I’m ok with stuff on counters as long as they’re not my counters =)
I get you, QM. More or less, sometimes less. 
Thought the discard idea was binary.
But my new refrig has nothing on the front save for one nice poem magnet in a corner. I;m not admitting al the junk in my kitchen right now because, after all, we got back from vacation on the 1st, brought stuff in, and…
Since you asked, PG, my piano bench has piano books and a hymnal in it.
Magazines are . . . okay, sigh . . . all over the place. But none in the piano bench.
There are some interesting posts online about visual-spatial thinkers (with illustrative cartoons!), as opposed to sequential thinkers. I am not sure whether the posts are really based on sound science, and they do seem a bit over-congratulatory toward visual-spatial thinkers, but they go a long way to explain that for some, it is not uncomfortable to have items out on the counters, rather than put away neatly.
I especially like the binary discard idea, lookingforward!
Apologies if I missed this - what do you mean by binary discard?
This thread is very interesting. We have our house on the market, so I am not allowed any clutter by the real estate agent. She put out my fancy coffee pot and teapot from our good china, two wine glasses and the most expensive bottle of wine she could find. I am toasting toast in the broiler and going to Dunkin Donuts every morning. Also, I miss my radio. This neatness is all for a good cause, but I don’t see how you neatniks do it.
Before the new refrig, I saw nothing wriong with leaving an old card or photo on it. It’s the expired coupons (esp when you get the free dollars from CVS) that stressed me. Sometimes, out of sight, out of mind. Hence the rice cooker still here.
Today while out, thought to look for a nice glass canister for the dog food. Then remembered this thread and asked myself if I really want that on the counter. The irony is, instead, the bag is sitting on the counter.
My fridge is non-magnetic so no stuff is stuck to it which is just the way I like it - clutter free.
I couldn’t have dog food on my counter. I find the look and smell too unappetizing. But maybe I should even though we don’t have a dog now - I’d eat less! 
To PG #184, my “binary discard” remark was complimenting lookingforward. I think she mainly meant that an item should be just in or out (1/0), and not in a third state–moved somewhere else until the relevant data could be recorded somewhere. But it may additionally have referred to the system of discarding a specified, increasing number of items per day.
We don’t have the actual dog food on a counter, just dog treats. They are in re-sealable pouches, and the re-sealable pouches are all in a plastic bin about the size of the 10 by 12 by 14 inch plastic file boxes with lids. There is no detectable smell, and the visuals are bright-colored treat bags with pictures of doggies on them!!! How could anyone dislike pictures of doggies?!
Just added: The dog is in the kitchen a fair amount of the time (some could object to this), so then it would seem odd to exclude pictures of dogs.
The actual dog food (dry) is in a larger plastic container on the floor, at one side of one of the counters, out of sight lines.
Not quite. QM said, “discard 4 items on day 3, 8 items on day 4.”
I meant the binary count sequence, when represented as a number string: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, etc.
That is not binary, that is a “geometrically progressive” way of discarding things! 
A string of 0/1 representing the (insert proper terminology.)
Yes, actually, when I replied to PG about the meaning of the “system of discarding a specific, increasing number of items per day,” I meant the sequence as described by lookingforward in #189. My specification of 2 to the power (n -1) for day n (in #168) is the same as 1, 10, 100, 1000, 10000, . . . (base 2)
It is a geometric sequence, but it is also a quite neat sequence when cast in base 2. There is nothing wrong with calling it a binary sequence.
Actually, I thought “binary” in #181 had the dual meaning, including also the in/out binary.
Sorry for the nerdism.
Back to doggies!
A little break for nerdism is always fun.
But back to kitchen talk: bothered me when the kids surprised me with the dog place mat in teal, not a color I use. But the gift was sweet, so a teal, dog bone shaped mat it is.
If I get rid of the rice cooker, the dog food can go in that cabinet. Incentive.
Regarding binary-one of the best tips I learned about cleaning was the OHIO technique: Only Handle It Once.
In other words, when you pick something up when you’re cleaning, you need to make a final decision about where it goes, rather than just putting it down somewhere else with the thought that you’ll deal with it later.
My kids think I’m hilarious when they’re cleaning their rooms, and instead of cleaning they’re just shuffling crap from one corner to another, and I’m saying “Ohio! Ohio!” over and over again.
The beauty of the geometrically progressive method of discarding things is that most people are guaranteed to be done with the whole project in less than two weeks, if they follow the program diligently.
(I, for one, doubt I own 15,000 discrete objects, so by two weeks into the project, I’d be totally cleaned out of all objects that I own. I expect that would be true for most people!)
Do those with w lot of physical clutter also have a lot of emails in your inbox? A lot of texts and voicemails still on your phone?
Or do you strive for Inbox Zero and delete texts / voicemails once you have dealt with them?
I didn’t know people still deleted texts. We don’t like clutter, especially on the countertops. It seems like I have less room on them than other people, but mine are standard depth. I had my cabinets hung lower on purpose. Maybe that makes it all seem more claustrophobic. I do refer back to previous emails a certain amount.
I delete my voice mail. I never delete texts. They are good back up for when we have discussions about who said what, or I discover I didn’t actually get those addresses in my contacts like I meant to. My work emails are pretty clean, but my personal email collects so much spam I can’t keep up. I’ve been considering ways to fix that. I do tend to use visual cues to remind me to do things.