This is Part 2 of an inner dialogue between me and Plate Spinner, the part of me that can’t seem to stop doing all the time. If you missed Part I of this “conversation,” you can find it here.
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ME: Would you like a cup of coffee?
P.S.: I’d love one! I can’t remember the last time I could take a break and just relax for a few minutes. Nice choice of music by the way.
ME: Thanks! I’ve been thinking a lot about what you said yesterday, and I realize things need to change.
P.S. I’d like to jump up and down for joy, but I can’t. First, I don’t really have the energy with all the spinning I’ve been doing. And second, forgive me, but I’m just a tad cynical about you changing your ways.
ME: I know I don’t have a good track record. But I really do get it. I can prove it. I totally resisted an interesting plate earlier today.
P.S.: Yeah, but that’s nothing compared to the moratorium you took on last year, and that only lasted a few months before you started collecting plates again. Granted, some of them were smaller plates, but they still require lots of attention to keep them spinning.
ME: OK, you’re right. Just a minute while I link the moratorium stuff here. Some of the people listening to our conversation won’t know what we’re talking about.
P.S.: I’m sure they will be as amused by it as I was.
ME: Oh, come on! Seriously, I want to make things better between us. But your attitude is getting in the way.
P.S.: All I know is that we are currently on semester break, and we can’t take a real break. We have so many plates still spinning that we have to fill these days with to-do lists and projects. I mean, look what it took just to get your attention so that we can have a cup of coffee and talk about this stuff.
ME: But if you’re going to argue with every idea I have, how can anything get better. I really want to change.
P.S.: OK, I’ll play along for a moment. How is this time going to be any different from all the other times you said you would change? Are you going to retire a few of these plates?
ME: I think I could make a plan for that.
P.S.: Oh, great! Isn’t THAT encouraging? When you make plans for something, the plan itself becomes another plate to spin. Do you even know how many plates you have in the rotation?
ME: Of course . . . . not. Ok, ok, you make another valid point. But I realized something else this morning. As I was explaining my decision to Avis this morning not to take her up on the quilting thing, I told her that one of my big problems is that I think things will only take a few minutes, and that I can manage that . . . . .
P.S.: You mean that you figure I can manage another one of your shiny plates.
ME: Well, yeah, . . . . when you put it that way. And then of course, it finally dawned on me, that those few minutes multiplied by the number of plates and projects just makes things impossibly tiring!
P.S.: I’d like to believe you’ve seen the light, but you can’t blame me if I’m still a little skeptical. Do you realize that if we were just going to store these plates–never mind spinning them, we would need more cabinets than will fit into this apartment?
ME: OUCH! Don’t you think that’s a slight exaggeration?
P.S.: Sorry, truth hurts!
ME: OK, so a moratorium must be re-established and maintained. That’s obvious.
P.S.: It might be a step in the right direction, but it’s certainly not enough to make a real difference in the here and now.
ME: Well, you don’t want me to just sort and reorganize. You yourself said that would just be another project added to the huge pile we already had–the pile that I just accumulated without really thinking about the consequences.
P.S.: Look at it this way. I’m willing to accept as a starting premise that most of the plates need to be brought to completion. And I will also–for the moment–attempt to believe you won’t add any new ones.
ME: I hear a “but . . .”
P.S.: I demand better working conditions! Have you looked around? It’s a disaster area around here. All of these plates have paperwork and paraphernalia attached to them. It’s a miracle I haven’t broken my neck!
ME: Well, I can’t argue with that. I find myself overwhelmed by all the clutter around here. I sometimes gather up the stuff I need for a project or two and head for the coffee shop just to have space to think and work.
P.S.: But that’s my point. YOU can leave! I can’t! It would take a moving van and a crew of at least four for me to go anywhere and still keep all of this going.
ME: Yes, the stuff has to go. That is clear. I don’t really need it all. Even with all of these crazy plates, there is still stuff here that has nothing to do with the plates that need to be finished. And I have to be honest. If stuff doesn’t go with any of the over-abundance of plates, it doesn’t belong.
P.S.: Right, and don’t forget. You’re planning to leave this place in 18 months. Couldn’t we have some breathing space while we wind down this spinning production?
ME: You’re totally right. Time to tackle this de-cluttering thing, once and for all!
P.S.: I know it’s a major change for you, but we can’t simply have all of this stuff. We can’t continue to DO all of this stuff.
ME: Well, why don’t I make an intention to de-clutter the apartment?
P.S.: I’d be more inclined to believe it if you make an intention card.*
ME: You’re on! Let’s do this!
P.S.: OK, so what do you want?
ME: It seems pretty obvious. I want . . . we want more time and space in this life we share.
P.S.: And why do you want it?
ME: To get you off my back, of course!
P.S.: Very funny! Somehow, I don’t think that will motivate you in the long run. If you’re serious, you need to figure out what the payoff will be when this place is de-cluttered. What will you get?
ME: Well, just thinking about the place being de-cluttered helped me feel relaxed a bit. I don’t feel as stressed or as trapped. If I focus my attention on this intention and persevere in spite of the obstacles, I can enjoy life more. I can enjoy people more. I can be more, instead of simply doing more. I can discover what it is I really want from life, rather than spending all our energy on this plate spinning thing. The idea of not having to spend all of our energy just treading water is very freeing.
P.S.: OK, it seems like you might really want this. Of course, this is a huge project. So we have to be realistic.
ME: Right. I need Intention, Attention, and Perseverance. I’m not crazy enough to say that I’ll do the whole apartment in the next two weeks. I want to work on it a bit every day, maybe even twice a day.
P.S.: Right, but don’t set yourself up. Let’s make an intention that is do-able, that gives us breathing space. If you do more than the minimum, that’s fine, but let’s make sure we find a workable minimum an commit to that.
ME: I know. I just get excited about the possibility of space. But I didn’t get into this mess overnight, it’s not going away overnight or even in several overnights. I’d like to think I can make some strong headway by summer though.
P.S.: OK, let’s start with an hour three times a week.
ME: OK, that seems reasonable. And I will schedule three times in the calendar right now. I will write it in for Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
P.S.: That sounds good, too. What else can you do to keep your attention on the intention?
ME: I’ll ask Dave to either help me, or to at least check in on me. I could find another person to check in with, too. Maybe even find someone else who is trying to de-clutter. We can check in and keep each other on track.
P.S.: And now, how will you reward yourself when you stay on track? And even more important, what will you do when things get in the way of following through? You need a plan for perseverance because you KNOW something will happen to pull you off track at some point.
ME: Oh yeah, I remember when I started the exercise program. If I hadn’t had a plan for perseverance, I wouldn’t have made it through the first two weeks.
PS: Right! and now you’re already in your third month. So what will you do to keep perseverance going for this intention?
ME: I think I would like to have some quilting time on Sunday for a reward. And if I haven’t met the goal of de-cluttering time for the week, I could do some on Sunday.
P.S.: I think this might just work.
ME: I’ll think some more on it, and refine the intention card a bit. And while I’m at it, I’ll write an intention card for restarting the moratorium. I obviously need some attention and perseverance when it comes to that intention as well.
P.S.: Excellent! I feel better already. I’m really glad we had this little chat.
ME: Haha! Me, too. I think that might be another way to stay on track. Checking in with you on occasion.
P.S.: Put on the coffee and send the invite! I’ll be there!
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Container Chronicles 
Plate Spinner is quite droll. I like that in an alter ego. 🙂
Haha! Glad someone does! 😉
Again, another great post! I really believe in the intention, attention, perseverance idea. Decluttering feels great as well 🙂
Thanks, Megan! At this point decluttering is not optional. Plate Spinner and I need some space for living, rather than constantly rearranging piles. Thanks for stopping by again! 🙂
Nice job, Deb. Fun to read. Can totally relate.
Thanks, Randee! The dialogue was really helpful in getting me to the root problem. It is definitely time to make a commitment to do something about the clutter. I think the rest will follow with a lot less hassle.
Great post … made me giggle as well as think ! …. I am a bit of a pile maker also and when I sort ou tand de clutter it feels so much better , although I d put it off a lot and it doesn’t seem to last long ( even with the best intentions. It just seems to be a process I go through …