The Winter Doldrums and Yearning For Spring

    You may want spring to be just around the corner, but we’re not quite there yet.  Where we have been, sometimes more than many of us would like, is in our homes.  For some, it is a warm and welcoming place for our family, friends and ourselves.  For others, it’s the “work in progress” or “getting to it” reminder of the things we need to do to really enjoy the place we call “home”.  In the month of January, (clutter control month) I held weekend seminars on organization at Uniquely Natalie to help folks start the new year right.  They began as seminars and became therapy sessions where people shared issues from hoarding to collecting to being space challenged, but everyone seemed to have problems organizing papers.  What do we keep, how long do we keep it, where to keep it, how to manage it?
    Years ago, I began telling everyone to “open the mail by the garbage pail” (of course, now it’s the recycling bin).  That stops most of the unnecessary mail from getting in – but what about what’s already there?  And – what if something happens to you and your family needs to find important papers?  What if an emergency occurs and you need to leave your home?  Could you put your hands on things you need at a moment’s notice?  One of my guests this past January was Linda Fostek, who wrote a handy little book appropriately called “Shit Happens”.  In it, she provides the reader with tools to create a personal survival plan when life throws you a curve as well as to be ahead of the curve in organizing important personal papers for any emergency.  Linda’s great advice is to set up an ICE file, an “in case of emergency file”, physically in a file cabinet, electronically on your computer, and in a secure vault storage location, making all necessary parties aware of this.  Creating this ICE file will force you to weed out what’s needed and what’s not in your sea of papers.  It will also make life easier for you as well as on those you love if something should happen to you.  It should include banking and credit card information, investment accounts, legal and insurance documents, important advisors contact information, stocks and bonds information, passport numbers, copies of drivers licenses, wills, funeral wishes, necessary computer passwords, and any other pertinent information needed in one secure location.
    What an eye opener!  As responsible adults we should all do this, but how many of us do?  It may sound like a lot of work and for many, it will be.  But it’s a small price to pay for the knowledge that we have taken control of our lives and conquered a big challenge in our homes.  So, on the next day that you wish it was spring and it’s not, start this important project.  Thank you, Linda, for reminding us we’re grown-ups and showing us how to become more responsible.

To get a copy of Linda’s book, visit her website at:
www.thecrisisplanner.com or visit:   www.amazon.com. 

 You can also get a copy at 
Uniquely Natalie Quality Consignment, 
176 Second Street, St. James, NY 11780.