Old Towels? Donate to Your Local Humane Society.

One question I often hear from clients after reducing what is stored in their linen closets is where to donate extra and unneeded towels. This subject came up during one of my frequent chats with my Edmond, Oklahoma sister as we often toss around ideas about the organizing process. 

In front: Costello and Dewey to the right. Abbott behind Dewey and Zeeba behind Abbot.

In front: Costello and Dewey to the right. Abbott behind Dewey and Zeeba behind Abbot.

After my sister and brother-in-law moved from Plano, TX to Edmond, OK, they purchased new towels for their home. This resulted in an excess of older towels, and a little story about their four dogs.

Their dogs Dewey and Zeeba were adopted from a Plano animal shelter, and brothers Abbott and Costello, affectionately known as Bott and Cossie, were dumped at a dump.

After they were rescued, a lady at a local farm store north of Plano offered them for adoption and my sister wanted to give them a home. Thus, four big dogs became a part of their family. Although towels were needed to wipe 16 muddy paws, before the dogs could come inside after roaming an acre of land, and to wipe up indoor mishaps, they still had more towels than they wanted to store. While tending four large dogs, my sister called animal care facilities to find out if they could use towels. This dog/towel story gave me the idea to write a blog post about donating towels to places other than the usual human donation sites.

Consider donating your excess and still serviceable towels to your local humane society, veterinarian, or animal shelter to help in the care of our furry animal friends throughout their stay.

I recommend calling first to find out what their towel needs are and to find out where to drop them off. There are many places in Vancouver and surrounding areas. Here are a few to try:

Gifts: Two You Can Give Yourself

I originally wrote the post below on May 18, 2013 and in reviewing all my previous blog posts, I decided to update this one because it is still relevant. What is different? Most recent and what continues today is hazardous air quality due to a multitude of falling fire ash that permeates the air. Before that, I walked most summer days. Prior to the fire fallout, COVID-19 stopped my attendance at Patti’s Vinyasa Flow yoga class because the gym closed. I enjoyed her class for many years. I still need exercise for my mental and physical well being and found a Vinyasa Flow yoga class similar to Patti’s on Amazon Prime Video called Yummy Yoga Flow, which is my one exercise pleasure at the moment. My May 18, 2013 post follows:

Exercise is a gift you can give yourself! It is a journey for your body, mind, and eventually...your soul, said Yoga Instructor Patti during Sunday's Yoga class. I thought about her statement and decided it applies to learning a new exercise and getting organized too. Each starts with a thought about the act, and then requires action, practice, and maintenance; benefits follow.

One example: I happened to watch Dancing with the Stars and sometime after that, I noticed Zumba listed on my gym's group-exercise schedule. I thought Zumba would be a fun way to get in shape...several weeks later I made it to my first Zumba class where I claimed the corner of the back row where no one could catch my "fumbles." Five minutes into the class...I was hooked! Each class gets easier because patterns repeat and our instructor's speed is just right for me, plus my fitness level continues to increase. You will now find me front and center having fun!

You might watch a TV Show or magazine article about organizing and decide you want to improve some space in your home. You think about it for awhile before you decide to call someone to help you get started (professional organizer/coach). While you may not find bringing order to your spaces fun like Zumba is for me, your skill level will get better with practice; it gets easier to make decisions about and let go of unneeded and unused items; and performing routine maintenance will help preserve order in your home.

Scheduled upkeep of spaces and regular exercise both bring improved balance, mental clarity, increased confidence, and energy into your life.

How Reading Inspiring Words Help Us Navigate Our Daily Live

My daughter-in-law Amy and I purchased coffee from a Honolulu coffee shop during our vacation there a couple of years ago. She noticed the quotes on the back of the sugar packets, so we stood there and read them while waiting on my coffee. Three of my favorite sugar packet quotes are:

“Strength is not the absence of weakness but how we wrestle with our weaknesses.”

“Success is when we turn our stumbling blocks into building blocks.”

“Time is an orchard; every moment is ripe with opportunity.”

These inspiring thoughts were written by poet-philosopher Noah benShea for rough patches and opportunities most all of us surely experience on our life journey, throughout our country, especially now while living through COVID19, political and human unrest, wild fires, flooding, and hurricanes, etc. Read more uplifting and motivating words from Noah benShea’s Ten Truths to Get You Through Tough Times.

Adult Children’s School Memorabilia? How to Help it Leave Your Home

Some life events occur which prompts you to downsize your possessions in order to live more simply. You decide to start with your adult son’s childhood-through-college items since he moved out several years ago. Most of the items you saved have sentimental value to you. Do the objects have the same importance to your son?

1. I first gathered up all of his possessions...left behind when he moved out...from the attic, closets, and shelves.

2. When I sorted his collectibles, five categories emerged: stuffed animals and baby quilts fashioned by family members; special toys and children’s books; other books; school-related papers such as certificates of achievement and report cards, etc.; and photos and his baby book.

3. Next, I purchased five Sterilite containers for those five categories and placed the items in each container by category.

4. The filled containers stacked neatly into one corner of a spare closet until I delivered them to my son after he and his small family moved into a town home that was roomier than their previous apartment.

5. My minimalist son looked through each container and quickly decided what to keep for his young son and himself; the rest became a donation.

Some children seem to have a much easier time letting go of mementos we hold onto for them for years and years, for sentimental or other reasons, while other children have a greater emotional attachment and keep most all of their belongings acquired from babyhood to the present.