A Place For Everything?

In many ways, my husband and I personify the cliche that says opposites attract. And no where is that more evident than when it comes to “stuff”. He is not bothered by bits and pieces of everything laying around and likes to keep mementos of events big and small. I, on the other hand, prefer clean, clear surfaces and tend to let go of things perhaps a little too easily. So, when he mentioned that it would be nice to get the garage organized, I was surprised and quite delighted albeit somewhat skeptical. After all, this is a man who still has his high school ID card and I am still apologizing to my adult children for prematurely giving away their Cabbage Patch dolls.

How Bad Can It Be?

We’ve lived in our house for over ten years and with limited storage space in the house, the garage has served as a giant catchall for all things “I don’t know where else to put it.” Add to this the bikes, paddleboards and gym equipment acquired along the way and our single garage was in danger of qualifying for an episode of Hoarders. Getting to the freezer was like playing a game of Tetris and more than once I wondered if I would some day be found collapsed underneath a pile of lawn chairs and floaties.

Serendipity

You would think that my love of clean clear surfaces combined with my husband’s new found interest in organizing would send me running for boxes and garbage bags and starting lists of what to keep, donate and trash, but alas, that did not happen. Until, quite by chance and literally on the side of the road, we met Maria, a tiny little firecracker of a woman who is a professional organizer. Being the woo-woo sister that I am, I took this chance meeting as a sign from the universe that it was time to get going on our garage and so we jumped in with both feet.

After a few days of wondering what I had gotten us into, and resisting the “clean up before the cleaning lady gets here” urge, Maria arrived and took charge. She explained the process – pull everything out, decide what goes and what stays, then figure out how to group and organize what was being kept. This is when I knew that all the time I spent watching organizing shows on TV was going to pay off!

Onward and Upward

Wisely, my husband opted out of the “what goes and what stays” phase and despite being anxious to clear things out, I will admit I was surprised how hard this part of the process was. While feeling relieved to have so much space freed up I also found it unexpectedly emotional, especially when it came to parting with furniture that I inherited from my parents. So much so, that I found myself standing in the driveway in tears watching the truck drive away with one of the pieces. Not sure what the neighbours imagined was going on there.😂

Fortunately, I found the “putting things back together” part of the process easier and very rewarding. When I first saw the shelving unit with all the labelled containers of the same size and shape, and all the mops and brooms lined up and neatly hanging, well, it made my heart sing. (I know, I know I need to get a life…)

It was Maria’s nonjudgmental, positive approach got us through the whole process “upright and smiling,” as my husband likes to say. Although there was a point when she discovered how particular he is about his bikes, so much so, that they had a bit of a tense moment when deciding how best to store them. In the end the bikes were mounted on the garage wall and as of this writing are all still up there. And Maria left us knowing far more than she ever wished about road bikes vs. trail bikes.

Et Voila!

Even though it has been a few months since we finished, I am still amazed every time I walk into the garage at how every inch of space has been utilized. I am also happy to report that we are managing to keep things reasonably well organized. And, at the risk of permanently cementing my woo-woo reputation in the family, I find there is a very peaceful Zen vibe in the garage now that everything has a home.🙏