I only have a small room to deal with, but it seems as though the “stuff” seems to build up, and build up. My last public battles helped during the time, but I find that I have difficulty sticking with a plan. I devote a weekend, and things seem to be okay, but I then fall back into the traps of papers, books, junk mail just thrown around, in hopes that I will one day “look at it again”.

For inspiration, I usually visit Unclutterer’s Workspace of the Week to get at my clutter, not only to be neat, but dust-ball free. I also look to A&E’s Television show Hoarders sometimes to get myself moving. These people do not describe the general population, but have a sickness of hoarding and being unable to detach themselves from any of the objects they own, including garbage. It’s eye-opening, sad, yet strangely motivating at the same time.

So join me in my goal to a start of a clean free, dust free, clutter free area!

For part 1, click here

“I’d rather be shopping at Nortstrom”. I spotted that bumper sticker on my way home one day.”That is so sad” I thought. “I can’t believe people would reduce themselves to that”. I then quickly started my MP3 player, grabbed my PDA phone, drove on and spent antoher gallon of gas promising myself to not let that happen to me…

An inch passed my self-righteousness, I realized that I was really not all that different. I have owned 3 PDA’s in the last five years, four computers in the last 10 years and quite some more electronics gadgets. In college, I literally spent every dollar I made on electronics . The news was out : I was a consumer, and a pretty darn good one at that.

Life, Liberty and The pursuit of happy moments

I can track my lust for PDAs to about 10 years ago. One of my first professional assignment was a three months stint in Paris. “First time away from home, better get organized” I thought. So I found a cool Cassiopeia E-10 to hold all my life in before taking the plunge. It even had a voice recorder! I had an amazing time there. Every night, I would leave work at 6PM and just start walking down the streets of the city. About 15 miles a day, every day for three months. I spent countless hours making up melodies and recording them. And then walking and walking and more walking. This was exhilarating and one of the most satisfying introspective experience of my life.

And that is what most my own frivolous stuff purchases are about: the thrill of the moment or the association of objects with pleasant memories. It is tough sometimes to not confuse this kind of thrill with real happiness. I know that things don’t bring happiness, that only actions and relationships do. But I still fall for it (altough way less than I used to). Sometimes, after a coveted purchase, I even feel an exaltation that usually lasts for a week or so. I love the stuff fast and then fall out of love in a whim. I can even get pretty defensive with it (“Pleeaaaase don’t break my PDA…”).

No wonder advertisers focus so much on images of happiness to push their products. They hope that we associate their product to pleasant feelings. What they fail to mention, though is that stuff-induced exaltation always goes away. Stuff does not bring real happiness. I understand that this is common sense but I need to write it again. Stuff does not bring real happiness – but it can be fun sometimes -…

It is plain to see that I am not always successful at discerning what brings long term happiness. However, I always try to remember that it is not the things that make a moment happy, it is the people – yes, you there-.

Your very delayedlama.