Ask Amy: Breaking the habit of piling up mail

DEAR AMY I've been happily married for 32 years, but my husband has a habit that is driving me nuts. He lets piles of his unsorted mail, magazines, etc. accumulate in the living room, a foot or more deep on the coffee table and other surfaces. He gets angry if I move them. I've asked him nicely on numerous occasions.

He acts indignant, and even though he may comply for a special occasion, he lapses as soon as the day is over. It's the same story in our small entryway, where there's no room for guests to hang their coats because his stuff (tool boxes, etc.) takes up every bit of space. I'm not a fastidious housekeeper, but I'm so tired of asking him to move his stuff, I could weep. He has an office where it could go, but that's full of piles, too. What can I do? -- Belle

DEAR BELLE Clutter can get the best of anyone, and unless your husband has a "hoarding" disorder (relatively rare), he should be able to get a handle on this - and with some discipline he can stay on top of it.

For inspiration, you should check out the television show "Clean Sweep" on TLC. Viewers can see how bad things can get and how overwhelming clutter can be once it has taken hold.

You and your husband can tackle this together, if you can inspire him to let you help.

Bring home three baskets from your local home decorating store and label them as "Junk" "Bills," "Magazines" and "etc." Put on a pot of coffee, bring in your recycling bin and sort through the mail together.

Ask your husband to be brutal about what he actually looks at and what he just shifts from pile to pile. He should cancel subscriptions of any magazines he doesn't actually read. The trick to dealing with mail is to sort through it each day.

Challenge yourselves to keep your tables clean for two weeks.

Polish the surfaces.

You'll find that keeping surfaces clear will inspire you to work on the other rooms.