Every winter it seems I find myself tangled up in a busy schedule that leaves little time for me to relax, at least not if I want to get enough sleep to keep powering through the days ahead.
This winter has been no different, with my first Winter Camp spanning from January 7th to 25th. The days are long, but the work is incredibly fulfilling. Even though I feel happy each night when I finally make it home, I’m fairly exhausted by the end of the week.
But even with my busy schedule, I’ve still managed to make intentional living a priority. Each night after work, my coworker Sam and I go to the gym for at least half an hour. I’ve been using my lunch break to catch up on my reading, and when I wake up in the morning, I make it a priority to read at least one news article. When I walk to work in the morning, I listen to The Daily and I don’t go to bed with dirty dishes in the sink.
Some days, doing these things feels like work. More than work feels like work, actually. But I know if I don’t do it, everything around me will begin to pile up and I’ll be easily consumed by the chaos. What these last few weeks have taught me is that allowing my space to become a mess triggers my stress more than stressful situations actually do. If my house is literally in order, I find it much easier to cope with the daily challenges I am presented with. It feels great to come home at 8:15 p.m. to a sink free of dirty dishes and a bed that’s made.
Sure, when life gets busy I might seem easier to forget our intentions and let life has its way with us. But taking the time to take care of yourself, even in the smallest of ways, can make a huge difference.
This week was the final week of my minimalism challenge, and I am not going to lie, I have been dragging my feet to go through this final stage of decluttering. Mostly because I’ve known since week three that I would not be able to find 220 more items to purge from my apartment, which is now the most organized, clutter-free space I have ever lived in.
With that being said, I forced myself to take inventory today, December 31, and discard any lingering items that I did not need and were taking up space in my life. Some of these things were passed over in the first three weeks, while others were things I had decided to hold onto, only to change my mind this time around.
Week Four’s Items
80 sachets of tea
11 aluminum food trays
10 receipts
5 store membership cards
4 manuals
2 reusable water bottles
2 paper shopping bags
2 cables
1 empty tea jar
1 paint brush
1 magnet
1 candle with a crushed wick
1 pair of pants
1 lighter
Week four’s total: 122 items
Minimalism Challenge Total: 386/475
Although I came up a little bit short at the end of the challenge, I still believe I have done an excellent job decluttering my apartment and minimizing my possessions. Now, everything in my apartment has a place. I don’t spend time searching for things, and I actually use the things I own. While there are still some things that remain, hidden away, I have also taken care to be mindful of the next person that will live in this apartment someday.
Not only was this minimalism challenge fun, it was also eye-opening. I mentioned this in an earlier post, but clutter is clutter. Whether it is in the form of too many pairs of shoes or a bag full of bags shoved under the kitchen sink, it still takes up space in our lives. In fact, since undergoing this challenge, I’ve been able to store things under my sink, because it’s no longer overrun by things I don’t use or need. I don’t think I’ll be able to do this challenge again any time soon, especially with my New Year’s Resolution to undergo a year without shopping, but I know that I should check in every month or so to make sure I throw away all the receipts that I have shoved into my wallet.
And just like that, four months has gone by. I can still remember sitting in the exact spot I am now writing my three month reflection post, amazed that three months had gone by so quickly. I’ve heard people say that the passage of time accelerates as you get older, and I am starting to believe that this statement is true.
Hong Kong
December was an eventful month, full of excitement, friendship, and travel. For those of you who regularly read my blog, you know that I went to Hong Kong this month, visiting Disneyland, Victoria Peak, and various other attractions around Tsim Sha Tsui where I stayed. This trip was the first time I left Korea since arriving at the end of August.
Victoria Peak
Tsim Sha Tsui
Hong Kong Disneyland
Traveling to Hong Kong helped me to become even more confident as a solo female traveler. Even though I had to sleep in an airport, and even though I almost missed the last bus to Jinju after my flight landed, everything worked out perfectly. It took me a few days to recover from the two hours of sleep I got in the airport and then the late night I had after returning from Hong Kong, but the trip was revitalizing.
New Habits
I also took on a lot of challenges this month, the biggest one being my one month minimalism challenge, where I decluttered hundreds of objects from my apartment. Now, I feel more energized and less overwhelmed. Everything I own has a place and a purpose. Plus, having a nice, organized, and minimized apartment is a great way to kick off the new year.
Along with cleaning house, I also took on some new habits in December. I started doing yoga again, beginning before I left for Hong Kong and immediately picking back up when I returned home. It’s been a great way for me to end my day, or kick of my Saturday mornings. Although its only been a few weeks, I can feel my balance improving and my confidence improving. So shout out to Adrienne over at Yoga with Adrienne for being an awesome resource for at home yoga.
I’ve also abandoned my horrible habit of leaving unwashed dishes in the sink for days. It takes a lot less time to just was a dish after using it than it takes to wash the 12 I let pile up in the sink over time. By always washing my dishes when I make them, I’ve had more time to read, journal, and write. Not only that, but my pots and pans are always clean when I go to cook something, which is definitely a plus.
New Experiences
Finally, December brought about some new experiences right here in Jinju. The first experience was spending Christmas away from home for the first time ever. While Thanksgiving kicked off the holidays away from home, Christmas has definitely always been more of a gathering holiday for me than Thanksgiving. I woke up early and started my day by FaceTiming with my parents in Virginia, my sister in Pennsylvania, my brother in Oklahoma, and my Nana, who was hosting Christmas Eve dinner, in Pennsylvania. I spent the rest of the day with the friends I have made here, eating, drinking, and being merry.
Christmas Day celebrations
Another new experience I had this month was getting acupuncture for my back pain. Although I’m still unnerved from the whole experience, at least I can say it is something I have tried in my life.
December has been another good month, one that went by far too quickly. I will spend the last weekend of December in Ulsan with my friend, visiting the city for its Light Festival. And then, before I can even wrap my head around it, 2019 will be here, and a new year will start all over again.
As to be expected, week three of my minimalism challenge was the hardest week yet. It’s also the week I broke open my closet and did an assessment of what I brought with me from the States, and what I have actually worn since being here. I knew before even opening the closet that there were things in there that I’ve put on, only to take off immediately in favor of something I wear more often with more confidence.
The past weekend was a great chance for me to clean out, as my neighbor and co-worker had a clothing swap party. She was kind enough to let me join in on the fun and her guests could come over to my apartment and take the clothing and jewelry I was ready to part with. Everything that remained at the end went to the second hand shop downtown.
But clothing and jewelry wasn’t the only thing that went this time around, although that did make up a majority of the week’s clean-out. I also continued to go through my kitchen, and went into my laundry room to do a quick assessment.
Below is a list of the 133 items I cleaned out in the third week of my minimalism challenge:
38 wooden skewers
25 magnets
21 articles of clothing
19 pieces of jewelry
9 nose rings
3 vacation souvenirs
2 pairs of shoes
2 hair accessories
2 small kitchen things
2 bike accessories
2 power adapters
1 lone earring with no match
1 broken pair of headphones
1 small drawer unit that fell apart in my hands when I tried to move it
1 sleeping bag
1 small travel makeup bag
1 broken Christmas ornament
1 Tupperware lid I missed the first week
1 empty container of fabric softener that has been empty since September
Looking around my apartment, I can see the difference the last three weeks of cleaning and decluttering has made. My space is more comfortable, cleaner, and brighter. I don’t have to shove aside things I don’t use in order to find the things I do. While I’m not sure how much further I’ll be able to go, I’m glad I made it this far.
If you’re interested in doing my minimalism challenge, or interested in the original challenge, which involves working with a partner and making a bet as to who will make it the the furthest in decluttering, comment below! Happy cleaning!
I really thought week two of the minimalism challenge would be difficult. I thought I would struggle to find 84 things to purge from my small studio apartment that I have been living in for only three months, but as it turns out, this week took even less time to complete than the first week. Perhaps that is because I already knew what areas I would tackle this week. But I didn’t really realize that the few areas I would clear out would amass to 84 items.
Here is what I discarded in week two of my minimalism challenge:
Outdated maps and old books
Random classroom supplies
A lone empty soap box
An accumulation of bags
Receipts
23 shopping bags- I feel guilty about this one. As hard as I try to always have my own bag with me, sometimes I just forget. Or the person already puts my items in a bag, but I cannot tell them I don’t want the bag because, well, I don’t speak Korean.
18 free sample products- every time you buy something from a beauty or skincare store in Korea, they give you a fistful of free samples. I finally decided to use them up and get them out of my space.
13 receipts
9 assorted books and maps- many of these were worn and outdated.
8 small toys and pins
2 tape measures
2 used envelopes
2 shoe boxes
2 dead pens
2 whiteboard markers
1 empty soap box
1 glue stick
1 instruction sheet for a power adapter
1 button
1 empty shampoo bottle
Once again, many of the items I cleared out were left behind by the previous teacher who lived in my apartment. Although I’m not sure what he did with two tape measures, I decided that I don’t even have the need for one, and that they must go. This week’s goal was 84 items. I managed to clean out 86, exceeding my goal by 2!
The most amazing thing about reaching 86 items is the fact that I still have not even opened my closet or any of my drawers. My laundry room remains untouched. Next week, my goal will be to rid my apartment of 133 items. I feel that the third week will be where the real challenge begins. But then again, I thought the same thing about this week, and I was able to find 86 items with ease.
One thing that is important to remember when it comes to decluttering and minimizing doesn’t always mean getting rid of clothes and shoes. Sometimes it really is throwing out empty containers, old receipts, and other useless items that are taking up space in our homes. Happy minimizing!
Another day, another challenge. The latest in my end-of-the-year undertakings is Project 333. Project 333 challenges you to dress with 33 articles of clothing and accessories for three months, packing the rest away and out of sight. In this time frame, you also cannot buy any new clothing or accessories, so what you have is what you have.
That said, there are exceptions to 333. For instance, undergarments, socks, sentimental jewelry that you always wear, and in-home lounge and sleepwear are not included in the count. But things like belts, bags, and shoes are.
Last night, I went through my closet, pulling out everything I wanted to wear for the next three months, focusing on sweaters and warm clothing and leaving the dresses for the far-off days of spring. While I was choosing, I was not counting my selections. That would come at the end. I just chose, one item at a time, and laid them out on my bed. When I counted everything, my selections came to 34. Not bad, considering I was just going on feeling. But one item had to go. Looking over my pile, it was easy to make my selection and I decided to purge the baseball baseball hat sitting on top of the pile.. After all, I had only kept it out to wear when I travel to Hong Kong next week. Otherwise, Korea is far too cold now to be wearing a baseball hat outside.
My final selections, not including my winter coat, hat, and gloves
I looked over my final selections. Sweaters, two button-up shirts, a cardigan, two dresses, five pairs of pants, a pair of leggings, two bags, a winter coat, hats, gloves, and two scarves. Not bad. Definitely a workable wardrobe. No crazy patterns that would be hard to match. Just simple colors: muted pinks and reds, a smattering of earth tones, and black and grey. What more could I possibly need in the winter?
So I went to work, folding and packing the rest of my clothing into two small cardboard boxes. They were the largest ones I could find outside of E-mart, but still small. When the boxes were packed, I tucked them out of sight along with the shoes that did not make the cut. Packing my things away gets easier every time I do it. Making decisions about what to keep and what to get rid of gets easier too, less emotional and more rational, the more I do it.
By constantly assessing my belongings and asking myself if they are adding value to my life or serving a deliberate purpose, I’ve become more comfortable with the truth that things hold no intrinsic value. Rather, possessions can add value to our lives, and that value changes over time. Something that adds value to our lives when we are thirteen may no longer add value at twenty-three. So why do we so desperately cling to things? I am still trying to find the answer, but I do not think the answer can be neatly tied up with a bow. Rather, there are a lot of factors, different for everyone, that play into our desire to accumulate things and never let them go.
Christine in Korea 