just cuz I'm bitter

so once in a while a girl's gotta vent. So, I live in Europe, in a gorgeous city, work with Good Folk, have a particularly Good Folk as a husband, like my cat a lot, verging on crazy cat lady (can happen, yes, even with only one feline, and not actually living alone on tins of tuna)since ccl is a state of mind. And everything's hunky dory. But I'm bitter. Why?

because tonight I'm reading some blogs on organizing, which is so much more fun than actually organizing, as that resembles work.

I drool, I stare at photos of perfectly appointed storage areas, I go to my mental happy place, then...I read the forums. Ah. The forums. Great stuff. Creative ideas for living more harmoniously with fewer things, living more deliberately, and with more purpose. I'm at peace.

Ahhhnnnddd then, it invariably happens: someone suggests that (Extra! Extra! Read all About It) you could maybe clear out some boxes of, I dunno, mildewing books/clothes from 1981/rotting garbage/whatever, from the double garage/1200 sq. ft. basement/4th bedroom/guest room ensuite/linen closet, whaddeva. It worked for her, after all, and now she has all her extra stuff neatly organised in plastic bins and one of the cars can now park in the garage! Hurrah!
Are you people on drugs????? This is helpful in real life in a small space with no cellar no storage no nuthin'---how?

I shake my head. Who are these people who are so chaotic that they fill enormous spaces with junk and then sanctimoniously write useful tips to small-space inhabitants such as "use the space under your bed to store blah blah blah" Telling someone who lives in a tiny place with spouse and cat to think outside the box by using under-bed storage is nonsense. That's a given, people. Grrrrrr....

Now just because I live in a tiny crack shack flat(nice ring to it, no?) doesn't mean that others' experience may not be useful to some, but you get my point. I'm jealous.
I want to live in such space that I get to ponder which of the storage areas I should purge first.
And until then, I want information to be truly useful, not facile crap from some la-la-land-get-thee-to-a-talk-show hoarder who thinks that using vertical space is nouveau.

EOM, EOR
(end of message, end of rant)

Vancouver 2010

As I watch bodies fly into the air and crash on the icy slopes in Whistler during the men's Super G, I contemplate the sheer bravery, discipline and athleticism of these athletes. Of course I get extra excited when I see Canada or Austria do well, but I applaud all of these amazing people who throw themselves into years of bloody hard work to even get to the point of being eligible for the Olympics. As sentimental as it may sound to those of us who are usually a bit cynical, every single athlete who makes the rigorous Olympic qualifications is a champion, and as a member of the same human race I'm proud of them, regardless of country. To be declared a "winner" or "loser" based not on seconds but 1/100 of a second is purely arbitrary. Even the slowest on an Olympic course moves faster down the slopes than I could fall down them. So while I want Canada to be successful--and rightfully proud--of our Games, I am
cheering for every amazing athlete giving his/her all.