Month: January 2018

Kitchen Minimalism

/ rachelgoes262 / Leave a comment

2018 is the year that I aim to minimize my kitchen. First, I am making the transition from plastic to glass. Second, I am trying to eat up the food I have in my house so that I don’t have a bunch hoarded. Third, I am focusing on nutrition and health both for running and for life.

The first thing I did this month was to replace plastic with glass. I now have 5 glass Pyrex dishes to use for work lunches. I figure since I have made the change from 70-hour workweeks to 40-hour workweeks, that I actually have time to cook at least one meal a day at home now, so I no longer need to stuff the freezer with individually portioned meals.

There are 37 sets of plastic wear in a box s as a result of my switch. 37 sets. This includes the plastic dish plus the lid as a set. I kept two sets of plastic wear for use when traveling, as it is typically easier to travel with plastic than glass. There is now significantly more space in my cupboards.

Not only is there physically more cupboard space, there are also fewer dishes to wash. Out of all household chores, I despise washing dishes. While I am sure it is some sort of illusion, it feels like I am using fewer dishes as well. Instead of grabbing a plastic dish for whatever, I am now using my glass dishware and being more mindful. I have actually been eating off my plates instead of just throwing something in a plastic bowl and microwaving it.

The kitchen cupboards are full of dishware. I have a separate stand-alone “cupboard” for food. I have more cupboard space where I live now than any other place I have lived. If I can declutter the cupboards to the point where I could fit some food in them too, that would be ideal. If I were to ever move someplace, I am more than 90% certain I would have less cupboard space than I have now. Decluttering cupboards makes sense as a long-term goal.

Cupboards are almost like the Narnia of kitchen clutter. As long as everything fits, people don’t tend to pay much attention to what is in the cupboards, especially those that are above the stove or refrigerator. Not only am I trying to clean out my cupboards, but also I am trying to eat healthier by switching from plastic to glass.

Second, I am trying to eat up the food that is in my house so that I can meal plan better. This is most definitely a work in progress. I did go to the grocery store recently. Mostly, I need things to go with what I already have in this effort to eat up the food. I’m sure everyone has a shelf in their pantry or food cupboard where you find a random can of fruit or soup way in the back. Eat it or donate it.

Third, I am focusing on nutrition. I have been trying to be sure to eat more fruits and vegetables this year. This will actually necessitate more trips to the grocery store. I kind of got away from fresh food in the year I was recovering from my stroke, as it was easier to make other things. Beanie weenies, anyone?

There are still moments when I have symptoms and difficulties from my stroke. While I know that nutrition was not the cause (that’s what they say), I definitely need good nutrition to run my marathon this year. I’m hoping that by minimizing my kitchen I can be in more control of food and meals.

What are some other tips for kitchen minimalism?

  • Remove duplicates. I am not one of these people that can survive with just one of everything in the kitchen. I like (and have) to cook. Be smart about this one. Do you need two stovetop saucepans? Yes, when making both potatoes and green beans for Thanksgiving. Do you need five saucepans? Not when there are only 4 burners on the stove. Sometimes you need duplicates, but most times you don’t.
  • Remove items not in use. Again, be smart about this. The turkey baster may not be in use now, but it will be come November. If you have a bunch of cake decorating equipment and haven’t had time to bake in years, do you need to hold onto that, or would someone else enjoy using it?
  • How much dishware do you need? I am a one-person household and downsized from service for 8 down to service for 4. If you are a family of 3 or 4, I understand having service for 8 for when there is company. How much do you entertain? It all depends on lifestyle.
  • The silverware drawer. In most kitchens, this is one of the most cluttered drawers beside the junk drawer. Be sure to apply the above rules to silverware and utensils. When I went through my utensils, I discovered I have 11 spatulas. Do I need 11 spatulas? Nope. Maybe you do. Again, it all depends on lifestyle. You don’t want to purge the spatulas and then find yourself without one. Be realistic.
  • Box it up. The kitchen is the one area where I highly recommend boxing items for a period of time before donating just to be sure that you do not need any of those items. If you have 11 spatulas and box 7 of them, can you survive with 4? Try it and find out. I bet you can survive with 4.

Have any more tips for kitchen minimalism?

Peace, Love & 2018

/ rachelgoes262 / Leave a comment

Peace

Sometimes you need a change of scenery. Sometimes you just need to change your point of view. I recently changed clubs for my gym membership. It was a great choice. In this instance, I definitely needed a change of scenery.

Mostly, the new club is easier to drive to, has more parking available, and better hours to accommodate my bizarre schedule. I typically rename the treadmill “the freak mill” because I hate being on it and the people at the gym are a little crazy. However, this year, I am just happy to be running. I’ve also changed my point of view. I am so thankful to be running again after my lost season due to stroke.

My 2018 running season is planned. I start training for my marathon the first week of June. That means that the first six months of 2018 are all about building base and preparing to implement my new training program. Running brings a lot of peace to my life, and I am definitely in a good place right now with my running schedule.

Love

Introducing … Simon.  (Photo above.) Simon has been apart of our lives for about two months now. I know I said I would not adopt again and that Jude was going to be an only child. Except Jude was quite vocal about being alone (and he is typically the shyest cat EVER). I was apprehensive about adopting again. I was not sure if I was ready. I actually visited and played with Simon for about three weeks in the shelter before adopting him.

I’m glad we did. Simon is 1 ½ and has a lot of energy. He is bringing Jude out of his shell and keeping me on my toes. He behaves like a little demon, but he is so darn cute that it’s hard to be mad when he’s acting his age.

Simon has brought the love and a sense of normalcy back to our household. Looking back, I can see that not only was I super depressed (and still sad) about Kitty dying, but I was depressed before Kitty died. I took care of him and did his cancer medication for over a year. Our entire household felt like death for about a year and a half.

Simon has brought the love and sun back for Jude and me.

2018

While minimizing my life and living simply is an ongoing journey, my major goal for 2018 is my kitchen. With kitchen changes, come food and nutrition changes, so this will hopefully be a positive for both my running and management of my food allergies.

I now have five glass Pyrex bowls for work lunches. My goal is to get rid of all the plastic in the kitchen and use glass only.

All the plastic is going into a box for a year. Typically, I put donation items in a box and get rid of the box as soon as it’s full. Most people will suggest putting things in a box and saving the box for three months. If after three months you have not opened the box and don’t need anything in it, then get rid of the stuff. With the plastic items, I am boxing them for a year.

The reason why I am boxing kitchen plastic for a year is that even though I am confident that I can go glass only in the kitchen, plastic is useful when I am traveling. It is lighter weight and won’t break. So I am boxing the plastic for a year and only taking out what I absolutely need for travel this year, which will include my usual camping trip and marathon trip. This way, when I completely get rid of kitchen plastic next year, I will only keep enough plastic pieces absolutely necessary for travel. I figure this is better than trying to guess or choosing an arbitrary number, like keep 5 plastic containers.

I am also going to be menu planning this year to be sure that I am managing my food allergies well, getting all my nutrients, and using up food. I have a lot of food in my house. Part of it is the multiple food allergies – I stockpile because it is challenging to find things I can eat.

This year, I have made a 5-day emergency food kit. The recommendation is 3 days, but I am going for a 5-day due to the food allergies and the fact that during the blizzard of 2017, I was literally snowed in my house for four days. The snowplow was stuck at the end of my road, so we could not go anywhere if we wanted.  This way, even if I eat all the food in the house (unlikely), I have a 5-day supply emergency supply.

Now that I have the 5-day emergency kit, my goal is to eat the food in the house so that there is not so much of it and so that I can do a better job of food planning instead of just having a bunch of random things everywhere. For example, in addition to the food cupboard, I also have two storage racks of food. My goal is to just have the food in the cupboard. As long as we are not snowed in, I can get to the store at least once a week, so there is no reason for all this food. Time to focus on nutrition and planning.

Peace, love, and running for 2018. Happy New Year!