12/26/13 Final weekend of the year/2014 getting ready

[Ivy]

Hi! I checked the FOCUS thread of 2013, calendar that's locked, I looked it over, and see where I can sync it with my email reminders, the ring-held-together 3 x 5's, and in my day runner, too. The nice thing is, the entire year is there. I was already to print my calendar up on New Year's Day! It's nice I can wait until Monday though. I got out my Ikea green-stained wooden file card holder with two card-holding rectangles side by side. Also, I'd put some stickers on it, to re-decorate the plain green stain, 1 sticker got lost, 1 is curling up, and I've got some more beautiful stickers, which will look nice on it, too. Also, when I looked into this wooden 3 x 5" card holder box, I couldn't find ANY routine cards or anything! All I found were zones I'd made on cards, a book-reading list from a time ago, and it's okay. I have routines on index 4 x 6" cards, which I can transfer. I can get this all done by Monday before I print the FOCUS list up. So this is a good thing, as I get ready for the New Year.

Also, it'll give me time to review how to do the cards, too. I'm thinking about making a QT one, for things I do in the morning to ground me. I'd like to personalize my cards to fit me, my routine I'm used to, rather than my throwing a bunch of new stuff at myself, which will just confuse me. So this gives me5 days to get the 3 x 5's done, get back into the routines, after the holidays, and then I'll be ready the 6th, to get started on organizing the FOCUS things. It's a win-win situation, I believe, for myself, time-wise.

Thanks for your hard work, Harriet, and thank you to Everyone else for your tips and suggestions and great ideas!

[BookSaver]

Ah, I was coming in to update the weeks for 2014 and saw that Harriet beat me to it. Thanks, Harriet! Looks good!

[Ivy]

Booksaver, I only find the 2013 FOCUS calendar with a "tentative" 2014 FOCUS list, so am I looking in the wrong place for the "official" one? I thought Harriet said she'd have the actual one up by Monday. I'm afraid to print up the tentative one NOW, for fear there will be corrections made or additions added. So isn't it better if I wait until later Sunday night or Monday morning?

I'm confused. I don't know if I should be printing the tentative calendar for sure right now or if it's better to wait.

[Harriet]

Ivy, I just wrote that post yesterday, Tuesday.
It's this coming Monday I meant, not the past one. Monday the 6th is the start of the first round, Porch and Entry.

Actually, if BookSaver doesn't see anything wrong with it, then it's probably right. I imagine you could go ahead and use it as is.

Today I'm making up my master declutter/Focus schedule for the first round. I'll make one small to put into the card file. Maybe I could figure out how to post it here, don't know.

[Harriet]

Here it is, adjusted to my house with several substitutions. It's too cold here to work outside this time of year, so I substitute extra time frame for our bedrooms. Upstairs will substitute for Storage this round. In 9-point font, this will just barely fit onto a 3x5. I print on regular paper and tape around the edges onto a 3x5. It says "our house" as opposed to my parents' house, where I'll probably just try to do the most needy things first.


.
.....First Round of 2014 Declutter and Cleaning Schedule, Our House
Week of ...... ...............Declutter ...........................Focus Clean
(December 30 ...................Entry ......... ....... .............décor storage shelves)
January 6 ........................Master Bedroom ................Entry
January 13 ......................Master Bath ......................Master Bedroom
January 20 ......................Office ...............................Master Bath
January 27 ......................Master Closet ....................Office
February 3 ......................Laundry ............................Master Closet
February 10 ....................Upstairs ............................Laundry
February 17 ....................Bedroom ...........................Upstairs
February 24 ....................Kitchen .................... ....... Bedroom
March 3 ............ ............Living Room ........................Kitchen
March 10 ........................Dining Room .......................Living Room
March 17 ........................Porch ...............................Dining Room

[BookSaver]

Ivy ~ The sequence of the weekly FOCUS threads stayed the same from 2013, but the dates needed to be updated so that's what I checked against my year-on-1-page calendar. The only reason to change the names of the rooms before you print would be if you want to do as Harriet is doing, and customize the list according to what you call your rooms.

The list is very flexible, which is nice because lots of times I end up trading rooms according to my energy level or other project deadlines. Or I might skip a room to spend 2 weeks somewhere, and then pick it back up the next round.

Harriet ~ As I was writing the sequence on a 3x5 card for my Box, I noticed that the regular threads for 1st round are 11 weeks, but you have customized it to 12 weeks. Is that offset going to be a problem for you later in the year? -- Oh never mind, I see what you're doing. In Round 1 you are doing the Entry inside, and Round 2 you will do the Porch. Got it!

[Harriet]

BookSaver, the last 11 lines there beginning the 6th are the schedule. I just added notes about this week, now, to remind myself to declutter a little ahead of our start on Entry cleaning next week, and to check that my decor storage shelves are cleaned off.

Just doing enough piddling now to make sure shelves are ready for decorations I remove from entry area.

Actually, I went back in and italicized that line for this week, because it's not really a part of our schedule and your question points that out.

True, by March I'm hoping the outdoor temps will work for getting the porch clean - right now it will be too cold, so I'll be in Entry.

[Ivy]

Hi, Last p.m. I printed the tentative 2014 list, today I cut and glued them onto 3 x 5's, punched them, write a few routine cards, added some old writing job 3 x 5 cards, and have them on the ring together. Also, I had a little notebook with 3 x 5's, for motivation, inspiration and tips to not get into emotional eating, binges, etc.. I joined them with a ring, too, for a basket on my great room end table. I like having my routine/FOCUS cards on the same ring, so I was able to put away my filing box. I never can decide which file box to use, one's black, one's too small, and one's too large. I've got a to do list, too, and a recipe card where I clip the focus phrase of the day (my invention for me) on, to focus on daily. For instance, tomorrow is "Thoughtful Thursday."

[Ivy]

Today, I synced my FOCUS 3 x 5's with my email yearly calendar. It took me over an hour, I got a headache, but washed my face, put in eye gel (too much computer screen time - didn't take a break) and then felt better. Fixed a cup of 2-scoops of DH's hot chocolate w/Folgers, creamer, and Splenda. Sure took the headache/neck ache right away, sipping something uplifting, making me cozy and warm.

I have a few questions about the FOCUS cleaning, some are some ideas (for my home), so I'll come across as "talking out loud", to myself.
1- If I have a DH to clean the porch, I'll "let" him continue to clean the porch- OR I'll surprise him!
2- With closets, since we have more than 1, should I do ALL of them in ONE week? Or just do what I can, then catch up the next round?
3- When it's "Laundry", which is listed: Naturally I'm always doing laundry, but doesn't FOCUS mean doing things like, cleaning out the laundry baskets, dusting the washer/dry off, cleaning the sinks,etc...
4- But then I have one HUGE question! I have a large utility room, where we do laundry. There's one long counter, upper and lower cabinets, and the cabinets have never completely been cleaned out, since our more in 2004. So I need to somehow break up upper cabinet, from lower cabinets, and get that job done on FOCUS = Laundry week. What a job. I believe I'll be baby-stepping that job.
5- Also, if I cannot get a job done completely in the FOCUS week it's assigned to- I can squeeze it in anytime, right? I don't want to be too rigid with myself, taking away the fun or joy of caring for our home, but I do want to be flexible, so I enjoy it, don't complain or tire myself out.
5- I have health issues to work around, too, so will continue to #1, take care of myself or everything falls apart.
6- DH is a very flexible man, he does things when he sees they need done- but only when he gets around to it. So I don't know how "keen" he will be on a FOCUS plan, but I'll keep him abreast to which FOCUS week it is, asking for help.
7- Does the linen cupboard, if it's in the hall leading to a spare room, an office and bathroom, count as storage of linens or as a closet?
8- I have an itty-bitty storage cupboard in the hall, which will take very little time to take care of, but the linen cupboard is huge, across from the tiny storage cupboard, so I can do them in the same week.
9- We have an enormous walk-in pantry with 3 sides of 3 or 4 shelves, plus the floor of it, so I guess I'll split it up between the kitchen focus week and dining room focus week, since it's so large; much too large to be done in 1 day, or I'd be done in.
10- I wanted to say how very, very happy I was to see/read the Maintenance Round, leading up to getting ready for 2015. It looks like it will simplify those months, so I'm very grateful to have read through those dates and duties.

Lastly, WHERE HAVE I BEEN???? I don't know why I didn't pop into the FOCUS thread to get a real "feel" for it before! But better late than never, right? I think you've done a good job in planning this up Harriet and Booksaver, I don't know if you're also responsible for FOCUS, too, but if you are, you deserve credit and a big thanks, right along with Harriet. So THANKS TO YOU BOTH!

P. S. I'm writing the focus dates for each week into my day runner now. I also did some regular calendar reminders for myself on my email calendar for the year, so I'm getting pretty well set for 2014.

[Harriet]

Flexible is the ticket for this deep-cleaning plan. Switch things around to suit yourself. Like my substituting extra bedrooms-time for the "outdoor" here while it's so cold. As far as closets, for me, one round seldom covers all. That's the beauty of having the different rounds through the year. Every space gets the careful attention sometime. But regular chores are continuing, so it's not as if you're leaving any area off completely until its specific week. Focus just reminds us to give an area the really careful attention we might have put off otherwise.

Regarding some areas taking lots of time and others less - I like to note the chores that I'd hoped would get done but didn't, and then get to them first on the next round. However, if the next week in another space were to go so perfectly that I was left with extra Focus time, I might back up and do those waiting chores then. Some years I've just let Focus take as long as it takes each week. Others I've put a limit of time on every week just because I was so busy. Both ways work.

Indiana made the Focus plan and did virtually all the work on it. Now it's just a matter of getting the calendar straight and starting up the thread each Monday.