Closet Case

I love going to Target. I could spend hours in there just perusing the aisles and searching end-caps for excellent deals. If I have time to waste I often accidentally end up at Target, but not because I enjoy shopping. I really don't like shopping. In fact, shopping generally stresses me out because I like to get the best deals and I don't know that Target is always the place to get the best deals.

I like being at Target because everything is where it should be. If something is out of place then a person wearing a red shirt comes along and puts it back in it's rightful place. It is a beautiful thing.

That does not happen in the Shepherd household all of the any time. I thoroughly believe that we simply have too many items to take care of. A few years ago I endeavored to stop the madness. Stuffed animals are not safe from this purge. Books are not exempt from this liquidation. Streamlining really is a good thing - less mess to put away, less laundry to do, less stress.

There is a problem, though, with my eradication of excess. I do not have a great deal of foresight, and when I purge in the summer I tend to not think of the next 2 seasons to follow. My rule is if I haven't worn it in a while then it must not be necessary, so the item of clothing is forever removed from my closet or dresser. It makes closing dresser drawers so easy. Pants and dresses do not get stuck in the back of the closet forgotten until a round of hide-and-go-seek shuffles it to the floor.

Two years ago my husband ended up wearing shorts through the first half of winter. I was sure that I simply put his long pants away for safe keeping until the cool weather rolled in. Then one night a memory resurfaced. A memory of me gleefully filling a trash bag with clothes I deemed useless. I was pregnant at the time and had a closet full of maternity clothes, so also rid myself of all non-maternity garments. We looked great at the staff Christmas party. Hubby in his cargo shorts and a short-sleeved button down shirt, me in maternity pants with a waist up to my chin and a shirt that had once allowed a watermelon sized stomach to reside.

I did it again this summer. I was putting shoes away and I thought, "I don't wear any of these shoes besides the tennis shoes and 2 pairs of sandals." So away went all shoes suitable for cold weather.

If you see me at the grocery store in my maternity swim suit and rain boots you'll understand.