January self-care challenge, Day 3: Streamline something

Welcome to Day Three of the self care Tenner Week challenge for January 2022. Today we’re going to look at the small, annoying things in life that could easily be streamlined, pick one, and take steps to change it.

In your home, car, or desk at work – what’s getting in your way on a daily or semi-regular basis? Is something important hard to find when you’re in a rush? What annoys you when you’re tired, hurried, or hungry? Pick one small thing and try something different.

Here are a few examples:

• Breakfast things in different places in the morning
• Messy rucksack or handbag where you can’t find your keys in a hurry
• Tripping over shoes etc dumped in the hallway
• Summer clothes in the way in the winter
• Can’t find anything in the freezer
• Overstocked skincare items in bathroom cabinet
• Messy desktop on computer / disorganised filing system
• Everyday items on very high shelves
• Car interior that looks more like a bin
• … and so on

Pick just one thing that will help you stop rummaging around for important things, blundering around half asleep in the morning, or tripping over mess that collects in a particular area. Now fix it.

By the way, you may need to sort out a storage solution of some sort, so improvise that if you can, or put it on the shopping list to buy after the challenge has finished.

I tidied up my wardrobe a few days ago, and put some charity donations on the upstairs landing and others downstairs in the living room. Since then I’ve tripped on the living room stuff a couple of times, cursed a bit and then wandered off to do other more urgent things, and honestly, yes, it’s an accident waiting to happen. They’re still there staring at me accusingly today, so I’m going to bag them up and get them into the hall, ready to drop off at the charity shop tomorrow lunchtime before I forget again.

What’s happening here

After running out of bread on Monday, we ran out of milk first thing on Tuesday. Great. At least that shows I didn’t cheat and do a grocery shop the night before the challenge started, right? That meant going to the nearest supermarket and spending £1.30 on a big bottle of milk because our next food delivery isn’t until next Thursday. The price has gone up again – what a pain in the bum this level of inflation is – and now I only have 70p to keep things going until the end of Sunday so we hadn’t better run out of anything else.

On the health and fitness front I managed an hour in front of the TV on the exercise bike, mainly episode nine of Yellowjackets. Only the finale left to go before the end of this month and… goal achieved.

Our Burns Night supper was lovely but oh me oh my I’d forgotten how filling veggie/vegan haggis can be. Phew, we barely had room for dessert. I was stuffed. Of course I ate dessert though, I never say no to cranachan. Rude not to eat that, it’s delicious.

Today’s going to be another day of working from home, ideally with a walk at lunchtime, followed by a 90-minute yoga lesson in the evening. Tonight’s distinctly unfancy dinner is going to be burritos with leftovers, because it’s easy to throw together after class and thrifty AF. Not exactly living the dream here, but ticking over nicely enough all things considered.

How’s your budget looking as we get one day closer to the end of January? Have you decided how you’re going to streamline your everyday life a little today?