on safari and spring cleaning

images via anthropologie

i'm in the midst of a big spring cleaning campaign right now.  i make it a habit to keep a bag by the front door as a reminder to donate any housewares or clothing i'm no longer using or loving.  this system works for me because, though i can be quite sentimental, i find it much easier to part with things when i believe they are going to be used and enjoyed by someone else.  among other things, i recently decided i need to do something about my excess of books, too.  and oh, is this one is tough for me.  happily, i discovered this charity, which has really motivated me to let go.  

at the rate i'm going, i expect that the uncluttered space i envision can be achieved by, oh, the year 2014.  meanwhile, i am going to toss or donate one old item for every new item i bring home.  it is not lost on me that one way to accelerate my mission is to limit the influx of stuff into my life.  translation: shop less.  so it is with some restraint and only a tinge of regret that i will not be buying any of these safari-themed goodies from anthropologie.  (let's face it, i don't need a cheetah hand puppet.) they are too sweet not to share, though.  after all, tidiness needn't be torture.