hip version of jumping jacks, and I certainly feel like I have been doing a few of those when I finish cleaning. = p I certainly move to the beat of my own drum!
Seriously though, I have figured out that one of the reasons my organization projects go "off course" is due to the need to constantly adjust for space. It is hard to focus on just one room at a time, when in order to finish the first room you have to find space in another room to place the "extra" objects from the first. So I shuffle, I work on one room until I am forced to work on another one or two. By that time I have recollected a pile of stuff to be organized/put away in the first room. The downside to this is that I never feel as though I have actually finished a project. Again, it is very much like doing the dance, just going in circles with all my little fancy footsteps. I guess all I can do is hope I look as cool as they do while I am cleaning! = )
We have an adequate size home, but I realized the other day that every single one of the rooms in it are multi-purpose. (Which I know is a no-no according to some organization gurus!) The master bedroom is also the office, sewing room, and partially a new baby room. The master closet is our family clothes storage (upcoming sizes for kids clothes, winter clothing, etc...), as well as our homeschooling supply and video storage. The playroom doubles as a baby changing, "up all night" staging area with changing table and rocker. The two youngest will share a room with the closet that "stores all things", and our bookshelves (which my husband likes to tease is our own family library). The older girls have the most focused room which is simply their sleeping room and their dress-up play area. Our living room has recently had a corner converted into a "schoolroom." The dining room and kitchen are one in the same. And the utility room is also our clothes closet/dresser room (this is my attempt to simplify the laundry process- wash, fold, and put away all in one spot). The utility room also has a couple shelves for games and craft supplies. Some days I think it would be great to have the space available to multi-purpose less, but then I think about the additional housework that would require! No thanks!!! = ) Most days I can't keep up with the square footage I do have!
So instead I am trying to take the advice of Kathi Lipp, (from the book that started this project- The Get Yourself Organized Project: 21 Steps to Less Mess and Stress) and make zones in each room that are focused on just one thing, AND then make them as functional as possible. Yes, I want a beautiful aesthetically appealing bedroom, but I also want it to serve our family fully. So my "office" is now relegated to one corner of the room with an added cubby unit to store supplies and other essentials. The sewing and baby stuff each have their own "zone" as well. I have done the same with each of the other rooms. Grouping like items together in one space has required a little bit of "shuffling," but it has also clarified what purpose(s) the room is serving. This alone has really helped me to know when I have stuff that isn't serving any purpose, and needs to be passed on. So I guess I really am making progress, even if it just looks like fancy circles at the moment.
I know that I'm not alone in using every last inch of space to it's fullest. What are some ways/ideas you have found to help create order and peace out of your multi-purposed space? I have really enjoyed seeing ideas posted online of creative "make-overs" that have turned wasted space into something functional. What do you think of the zone idea? Do you think it helps decrease the chaos, or do you think it limits the ability to work with the space you have?
Sorry for the lengthy post today. I really hope my post does not resemble the shuffle as well. Hopefully it is more like a line dance that has some direction and order to it! Now that sounds like fun, I haven't lined danced in years. Maybe it's time to push the furniture to the side and turn on the music! I hope you all have a chance to at least do the funky chicken in the kitchen when nobody's watching! = ) Whatever your "project" is this week, just keep dancing through it! Don't forget that you look the best when you are grooving to the beat of the music, so pay attention to your rhythm of life!!!
Ginger
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