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Get Organized Now! BINGO! Organizing Printable!

It's a new, quick, easy, fun way to get organized. Each GON Bingo! card lists 24 easy organizing tasks you or your family can accomplish. Get five in a row horizontally, vertically or diagonally and you get to select a reward from the rewards list. Kids love to play too!

To access and print it, visit:
getorganizednow.com/free-resources.html

Happy organizing and enjoy some GON BINGO! organizing fun!

Maria Gracia

P.S. Please forward this newsletter to friends and family so they, too, can access this resource. Thank you for spreading the love!

A GON Reader Asked:

Hi Maria,

I love organizing. However, it brings distress to my husband. Not sure why, but organization to say a chaotic drawer, causes him stress and lots of small arguments between us. He insists that I move stuff around, but I don't. It's the same stuff, but perhaps now in a neat drawer organizer rather than a heaping pile of jumble.

We've been together 50 years and he claims that I do this to annoy him, even telling others, that I do things to annoy him. (Granted, I probably do annoy him, but with bringing order to a drawer or countertop?)

I've always been organized, so there is typically never anything (eg. trash, old takeout menus, dead pens, etc.) to be tossed say from the aforementioned drawer, which now has an organizer to group like-items. Sometimes compartments are labeled too.

I just have a hard time not seeing how looking into a neat drawer, versus a jumbled drawer, produces such angst and spats. These are common drawers. I also have realized that he only looks right in front of him, be it the drawer, a cupboard or the fridge and claims he can't find whatever. Honestly, he doesn't even have to move his head, just an eye shift. And the items aren't small either, it could a bottle of orange juice! Our grown son finds this amusing; me, not so much. I'm starting to think my husband is developing cognitive issues...yep, I said it, but it was said with love!

Ever hear of this phenomenon? He seems to like everything out on display, in the same spot, or jumbled in a drawer or cupboard. My friends aren't so kind and call him crazy and often ask me to help them organize their homes. Their husbands are thrilled! Help!

Deb in Maryland

Maria Gracia Responded:

Hi Deb,

Thanks for your note. There may be many reasons for your husband's dislike for more orderly storage.

In some cases, one person may not like using another person's methods. He or she may feel that his or her 'system' is good enough, and is not willing to try any other way...even if that way is clearly more effective...'the stubborn syndrome.'

In some cases, one person may claim he or she 'can't see what's right there in plain view,' just to prove a point ('I'm right...you're wrong, etc.), whether that point is valid or not.

In yet other cases, one person may be fully set in his or her ways, so if the spouse purchases an organizing tool and he/she has always been a frugal person, that purchase may be seen as a waste of money.

There are more possibilities, of course. While I can't say whether your husband is developing a cognitive issue or not, I do empathize with you. It's challenging and frustrating for someone who is trying to be organized when another family member (especially a spouse) doesn't agree, and especially if the person in disagreement thwarts the efforts of the person trying to be organized.

As far as some folks liking 'everything out' versus 'everything in,' yes, that's pretty common...and the only way to solve that, when people living in the same household disagree, is to try to find some common ground. An example of this would be keeping home office items on an open shelf...where they're in plain view (which satisfies the 'everything out' personality), but sorted in small baskets to make items easier to find and to give a room a neater, more orderly appearance (which satisfies the 'everything in' personality.

You might also determine, together, what drawers are his and what drawers are yours. You may have to let go of the idea of 'common drawers.' For instance, in my bathroom, my husband has his own drawer for his toothpaste, floss, comb, etc. and I have my own drawer for my toothpaste, floss, hairbrush, etc. Even though we use the same brand of toothpaste and floss, we each have our own supplies...and we can each keep our drawers exactly as we like them.

You two have been married for 50 years. Most folks who live together 'get on each other's nerves' now and then. Patience, communication, understanding, and kindness are always in style. In some cases, professional or medical help may be needed; in other cases, trying to use methods that satisfy both personalities can go a long way.

Hugs!

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P.S. SPRING 2021 SPECIAL! When you claim your very own copy of GOODBYE CLUTTER... before FRIDAY, MARCH 12th...you'll also get $144 in COMPLIMENTARY BONUSES (ALL written by me!)

___ 1. Find today's task on my March Monthly Organizing Checklist! The March 8 TO DO will help you start getting ready for spring. Visit GetOrganizedNow.com to access my March Monthly Organizing Checklist.

___ 2. Declutter old, torn underwear. Go through your underwear drawer and declutter any undergarments with holes, stretched-out elastic, pulls, bras that don't fit, etc.

___ 3. Check out the results of our last poll. GON readers responded to, `Do you ever leave dirty dishes, glasses, mugs, pots, silverware, etc. in the sink?' Here are the results of that poll...along with a bunch of personal responses. Visit GetOrganizedNow.com to access the results and reader comments.

"Even if we disagree about everything, we can still be kind to each other."
(Mathew L Jacobson)

I'd love to hear from you.

I LOVE GON reader mail! Whether it's a comments, suggestions, or just a note to say hello, REPLY to this email with a short note.

And remember...there's no better time to get organized, than to Get Organized Now!

Warmly,

Maria Gracia
Get Organized Now!
getorganizednow.com

(c) Copyright 2021 by Maria Gracia, Get Organized Now!

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