Can Artificial Intelligence write better than a human?

While not much was done in the decluttering world yesterday, I still have lots to share about the previous day. 

I spent a good part of yesterday writing a blog post. The subject matter was easy, but I struggled with it. It's one thing to pop off some writing that is just fluff - like in this blog. But when it comes to something a bit more technical, it needs to be written so it's straightforward and easy for others to understand. 

So I ran up and down the stairs to double-check facts on the sewing machine, and I almost wore out the User's Guide! I got the most recent post into a pretty good state last night, but I like to sleep on them and edit them with a clear head. I'm halfway through the find edit! Hopefully, it makes sense! Then, two more posts to write, and I'll be done with that set. 

Could I have used AI to write that post? I use Grammarly, which is a form of AI, and I find it helpful to tighten up sentences, punctuation, and especially spelling, although I do a lot of it myself. However, I find that AI wants to keep changing the sentence's meaning. 

Shoot—I can't think of a good example at the moment, but it often wants to put the qualifier in the WRONG place, so while technically the sentence is structurally correct, it doesn't make sense. Well, it might to some, but it's wrong! The next time it happens, I'll try to screen-capture it and show you. So I'll keep using Grammarly, and while I have a love/hate relationship with it sometimes, it works for me. 

What I'm finding with my writing is that it gets easier and easier the more I write. The sentences are easier and faster to edit, and I'm learning to be a better writer!

So, something very weird happened at our house last night! DH was out, and I was alone with the girls. Miss Lexi was being a pain. She would bang on the door to come in and then run away. It's like she wanted someone to come outside and play with her, and Murphy and I were busy. 

I shut the lights off on the main floor and was downstairs sewing. At one point, I heard Lexi bang on the door, so without turning on any lights, I came up and opened the back door. She didn't come in, and I immediately shut the door and returned to work. There's nothing like a UFO deadline to keep the midnight oil burning! 

When I came up for bed, I thought I'd try again to get her in. The light was on in the kitchen, and when I went to the door and opened it, I turned to look at the sofa, and Lexi was sleeping on it! WHAT? 

She must have tricked me, and in those few seconds when I opened the door, she popped in! It freaked me out because no one else was in the house! 

I have the two UFO Zooms this morning, and everything is prepped. See how calm I am these days! I have a busy week, five Zooms next weekend (lots of prep work), and the virtual retreat, so this week is going to be heads-down. I still have a lot of writing to do as well. 

But enough of that, let's have a look at what happened in the office. Some might say I need to work faster and stop shuffling papers from one place to another. Technically, you are right. However, this is MY decluttering journey, and I'm doing my best. I am "savoring" each piece of paper one last time before it permanently leaves the house. I am learning to let go so each decluttering task is subsequently easier, and I have the luxury of time. I'm also enjoying all the newly found free spaces, so yes - I could work faster, but at least I'm working at it! Baby steps, and before we know it -- all this paper will be gone. Will it be gone from your house? 

I have this shelf on my desktop, which takes up a lot of physical and visual space. Does it need to be there? I started investigating what was on the shelf. Hmm—a few knickknacks, which I'm choosing to keep. And only a little on the other two shelves. 

My cluttered desk

I opened this "book" and found ONE piece of paper. So now I have designated this box as my daily "to-do" box. It looks prettier on the desk than a ragged pile of paper. The trick is to train myself to open it daily to get some work done. 

The pretty "to-do" box

I removed the items from the shelf and then moved the shelf somewhere else. It's a temporary move, and eventually, I'll get rid of it. But imagine my shock when I moved the shelf to find this! A GOLD thread. I swear, those little bits of gold thread are like glitter! I've found them in many places! 

A gold thread

A quick digression, I have some Storage magazines. They are older, but that's OK. There are ideas in them. Do I need ideas? Even though these are dated, there might be a good idea or two to help me. 

Storage magazine

HOWEVER, organizing (storage) and decluttering are NOT THE SAME!!!! You should NEVER organize until the clutter is gone. Now there's a fine line there, but if I organize all my crap, it might look prettier, but it doesn't reduce what I have. And I "love" this quote I found in the magazine. 

Seriously? This is just wrong! 

Seriously???? Just shove the junk behind a door and call it a day? I think not!!! That is just being lazy, and you are buying pretty storage when you may not even need it!!! Or certainly not as much as you think. 

How often storage is a HUGE factor in remodeling the kitchen, bathroom, or laundry room. And I get that there are some fantastic storage solutions these days. I'm all for compact, neat, and clutter-free. But I will NEVER rent or buy storage just to hide my clutter. I've been there (bought lots of pretty boxes), and I'll never do that again. I need to GET RID of the clutter. Then, I'll find a cute storage solution for what's left.  

I looked at these items that are supposed to "tame" the paper. None of those will tame the paper. They might hold the current month's mail or whatever, but if I don't learn to clean that out, any of those options will look like a disaster before the month is out! 

Storage items like these do NOT help the clutter

There was one good quote in the magazine. I should show this to DH. 

OK -- and now back to my situation. Wait -- two more things to "complain" about in the decluttering process. 

I purchased one small thing from Uline, and suddenly, I got this massive catalog in the mail. Seriously???? Why? I called them up and told them it was going in the recycling and to please remove me from any physical mailings they do. Let's see if that works. 

A recent catalog I received

Secondly, I totally get that putting things into a box makes them easier to ship, store on a shelf, and so on. This is a sheet set I recently purchased from Sleep Country. The boxes were NOT even on display—they were in the back room. The box is heavyweight cardboard with magnets to keep it closed. Why? That's just a waste of money. Shipping costs increase because of the weight of the box. And look - you can't even reuse it as it has holes in the top. 

A pretty box that is useless

I swear, we, as consumers, have to push back and start demanding that these companies pay more attention. I would have been perfectly happy with the sheets in a vacuum-sealed bag. Less space to ship, less weight, and what the heck am I supposed to do with this box with magnets in it? Cell phones and many other electronic devices are horrific for this excessive waste in packaging, and most of it is never on display. 

And now, back to the decluttering. But it's things like those above - if you don't make the phone calls or the emails to say NO, you'll continue to get the crap. 

Very early yesterday morning, I couldn't sleep, so I got up, and this is what I tackled. This is the bottom drawer of a four-drawer filing cabinet in the office. I can hear Messie Condo's words in my head every time I start to declutter. She said to get rid of the filing cabinet and go digital. Well, I'm not ready to do that yet, but we have to start. 

The bottom drawer of the file cabinet

I wasn't sure how much I could get done, so I grabbed a few folders. Oh, my—another bunch of maps from another bicycle show. So, help me if I pick up another free piece of literature at any show. That stuff should be banned. 

More tourist maps from a bike show

It's getting so easy to toss this stuff, although the amount of dust I'm stirring up is insane!!! 

Then I continued on and found a folder labeled (hey - the folders were all labeled!) sewing machines. Hmm - what's in here. 

WHAT?????? I found an invoice made out to me for a Janome quilting machine. I don't remember ever owning a Janome machine. What is this all about? I have no idea. I tossed the invoice in the shredding pile. The invoice was dated 2005. 

An invoice for a Janome sewing machine

OK—so I can see where I had a problem. How many old Quilt Canada class catalogues does one need to keep? The catalogs are gone, but there's more in that folder that I want to look through. I'm allowed to take my time!

CQA class catalogs

I found a whole pile of vet invoices for our previous two dogs. This is cute, Little Sammy. She was rescued and was a very vicious dog when she arrived. She never lost those tendencies (if startled), but she was the sweetest little girl ever. I still miss her today. 

Little Sammy

This was Sparky, also a rescue, and I miss her too. But I don't think I need to keep any of their paperwork. They have both been gone for close to ten years. I shouldn't tell you that their ashes are sitting in pretty little boxes in the living room, along with their pictures! 

Sparky

But this is what happens to our crap that gets shoved in a drawer or put behind a cupboard door. It gets forgotten. So you MUST constantly clean and sort to avoid letting this happen. Trust me, it will take just a few minutes in any area when you have less. 

I still have to go through that folder as well. 

This is what's left of the files in the bottom drawer. And I know I can reduce that by at least 50%, if not more. Decluttering is like editing for me. I can't do everything in the first pass; I need to go back. And when you start saying, "I need to keep that too often," you know it's time to take a break. 

What's left of the files in the bottom drawer

I'm going to try to go through a few more folders today. Once I get going and have a clear head, I'm good. Imagine someone doing this in one day? I'd go mad!!! Do yourself and your kids a favor -- I KNOW ( do NOT deny) that you have loads of this crap in your drawers and doors. So get busy!!!

I laughed when I saw this. M must have been young, but she started a paper trail. The label is gone! 

The start of M's paper trail in life

I found three folders she might be interested in (report cards being one of them). I do NOT need to keep them, so they are now with her boxes of stuff so she can deal with it when she's here. 

At the end of the session, I had to empty the recycling, including the pile on the floor, and the shredding box is filling up. 

The recycling is full again!

So, what happened to that shelf? I moved it to the desk. I took all the "current" paper, and it's now in nine piles. YES - I know I just moved it, but this looks more manageable than three huge piles. And see - there's still room in front to sort or work! Not a lot, but there's room! 

The shelf became a sorter

I emptied the hanging folders out of the filing cabinet and kept half of them. Do schools use hanging files? If not, they go in the donation box. I pulled a few other things, which I have to deal with today. Now, I feel I can comfortably take 20 minutes every day (at least) and actually make progress. 

A few things to sort out today

I checked the other three drawers in the cabinet, and while there isn't a lot of stuff, they are full. So, one by one, I'll pick them off. I'm so excited about my progress. Even if I stopped today, which I won't, I'm leaps and bounds ahead of where I was just a few short weeks ago. 

Yahooo!!!!! And once all the dust settles, it'll be pleasant to work here. I have a plan for the desktop, which you have to wait to see. 

On that note, I'd better get the girls out for their walks. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

PS -- Here's an example of what Grammarly did with one of the sentences. They are NOT the same! 

Here's the original: 

And here's Gammaly's suggestion: