Cleaning Project: My Desk

Here is a Before picture of my computer desk. This is where I am sitting RIGHT NOW, which seems weird: I'm looking at a photo of my desk---AND, behind the photo, the desk itself.


Top shelf needed dusting, especially those pretty, shiny, unnested nesting boxes. There was also a cardboard box of photos from Henry's birth; perhaps time to at least put those somewhere less prominent, if we're not going to get around to gluing them into a journal until he's in school?

Second shelf down had a huge stack of Postcrossing postcards, plus a bunch of desky tools (the only ones in the house that don't get lost, because no one uses them except me), plus my Hello Kitty Flowerpot of Disarray (freebie one-page calenders I glue into the front covers of journals; the fake stamps charities send out; an empty package of chocolate-covered dried cherries in case I need to remember who makes them; receipts).

And then the desktop itself, which was several big teetering piles of papers and notepads.

I cleared every single item to the floor, then wiped down all the shelves, then rooted through the pile putting things away/back. And here's After:


It still needs some fiddling (the decorative items are just "cleaned and put back anywhere," not Arranged yet), but it's a huge improvement. The Flowerpot of Disarray remains, but I went through it and threw out some stuff (receipts from last Christmas, newspaper clippings it is too late to write a letter to the Editor about, snail mail I have already answered). I found an empty chocolate box to hold the desk supplies. And now on the desktop there is room to put things, without piles tipping and spilling. There is VISIBLE DESKTOP AREA.