Readying

​I’ve been having a strong urge to get the nest ready for winter. 

So yesterday I began cleaning and organising the kitchen pantry. 

I have been putting this job to the bottom of every list I have. 

I’ve told(fooled) myself that just doing bits and bobs every now and again was fine. 

It wasn’t 

I started from the ground up. 

I had stuff everywhere. I cleaned the floor and started organising everything into groups 

Because I’ve not done a thorough clean and stock take. I had no idea what I did have, how many I had and how old they were 

I had been just shoving things wherever they fit. Telling myself that I’d organise it later. 

Let me just say

I do not need to buy pasta for the rest of the year!

This, lazy Susan, is used inside the pantry with bottles of spices in it. When it’s all clean and organised, it’s easy to spin round and find what you need. 

Again I had been buying spices because I had thought I had run out. 

I hadn’t 

I had just kept piling new bottles of spices in front and around it. Making it hard to spin round 

Not only that. My pantry kinda goes deep vertically into the wall. Not  only is it hard for someone short like me to actually reach in that far, but the twisting motion I needed to use was something I couldn’t do. Not with my back injury 

Again I kinda just threw whatever I had into the back. 

I had four largish bottles of Italian herbs. All four had been opened and used. I decanted them all into just two bottles 

Saving space and logging it into my brain that I do have those herbs. 

Having organised it all the lazy Susan can once again spin freely 

I also grouped the spices into those used for cooking meals. and those used in baking. 

Yes. I did paint those flowers. Many, many years ago.  At least 25 but probably closer to 30 years ago. 

I was taking a folk art class once a week while my children went to Primary school. 

The job took hours. All day really. 

I had to take many breaks. 

But eventually I finished 

All clean, sorted and organised 

Unfortunately that kind of finish me off. 

I had to take extra pain meds,  and today I can hardly walk. 

But it’s done. And I’m very pleased at the results 

It looks like I won’t need to do any large shopping trips for a while now