| Tatoulia | Posted: 10 September 2014 - 08:16 PM |
I am busily planning my next steps for dealing with my hoard! | |
Replies (121)
| Dianne | Posted: 26 October 2014 - 09:48 AM |
Today is a new day and I feel better. Thank you Bitsy. 🙂 With a few hours heads up I was ready for the loud Halloween party my neighbors had last night. Dogs in early, sleeping pill and ear plugs for me and Laura is a night owl so she was fine. Woke up this morning refreshed. I still need to baby my back and it's a challenge to move slowly. But I did it yesterday and I can do it today. It'll be basic chores today with many breaks. | |
| bitsy | Posted: 25 October 2014 - 01:22 PM |
today is a new day. a beautiful day. the leaves are just beginning to turn here. only 4 or 5 months till spring. Dianne, I hope you feel better tomorrow. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 25 October 2014 - 11:30 AM |
Today is a new day but I'm not feeling so fresh and shiny. By the end of yesterday I was in so much pain, needing my cane and I was close to hitting the wall. Instead of calling it a day and letting my daughter handle the rest I had to supervise her with the nightly dog routine. She normally does that with no help from me and does a great job of it. (That's one of the problems with getting on top of things. I think only I can do it *right*, I want perfectionism, and it's hard to walk away from the control.) We have a coyote in the area now who has attacked a neighbor's dog. My dogs were on the deck barking insanely maybe he was nearby. It was driving me crazy and I just wanted them inside, fed, quiet and bedded down for the night. The craziness continued inside and I lost it. I screamed and yelled and waved my cane until cats scattered, dogs cringed and my daughter laughed. Well, THAT put me RIGHT over the edge! I screamed, "IT'S NOT FUNNY!" So I went to bed, woke up feeling better but I know this is a downhill slide. It may be time for another cortisone shot in the spine and that is a pain I would prefer never to go thru again. But I don't have the patience to rest my back for the time it needs. I'm just feeling pissy. Today is a new day and I will be a grumpy camper doing minimal stuff. >:( | |
| Dianne | Posted: 25 October 2014 - 11:06 AM |
Darci, I'm so happy to see you back! I've missed you my friend! Your goal of getting things out in boxes has been very successful. And you were able to come to the painful realization that what you wanted to donate wasn't going to happen realistically. Those are huge accomplishments to draw strength from while you tackle the next steps. With the gifts that you bought to ship to family members ~ can you send them out now and call them early Christmas gifts? Can someone help you sell your business supplies online? Or maybe there are churches in your area or non-profit groups who would love to have like new supplies? Can you have a *sock box*? Indulge yourself a bit by cleaning and keeping whatever socks you find, then match up later. I think we all suffer from that feeling of I don't want to donate that just yet because I know I have the missing pieces around somewhere. You're right a year is going to come very quickly. But you've already accomplished so much even with MS. And you deal with the stress of taking in renters. Your heart is huge Darci. Always thinking of how you can donate things for very specific reasons, like to help the young girls who have working moms. You know what works for you, you know the pitfalls. You inspire me. 🙂 | |
| Darci | Posted: 25 October 2014 - 01:15 AM |
Continued... I "know" all the "rules" about purging...: **DON'T hold onto to the trampoline that has its feet "somewhere" because you don't want to landfill it.... **Keep your eye on the PRIZE, the BIG picture, the peaceful life within your grasp...** | |
| Darci | Posted: 25 October 2014 - 01:05 AM |
Hi Dianne.... so glad to find an old friend here!! Makes it easier to get back in the swing. I haven't been on in several months for many reasons, the most consuming of which was the fact that I had to clear out two additional bedrooms so I could rent them out to make ends meet. NO EASY FEAT for someone who already has too much stuff. I am trying to get myself set up in the living room as my bedroom. The house I am in is going up for sale in a year... sounds like a long ways away but not for someone who takes two steps forward and one step back... and sometimes four steps back, year after year. What worked for me in the past was to come up with a clearly definable goal: number of boxes donated. I think the most I ever did in a defined period (about six weeks) was just over 100 boxes. I remember it being painful... very painful because of the things I was holding onto from my daughter's childhood that I wanted to use to help pre-middle school girls who have working moms who have no time for them. I had to realize that I was never going to attain that goal for many reasons... the most pervasive... I have too much stuff and no time because I am always shifting it around. Shifting around to install new flooring, shifting around because of a flood, shifting around because a room needs to be painted...shifting because too much ended up in one room and made it unusable. So, here I am shifting AGAIN to make room for even more renters (which means renting out 3 out of 4 bedrooms!) and trying to make the living room livable.... despite the oontents of my entire bedroom dumped in there. So, my new goal is 90 boxes packed for donations by Thanksgiving, Thurs Nov 27... just around 4 weeks...30 days... So that means three boxes a day. Sounds easy when there is "too much stuff" but no one thing is junk...all new/like new supplies from my business as well as gifts I bought to ship to my family members last year and never felt strong enough to make that happen (bad MS set-back... bedridden for about six weeks). Plus, I still have my obsession to "match socks" so they can be donated and "wash and whiten" the socks so they can be donated (and welcomesd by their new family) (This isn't about just matching socks... it is that I can't throw away the little trampoline because I KNOW I have the legs "somewhere" and it "would be a great gift (donation)for someone who has nothing for their children." | |
| Dianne | Posted: 24 October 2014 - 10:13 AM |
Today is a new day to start fresh. Tat, I like your intent of cleaning something to honor the memory of your grandmother on her birthday. That is lovely. My back needs to be babied today so I'll do daily chores just with more gentleness and a little slower. It's funny that it actually feels better when I can stretch the vertebrae by washing floors on hands and knees. I have someone coming today to give me an estimate on repairing fencing. One area is repeatedly a problem. Some food needs to be prepped for salads, soups and snacks. Dogs need nail trimming. Food bins need to be refilled. Have a good day everyone! | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 23 October 2014 - 11:56 AM |
Today is a new day and it was my grandmother's birthday. She kept a very clean house. She was ahead of her time on germ-awareness. I will clean something in my home tonight in honor of her memory. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 23 October 2014 - 10:58 AM |
Today is a new day with bright sunshine and high winds! I have daily chores and some outside errands to run. My back has been sore again so that may be all I get done. If I can get thru those things gently than I need to start on a bathroom that's past due for cleaning. My to-do list is always long and daunting and I still struggle with the need to get it all done. Each day is an exercise in patience and accepting my aging body and slowing down. Live your day well. 🙂 | |
| Dianne | Posted: 22 October 2014 - 09:01 AM |
Today is a new day with a fresh start and unlimited possibilities! Yesterday my daughter and I did stuff with the dogs, worked in the garage and in the yard picked up storm debris and loaded the truck for the dump. It was a beautiful Indian summer day! Today is rainy and a good day to work inside. There are bills to pay online and the usual daily maintenance. I want to get together some things together to take to an *I Sold it on Ebay* store. Have a great day everyone! | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 03 October 2014 - 05:46 AM |
Today is a new day and I will look around and honestly assess whether and where I am backsliding. | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 01 October 2014 - 05:43 AM |
Today is a new day and I will remember to be kind to my mother. I will be respectful of her as I begin the process of cleaning out her hoard. | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 29 September 2014 - 08:40 AM |
Today is a new day and I plan to look around and see what small improvements I can make. For example, I tend to take off my sweater at the end of the day and put it on the back of a chair. It's remarkable how messy the house looks with a sweater being part of the decor. Today I will open my eyes to other small things. Let me know if you have any suggestions! | |
| LR2014 | Posted: 26 September 2014 - 11:50 AM |
Tatoulia, I agree with what Dianne (blue text) said . . . I love your phrase, "now that my standards have been raised." Keep up the great work! Dianne, I still call them "tennis shoes." To the "other" Dianne: Welcome! Me: Two of my main (planned) tasks for the day are to do some needed scrubbing in one of my bathrooms and to spend some time working on clearing out and cleaning up my living room. Nice to have a new day. And since I'm on the topic of names that start with Dian . . . hope you're having a good day, Diane (with a capital D)! Hugs to everybody! | |
| Dianne | Posted: 24 September 2014 - 11:01 AM |
Today is a new day and I have to think about autumn clothing. I went out to run errands in my usual t-shirt, jeans and flip flops and saw everybody in their full-on fall attire. Really the only change I'll make is a zip up sweatshirt and Reeboks. What do people call shoes anymore? The kind we used to call tennis shoes, keds, sneakers? Technically I guess what I wear are running shoes or cross trainers but I don't do those things. When we were young we had to wear practical shoes ~ brown, black or maybe white in the summer. So now my shoes are vivid colors; pink and yellow; turquoise blue, lime green and yellow; purple, blue and pink. Anyway today is a lot of running ~ errands not the feet running. A trip to the dump, gas up vehicles, go to the bank, post office and the grocery store. Sit with grandkids in the office while their mom is getting an MRI. Other than very basic animal care other indoor stuff will not be done. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 24 September 2014 - 10:47 AM |
Hello new Dianne. Tell us about yourself. 🙂 The 2 n's are not common. Is there a story behind that? | |
| Dianne | Posted: 24 September 2014 - 10:43 AM |
Haha Tat, I love that ~ fine until your standards were raised! That's always a good thing, do a basic sweep, go back and make it better. You're doing great work!! | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 24 September 2014 - 08:13 AM |
Today is a new day and it is beautiful here in the northeast. I plan to work on bedroom closet, which is fine but has turned out to be Not Fine now that my standards have been raised considerably! I plan to sweep living room and hallway, and dust the living room furniture. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 23 September 2014 - 07:12 PM |
What a wonderful image of the pinecones and your day. Thank you. | |
| dianne | Posted: 23 September 2014 - 01:22 PM |
husband is the hoarder | |
| dianne | Posted: 23 September 2014 - 01:21 PM |
just trying to figure site | |
| Dianne | Posted: 23 September 2014 - 09:34 AM |
Today is a new day, Happy Autumn! After school my grandkids are coming over to gather pinecones. We have thousands of the teeny, tiny ones under some hemlock trees. And lots of large ones under the pines. They are going to take them to school for art projects. I finally had to ask them to come do that because I have been eyeing those pinecones for a long time now. I had big trash bags full of the big ones, at least a dozen, and a few buckets of the tiny ones. I used to make wreaths and tiny pine Christmas trees. The saved ones disappeared thanks to my well-meaning hoard cleaners. It's not too hard to avoid going into a store to buy stuff but when the big, beautiful trees are dropping their abundant crop at my feet everyday it's getting too hard to resist. While they do that I'll be walking the fenceline making some repairs to the split rails. Have a glorious day everyone! | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 22 September 2014 - 01:22 PM |
What a wonderful, thoughtful post. How far you've come--bring able to get something delivered, going through memories with your children. What wonderful work. | |
| Dianne | Posted: 22 September 2014 - 12:02 PM |
Today is a new day and the weather here is a blessed gift! Tat, great job is donating the books and more clothes! Keep chipping away! My 18 year old refrigerator is not cooling as well as it should. Rather than wait for a breakdown I ordered another one today. It feels really good to be able to take care of something before it gets worse. And to have people come in without fear and embarrassment feels wonderful. Funny how something that is normal for most people can be such happiness for me. For anyone struggling with getting help to clear out, whether it's family members, friends or hired help, please try it. It truly is the best decision I have made in a very long time. Yesterday I spent working on one of the last two bedrooms and was able to sort a lot into the hall. There is a group that will be taken to the dump today, a group for donation and Laura is putting things away that we now have a place for. Some of the inner hoard I am working thru is sentimental stuff. Telling my daughters what I remember about them as they wore a certain outfit and listening to their stories is reassuring me that the love from those times won't be forgotten. So I can let go of the object much easier. Have a great day everyone! | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 22 September 2014 - 11:46 AM |
Today is a new day and I am going to ask myself, "what do I want to keep?" I am not going to look for things to throw away or donate, I'm going to make the active part of my decision-making to be what will I keep. Then the things that I won't be keeping can just go in a bag. They will disappear from my mind and my life. Today is a new day. | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 21 September 2014 - 11:06 AM |
Today is a new day and my brother said he will drive me to goodwill to take a bag of books that I can live without, even though they survived Round One. I am also going to take a bag of clothing. I took care of reading the newspaper early today and I disposed of all clutter on the side table in the library area of my place. I have the newspaper to go to the recycling bin. I will continue to work and work and work, with frequent breaks to check on everyone here and to get some kitty lovins from my babycat, who is lounging on the bed right now. | |
| diane | Posted: 20 September 2014 - 07:52 AM |
Tat, sounds like you unstoppable today, will be fun to hear all that you get done today. | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 20 September 2014 - 07:47 AM |
Today is a new day and I am not going to let anyone or anything get in my way...including myself! | |
| LR2014 | Posted: 19 September 2014 - 07:17 PM |
Thanks for the sentiments, Dianne and Tatoulia. The upside of going to those services was that I got to see a lot of former coworkers who have become friends through the years. It's always nice to connect with old friends. | |
| Tatoulia | Posted: 19 September 2014 - 06:09 AM |
LR sending you lots of strength on this new day and every day. | |