I should have learned by now how to deal with clutter. After all, just about every woman’s magazine carries, and always has, an article on clutter and organization. I know this because I still possess every magazine that I’ve ever purchased, stolen, or received in my adult life and I’m 61. Maybe it’s time to use some of the advice in these articles and get rid of or, at the very least, organize my clutter.

The articles offer good ideas for donating unneeded items to worthwhile organizations, such as those that pass on old cell phones to abused women to use to call for help, or those that distribute used winter coats to the needy, or those that collect and recondition unused eyeglasses for the poor in developing countries.

Old and unread books can be given to local libraries. Furniture and household items are good contributions for church and school rummage sales. And, of course, old clothes can either be passed down to family or friends, sold at a second-hand store, or picked up by Goodwill, Salvation Army or another group.

I have donated stuff to all of these organizations and my home is a little less cluttered. I haven’t, however, as yet found an organization—aside from those intent on destroying them through recycling—that wants my vast collection of magazines. (And maybe, just maybe, I’m not quite ready to relinquish it.)

Okay, let’s be honest…since I’m not getting rid of the magazines, I decided I needed a better way to organize them. Here’s where my magazines came in handy. I spent hours searching the magazines for tips on how to accomplish this feat and there were a few suggestions for my particular kinds of clutter.

I decided the “B and B”—bookcases and baskets—method was the best. I selected attractive and roomy baskets to sit on the shelves of bookcases (some I had; some I purchased). I planned to insert the magazines, either by year of the different magazines, or by each year of one particular magazine. I chose the former.

It wasn’t until I after I had started my organization project that I realized this B and B method was not only going to consume every available wall in my home, but would destroy my budget as well. I needed a number of bookcases and lots of baskets! So I stopped after filling up three bookcases with baskets. I had hardly made a dent in my collection.

It was then that I decided there was no other choice. I had to discard most of my magazines. I’m learning…I’m learning! I’d take the recent ones I had read to nursing homes and hospitals. The rest I would sort through and keep only those that I would someday need.

These days I’m overwhelmed. The rest of my house is in total disarray as time is spent on deciding if I should keep the 1969 magazine that has artery-clogging brunch recipes or the 1974 one that has a pattern for a mini-skirt—I may, after all, lose enough weight to wear this style. (With tights, no one would notice my wealth of varicose veins.) Martha’s Stewarts tips are timeless, so should I get rid of any of her magazines? What the heck! I’ll keep them all! And who’s to say that stack after stack of magazines isn’t being organized?

Although I still have to walk around and over piles, I’ve finally learned: If I don’t bring any more magazines into the house, I don’t have to worry about where to put them! There still may be piles of magazines in my house, but, thankfully, they aren’t multiplying!