tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post2037888403258378677..comments2023-08-10T06:57:45.911-04:00Comments on Questioning my Intelligence: Craving White Space in a Carnival WorldSusan Raihalahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03018860599601419989noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-30946190179974394742011-02-15T09:53:18.160-05:002011-02-15T09:53:18.160-05:00Well said!Well said!Super Jenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00961314677178559261noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-36817378267177366622011-02-15T06:55:49.750-05:002011-02-15T06:55:49.750-05:00In the interest of honoring all "White Space&...In the interest of honoring all "White Space" everywhere, including here in the comment post, I will simply say,<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> Susan, you're my hero!Kathryn / WorkGetsInTheWaynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-30699044874473445302011-02-15T00:15:15.044-05:002011-02-15T00:15:15.044-05:00love your post, Susan!
the first time I've he...love your post, Susan!<br /><br />the first time I've heard about white (empty) spaces was when I read 'Clear your clutter with Feng Shui' by Karen Kingston many years ago.<br /><br />This book is my survival kid - every time when I need to get rid off things and don't know how to start I reread this wonderful book again. I need just a few pages to get in a thrown-away modus.<br /><br />I am just on that point to need more white spaces around me and can't hardly wait to get started.<br /><br />Enjoy your day,<br /><br />SandraSandra (Sunny)https://www.blogger.com/profile/06209743820049213535noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-26667897248716105232010-10-27T11:03:20.268-04:002010-10-27T11:03:20.268-04:00I LOVED reading this! So glad I found it! At 50 ...I LOVED reading this! So glad I found it! At 50 something, I have found the need to purge so one by one I am going through sections of my house and donating things I just don't really need or want anymore. The recipients of my "treasures" are so grateful for the goodies and i am grateful to get rid of the clutter and excess. I guess subconsciously i was creating white space!!!Sue Lelli https://www.blogger.com/profile/12508530368076812506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-81028602664627258422010-10-20T16:44:49.834-04:002010-10-20T16:44:49.834-04:00Francie,
You may wish to consider donating craft ...Francie,<br /><br />You may wish to consider donating craft supplies to your local Boys/Girls Club of America. I have done that in the past. I also have sent rubber stamps to a friend in Texas who runs the art program at a cancer camp for kids ages 6-16 years old. If you'd like her address or more info, I can provide that. You can e-mail me via my Web site.V-Grrrlhttp://www.v-grrrl.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-30296586685983542902010-10-20T08:34:40.412-04:002010-10-20T08:34:40.412-04:00I need white space and I make sure I have it in my...I need white space and I make sure I have it in my life. It's easier for me because I am single and have no children, so my time is my own and I control how much clutter surrounds me. I methodically cleaned every closet in my apartment this summer, purging and organizing what was left. For days after cleaning, I'd open a clutter-free closet and just get a thrill of happiness.<br /><br />I need alone time. I love spending time with my family and friends, but there are times I just need to be by myself and daydream or read or watch TV or just breathe. <br /><br />I'm pretty sentimental, so I do have things that I can't purge, but I try to keep things organized or neatly displayed. I'm not saying that I'm always successful with that.<br /><br />My craft closet is organized, but it is in need of purging. I didn't get rid of enough stuff this summer when I organized the closet. I have too much patterned paper that I'll never use and stamps that are no longer my style. I'm having a harder time getting rid of that. I'm thinking it's time to find a place where I can donate what I know I won't use.Franciehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15548903306772165074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-32006779288402385192010-10-19T14:16:54.870-04:002010-10-19T14:16:54.870-04:00V, I hear you about sustaining organizations rathe...V, I hear you about sustaining organizations rather than people. That's why I run the meal ministry at my church...I avoid all church politics and messiness this way, and concentrate on helping individual families who need some comfort food. Stephen Ministers work one on one to help individuals in need (grieving, dying, dealing with all the stressors they might have), and the idea of doing that really appealed to me. <br /><br />It's so important for people to listen to the call of their hearts and respond to the world generously in whatever way feels right to them. Sounds like you're doing just that. Thanks for sharing your perspective! <br /><br />Barbara L., I wish I knew why, too. But it does force us not to become complaisant, doesn't it!Susan Raihalahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03018860599601419989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-44764948581909817762010-10-19T14:08:28.014-04:002010-10-19T14:08:28.014-04:00It's time to purge "stuff" again, bu...It's time to purge "stuff" again, but have you noticed how quickly that white space fills up again? Does the old stuff spread out or does your mind just start physically or mentally fill the white? We're retired and I can schedule space but the time just seems to fill and I don't know why.Barbara L.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4432615092204334311.post-27721846331820685692010-10-19T14:01:54.508-04:002010-10-19T14:01:54.508-04:00I purge on a monthly basis to keep from being over...I purge on a monthly basis to keep from being overrun with stuff, and I'm fortunate that my husband and my kids support those efforts. Our international moves and living in a house with limited storage (by American standards)helped us develop good habits.<br /><br />One of the things I loved most about being an expat was having my schedule and my identity wiped clean when I moved to Belgium. I was finally free of all the expectations people had for me and all the activities that had accumulated over the years. Maybe all those volunteer and social activities were beneficial and/or enjoyable, but dropping all of them cold turkey was a gift. Having NOTHING on my schedule at all was uncomfortable, but I resisted the urge to fill my time with all the things I'd filled it with before: church stuff, school stuff, suburban mom stuff.<br /><br />That's when I discovered cardmaking and moved from there to art making. That's when I returned to creative writing, and that's when I expanded my social circle beyond the people in my community to people online and made some of the best friends of my life.<br /><br />After 30 years of being a "do gooder," I dared to say no to most volunteer work and to church membership. My big gripe being that too much of my volunteer efforts went to sustaining the organizations I belonged to and not to actually helping individual PEOPLE. I was tired of feeling I had to attend events and participate in a scripted way to be validated. I no longer organize fundraisers; instead I simply donate funds. I no longer belong to PTA, instead I have become involved in the lives of two kids from slightly dysfunctional families in my neighborhood and support them and their education in my own way. I no longer work in the soup kitchen but I support the food pantry. Instead of belonging to women's groups, church groups, and other volunteer organizations, I support people in my community in my own way.<br /><br />This makes it easier for me not to be overrun by other people's agendas and ideas and schedules and to have family time siphoned off into organizations, but it also makes the person who goes against the grain of our over-scheduled, institutionalized culture.V-Grrrl @ Compost Studioshttp://www.v-grrrl.comnoreply@blogger.com