Now that the holidays are behind us, we can work a task at a time going through things we collected in 2020 that we did not use. January is a time of renewal, cleansing, and setting new goals. It is a time to look through closets of things not worn throughout the last two years. Last year is not a good benchmark since many events were cancelled, we worked from home more, and career clothing may not have been worn. Shoes not worn or are outdated can be given to local nonprofits for someone else in need.
Are you someone that collects receipts? If they are for business expenses- keep them. Grocery receipts, restaurants, gifts, and utility bills can be thrown away if not used for proof of business use of home. Childcare expenses, medical/dental expenses, charitable donations, mileage logs for business, and any closing documents for a home should be saved for taxes. If you can scan and keep electronically that is a preferred option for safe keeping. Shred any documents with personal information before disposing of them. Income tax information should be retained for 3 years. The IRS has six years to verify W-2 or 1099 stubs to collect an unpaid tax.
Dispose of unused prescriptions and OTC medicine safely. Do not flush old meds down the toilet as they can harm your plumbing or pollute the water system. Medicine past the expiration date should be thrown away as they could possibly be harmful if ingredients have changed over time. Medicines may be disposed with household trash if the prescription number and personal information is removed with a permanent marker.
It is easy to not notice how many duplicates we collect of cleaning supplies. For a while Clorax Wipes were hard to find and you may have snatched them up when available. Do you collect duplicates of other cleaning products? Are there products you’ve never used under your sinks or in the garage? If you have not used them in a year make room for other things.
Items to Purge
- expired medicine
- ratty towels
- retired cell phones
- expired chemicals
- cleaning products you won’t use
- old bank statements
- plastic containers without lids
- old cookbooks
- food in pantry over a year old
- old food in refrigerator
- unused business cards
- broken equipment/tech devices/tools
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