Tre3, I completely agree when you say Sometimes being busy is similar to having lots of STUFF. I also do not believe in having things saved ''for good''. I want to use everything I have and it makes me happy when I do. What I've noticed is that I am usually the one who entertains my friends, who have often said they like to come here because it is more interesting than being at their house. I think they probably feel that way because I use my ''best'' things. It's part of my philosophy about Living Well. I do wish sometimes though that some of them had a similar attitude so I could be a guest for a change! Talley Sue, I have been known to just go find another bookcase! Since I recently purged some of my books, it did feel good to have the extra space. Perhaps I shouldn't confess my time at the bookstore yesterday, but there's a part of me that enjoys my ''library'' and having books around me. I just realized that with the exception of my kitchen, I have bookcases in every room of my home! I am finally limited to how many books I can keep now, so that's a good thing. Tina, I could probably use a fashion guru to tell me what clothes to throw out, but I really need one on the accumulation side. My favorite clothes don't make much of a fashion statement I'm afraid. Minet, those are all good questions, which I'm familiar with, since I've asked myself those same things quite often. I did like Organizing from the Inside Out and found it helpful when I needed to revamp my home office files. You're right about it being good for paper clutter, which I had too much of. teacats, I think it's funny that your DH doesn't think anyone lives like that in real life. I think he must have lived a sheltered (yet happy) existence! One of the exercises in The Not So Big Life, is to think about what inspires you. I asked my DH to give this question some thought this morning. Sarah Susanka suggests going back to your childhood and remembering those significant moments for a clue to discovering yourself. It's true that finding inspiration is what will move us to act on changing our lives. Her thoughts aren't new to me, yet a good reminder of how to open yourself to possibilities. There are several things I'm ready to see change, and I'm loving this book!

They are definitely not written for children, much as the covers may make you think that-the covers are done by a Japanese artist in the "comic bookish" style. I have read all of them. There is the occasional reference to boyfriends and the occasional "knee-melting" kiss, to her widowed mother having a beau with the overtone of how close were they...??? and to her college aged sister dating a policeman-but besides the fact that they are murder mysteries and, thus, will occasionally describe with some detail a murder scene, I wouldn't have minded if my daughter had read them at 10. She read The Giver at 10, and that subject matter is darker than these.

Try Bel Canto - make up your own mind! :) I was lucky to have some excellent lit teachers starting in Jr HI. Their enthusiasm and encouragement got me through many books that I might not otherwise have read (tho I still say I hated Silas Marner. Can't remember why, jsut remember being very glad when it was finished) Books I expected to love but didn't: The Historian, The Illuminator, Thirteenth Tale. Books that took me a few tries that I didn't expect to finish, that I ended up loving: Cloud Atlas, Possession, Atonement.

I read till I reached the “viewing limit”. Excellent info; talented and knowledgeable author. Thank you, Henry.