Yeah, I don't like storing the big trash bags either. It's like I get them halfway filled up and then have to wait to find something to fill the rest. We have to pay per bag here, so I hate to throw them out half full.

Maybe you could wipe down a counter or wipe the fingerprints off the lightswitch? It all adds up.

I just finished reading the Marie Kondo book, the one that's really popular now, about the 'life-changing magic of tidying up.' I would love to know what she thought about organizing homes in the US. She describes some of her clients living in spaces that are 13x10 feet!

I like some of her ideas, but I feel like the NYT review I read gave me as much information as I needed. She is an entertaining writer and it is interesting to see another culture's perspective on housework. The fact that she wants someone to 'do it all at once' just seems too overwhelming to me.

Her suggestion is that you take all of your clothes - all of them, everything in your drawers, closets, coat racks, trunks - and pile them in one spot. You hold each one up and ask yourself 'does this spark joy?' If it doesn't, you toss it.

One thing she says repeatedly in the book is that the practice of tidying can change your life because you hone your decision making skills. By repeatedly asking yourself whether or not some item brings joy, you get in the habit of asking yourself that question about all of your decisions. That seemed to make sense.