Tackling the box room

On Monday, I enthusiastically promised to tackle my second bedroom/storage room as part of my New Year's resolutions.

I already kind of regret it.

Encouraged by the promise of a new year and the vision of a sparkling clean Martha-esque home, I delved into the room with vigour on Tuesday, sorting through boxes, purging stacks of unsorted mail and uncovering three partially used rolls of stamps. That should last me through a few Christmases.

I cleared the desk area, removed all non-book items from the bookcase and started to sort desk items, stationary and seasonal items into the appropriate bins and baskets. I returned screw drivers, Band-Aid boxes and a few rogue dishes to their respective homes.

I even went so far as to poke my head into a few of the open, partially-emptied boxes to start to sort and purge their contents. Then, I looked at the clock. Three hours and barely a dent. Sure, about three square feet of the room is now sparkling and organized, but the rest is still occupied by boxes and piles of things that need to be sorted, or which have been sorted but their home resides somewhere under the remaining boxes.

And then I realized my task was quickly snowballing on me.

Returning the Band-Aids to the bathroom meant acknowledging that I could really use a second basket for storing things in there. Opening the bin of spare linens, which are currently in the rotation but generally homeless, made it even more apparent that I need a new dresser for storing such items. Hanging up out of season clothing in the spare closet meant I needed more hangers.

After one day, my relatively precise task — to empty the boxes — became a never-ending laundry list of everything I've failed to accomplish around the house thus far.

This may take longer than I originally thought. But I'll start with those hangers and that dresser.