The seasons are changing! It's a good time to clean out the ol' car.

I added these car magnets recently and have noticed people stopping and staring when I'm in traffic. I can't help but think they might be checking out the inside of my car when I park. Egads!

Thanks to one of my clients, I discovered that one can actually pay to have their car cleaned out! It's called

car detailing

and now I am a total fan.

Before...

gross!

Check out all that beach sand!

So many park stickers and no easy way to remove them...I had tried.

Leaving the sun roof open for years deteriorates the stitching on leather seats, hence duct tape.

So it was very rewarding to have someone else vacuum, scrub and shine the interior of my car.

After....

joy!

Only current park stickers, removal of beach sand and no more peeling duct tape, mystery stains and dust.

But then the real work began....decluttering.

I pulled all of this

crap

out of the storage areas of my car.

Here is what I found

(from left to right):

Maps for 3 states, car manual, expired registration!, insurance card, window markers

?

, sketch of fairy godmother, phone charger, parts and pieces that have broken off car interior, fuses, scissors, barrettes, extra sunglasses - 3 pairs!, eyeglass cleaner and cloth, hand sanitizer, bug spray, first aid kit, zipties, assorted pens/pencils, paperclips, money!

(we always find money)

2 flashlights, window scraper, park passes, GPS unit, bluetooth speaker, duct tape, batteries, signal mirror

(seriously?

), military shovel, workgloves, diesel additive, gardening gloves

(oh my!)

There was also some rags and assorted trash.

Some of what I found, stayed in the car and here is what I kept and where it is stored.

In one side trunk compartment, an air pump, handy for blowing up beach toys.

In other side trunk compartment: A first aid kit. I restocked it: snake bite kit, bee sting antidote, needle -

for splinters

, water purification tablets, matches, firestarter -

because Winter!

scissors, tweezers, q-tips, triangle bandages, gauze, adhesive tape, assorted band-aids. Let the adventures begin!

In the trunk compartment: An inverter - handy for plugging in that GPS when the battery charger breaks -

it did!

Extra lightbulbs and fuses, various tools to make car repairs, a handwarmer

because Winter!

Instructions for the car rack carrier, the signal mirror

for survival situations because Winter!,

jumper cables, diesel additive, work gloves, shovel, and a few rags.

On top of the trunk, I love using storage totes; one for my cloth shopping bags and wrangling watermelons and other bulky items after grocery shopping and another for my organizing supplies so that I'm always prepared to work with clients. I got these at

Ikea

but not sure they are available any longer. They were the totes that lined their Besta media center but they also fit perfectly in my trunk!

In the driver's side door storage: Maps, park pass, mileage book, hand sanitizer and business cards -

because someone seriously flagged me down from the side of the street to book an appointment!

In the passenger side door storage: An umbrella, bug spray and a cloth shopping bag -

for those impromptu

Aldi

runs when I forget to put my cloth bag stash back in the car!

In the glove compartment: GPS, flashlight, window scraper, tire gauge, scissors, flashlight, car manual/registration & insurance card.

Truth be told about that expired car registration. I ended up realizing that I'd thrown away my renewal by accident when I put the tabs on my license plates. So off to the DMV to get a copy. It only cost me $8.00...phew!

Even organizers sometimes are too organized for their own good.

In the center console: Extra eyeglasses, eyeglass cleaner & cloth, lip balm, sunscreen -

because Summer!

and tissues.