Organizing

Saturday morning started out as perfectly as a morning can. I slept in (until 7:30 am, which is about as much as I can handle), made tea and went back to bed and actually managed to read some poetry, an elusive pleasure lately. Mysteries and novels, yes. I fit those in on the bus and at the gym and while the Tour de France plays in the background and often while I stir something on the stove. Novels are great for multitasking. Poetry requires a bit more of you, more presence, more thought, more quiet.

But this isn't about poetry. Because after I read some poetry I realized that breakfast would be a logical next step and while I was trying to decide what to make (we were lacking milk and bread and many other breakfast things) I got distracted by the glass jars I'd purchased ages ago at the thrift store. Shouldn't they be filled already? So I filled them.

{organizing}

And the cupboard immediately looked so much better, cleared of a few boxes and bags. I had to keep going. At this point D came home from his bike ride and asked if I wanted to get lunch and I realized hours had passed and that I hadn't had breakfast yet.

{cupboards}

Sadly, I don't have a beautiful cupboard full of glass jars (yet) but I labeled all my plastic Ikea bins with a Sharpie. I'm sure it would have been more elegant to print out beautiful little labels for them, but the pen was handier. And if you're worrying that I've now irreversibly committed my containers to their contents, I'll let you in on a little secret - Sharpie is not totally permanent. On glass or plastic, a bit of isopropanol will wipe it right off. Isopropanol is the most common form of rubbing alcohol, so you might have some in your cupboard (but check and make sure - some rubbing alcohol is ethanol, which has no effect on marker). Obviously, if you have something you really love, check to make sure the alcohol will take the marker off before you start scribbling all over it.

In my dream life, everything is stored neatly in these Anchor Hocking Emma jars. I can't tell you how many times I've considered purchasing them, but I can't quite bring myself to do it because I already have something that works. So I just stare at them sometimes.

{anchor hocking emma jars - image from manufacturer}

I've almost talked myself into it. I mean, they're pretty great, right? Square bottoms, glass lids, come in different sizes (10 oz, 20 oz, 32 oz). I just hate buying something new to replace a system that is already functional. I'll report back on whether my willpower continues to hold out.