Can clutter clearing your kitchen make you a better cook? Plus, a recipe for a winter seafood stew.

Let’s cook something delicious.

It started with my closet. Opening the door to the jumble inside produced a feeling of overwhelm and hopelessness. I’d just close it and reach for the same old pair of jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt. My uniform. Less than inspiring.

At the beginning of every year, the urge to purge is strong. Why?

We want to have hope. We want this year to be better than the last one. In these *fun* times we’re living in, we look for small actions that feel positive. At least we have control over the space we live in. With a gazillion distractions coming at us every day, clearing our outer space is one way to bring in some peace and calm. If we’re lucky that calm extends to our inner space. It can lessen anxiety and raise our spirits.

Inspired by this New York Times article, I decided to finally, finally, FINALLY get around to the closet. So, I did. Everything! Every drawer, every shoe box, every dust-gather…