#home

Evan Z.

Jul 19, 2017
3 min

Conspiracy Theory Monkey Twaddle

It’s apparent that the ‘powers that be’ are not telling us everything there is to know. Our history is filled with horrific examples of the depths to which humans will go to acquire and hold power over perceived competitors. It is undeniable; our evolution as a species is squarely focused on the subjugation, eradication and domination of others. Those who serve as shepherds of integrity and kindness survive as beacons of hope and inspiration. But time and again, no matter the

35 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 19, 2017
3 min

How to Get Organized for Camping Season

Juniper was only three months old on her second real camping trip. My parents drove up from Phoenix for my first Father’s Day weekend and met us in the Lincoln Creek campground 11 miles outside of Aspen, Colorado. My dad and I went paragliding off Aspen Mountain; our women nervously watched us soar overhead and greeted us in a grassy field off North Star Preserve like soldiers home from war. That weekend we brought mountain bikes, climbing gear, a small raft, coolers, a guita

21 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 16, 2017
3 min

God's Miracle: The Working Mommy

Allow me to introduce the working mommy. You think you know her but I assure you, she is running circles around us, and it’s time we give her some due credit and more than just a little help. This elegant creature of style and poise does more before breakfast than most of us accomplish all day. The working mommy thrives behind the scenes, where subtle details comprise every nuance and time sputters in manic fits just long enough to get the kids up, dressed, fed, and out the d

21 views0 comments

The Firebox: What it is and Why Every Household Shouldn't Be Without One

Evan Z.

Jul 15, 2017
3 min

The Firebox: What it is and Why Every Household Shouldn't Be Without One

Twice a year my family takes an inventory of our immediate assets. I don’t mean our investment portfolio. I’m talking about immediate access to life-preserving essentials: water, food, warmth, light, and basic first aid. The stuff we take for granted until we’re up the proverbial creek. We have seen alarming trends demonstrating how vulnerable we are to circumstances beyond our control. We’ve grown accustomed to relying on others to respond on our behalf. We’ve become so dist

14 views0 comments

Sparing the Landfill: How to Responsibly Get Rid of the Stuff You Don't Want

Evan Z.

Jul 15, 2017
3 min

Sparing the Landfill: How to Responsibly Get Rid of the Stuff You Don't Want

As a professional organizer, I spend a lot of time helping clients clear out, clean up, get organized, and beautify their living spaces. Well-intentioned clients hoping not to be wasteful convince themselves that hoarding their old stuff is infinitely better than sending items to the dump. We all do it. Unsure how to dispose of our junk, we inevitably end up slaves to the stuff we care least about. Not all dumps are created equal. Communities across the country are improving

11 views0 comments

Emergency Surgery: Clearing my Biological Clutter

Evan Z.

Jul 15, 2017
3 min

Emergency Surgery: Clearing my Biological Clutter

I’m writing this from a partially reclined hospital bed on the lavish fourth floor of Valley View Hospital – on Thanksgiving Day. As I lay here with an intravenous antibiotic drip and a team of talented medical professionals tenderly attending my every need, I think about the deeper meaning of what I’m really doing here. The French poet Antoine de Saint-Exupery famously penned ‘perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to ta

5 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 15, 2017
3 min

How and Why We Do What We Do

Early in high school, I remember a writing assignment that required an in depth narrative for why and how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as if educating an extraterrestrial being, entirely unfamiliar with life on planet Earth. We were to approach this project as if the very survival of the planet hung on the successful delivery of our detailed, comprehensive explanation. Regardless of the details of our particular recipe, our account had to be both persuasive and

3 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 15, 2017
3 min

Most People Get Stuck in These 4 Ways

As humans, most of us don’t take action until our pain becomes intolerable. Any of the following caricatures sound familiar? The stuff in your space has taken over your life. You are drowning in things you don’t want, like or need. The useless and irrelevant has cluttered your spaces to the extent that you no longer feel inspired to take corrective action on your own behalf. No matter where you look, you feel overloaded, disorganized, and dispassionate. You procrastinate and

7 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 15, 2017
3 min

Junk Box or Storage Success

‘Storage’ is a specific concept with an ambiguous definition. Simply, it’s a means to hold something for future use. Without further description, that’s pretty vague – and when I work with my clients around their personal and professional storage systems, it shows. Clarifying what is worth storing and how has an important impact on understanding why we hold onto things in the first place. People tend to dump and cram ‘items for future use’ anywhere they can – without very muc

9 views0 comments

How to Get a Grip on Your Mental Clarity

Evan Z.

Jul 15, 2017
3 min

How to Get a Grip on Your Mental Clarity

I recently saw a woman wearing a t-shirt sadly affirming, “I can’t brain today. I have the dumb.” I can relate, but at the time, I couldn’t decide if I was amused or offended. I’m sure I’ve learned somewhere that it’s impolite to make assumptions about a person solely on the basis of the captions on her clothes. But then it occurred to me that this shirt resonated with her enough to broadcast her ill-fated condition openly, as much an admission of guilt as a plea for understa

8 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 14, 2017
3 min

Balanced Parenting Styles Work Best

As a holistic organizer, I focus on four primary areas of life: spaces, systems, time, and content. My tag line reads, “Who we love, what we do, how and why we live – because everything else is just stuff.” So, I’d like to shed a little light on “who we love,” which I kind of lump in with systems – how we do what we do. Let's just call it parenting. My work with kids started with a master’s degree in education and a short-lived teaching career that evolved into program develo

3 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 14, 2017
3 min

Hometown Hero: Craft Coffee Brewed to Perfection at Bonfire

Looking for a creative challenge, I recently approached Bonfire Coffee owner/operator, Charlie Chacos, about writing some website copy for his Main Street coffee house in Carbondale, Colorado. My affinity for Bonfire Coffee started in 2012 during the infancy of my professional practice. It is where Intentional Solutions was born and has come to thrive. The literal and social nucleus of Carbondale’s downtown core, I and countless other enterprises attribute much of our cumulat

10 views0 comments

Evan Z.

Jul 14, 2017
3 min

The Dwell Magazine Make-Over

I adore Dwell magazine for its brash architectural minimalism, unapologetically touting simple interiors with organizational innovation and sparse design sensibility. As a professional organizer, I live in clutter. Most workdays are spent meticulously toiling in the closets, garages, hallways, playrooms, bedrooms, living rooms, home offices, kitchens, and messy spaces of my local client base. Sifting through endless piles of stuff, sorting what stays from what goes – Dwell is

1 view0 comments

The Big Lie: The Horseshit Americans are Sold

Evan Z.

Jul 14, 2017
3 min

The Big Lie: The Horseshit Americans are Sold

I’m going to ask you to read this with an open mind. Some of you will be offended, but I’m okay with it. If you’re honest with yourself, you’ll find that there’s a compelling argument here, worthy of your thoughtful consideration. In fact, I’ll bet on it. We are constantly bombarded with commercial images of the so-called good life. These crafty advertisements are designed to do one thing: influence us to buy something. Because we have been deliberately trained over a few gen

50 views0 comments

Zen and the Art of Refrigerator Organization: 5 Steps to Chilly Transcendence

Evan Z.

Jul 14, 2017
3 min

Zen and the Art of Refrigerator Organization: 5 Steps to Chilly Transcendence

There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who eat to live and those who live to eat. The difference between us is the inspiration to enhance life through the divine creation and shared enjoyment of phenomenal food. Open your fridge. What do you see? The Uninspired Wretch This person sees a can of beer, a jar of peanut butter, a dusty shelf of ketchup packets and crusty salad dressings, a soggy tuna fish sandwich wrapped in plastic-wrap, a cold chicken leg, and a Chine

23 views0 comments

Top 4 "Do Nows" for Stylish, Finely Tuned Kitchens

Evan Z.

Jul 14, 2017
2 min

Top 4 "Do Nows" for Stylish, Finely Tuned Kitchens

I don’t care what anyone says, health and happiness start in the kitchen. De-cluttering and streamlining your kitchen is a great way to implement new habits that will have a positive impact on other areas of your life. These are my top 4 “Do Nows” for creating a stylish, finely tuned kitchen that inspires healthier, happier living: 1. Find other homes for everything on your countertops. These spaces are best reserved for food preparation. Clearing your counter clutter starts

10 views0 comments