Good to hear from you, CM. I am so sorry you are going through this!

I tied to eat a bagel today and the texture is just impossible. It's just a mass of texture with no flavor.

I did a load of laundry. I will fold and put away. I need to start living again. This has been brutal.

Tatoulia, where do you and I go to cancel our membership in the Covid Club? One star, Would Not Recommend. I think mine is peaking and hopefully will begin the downhill slide soon. It's chilly and rainy here again which makes me stuffier, but is supposed to be sunny tomorrow. I watched Mass on YouTube.

Hoping I can pick back up with where I was on the decluttering - I kind of lost the plot 2-3 weeks ago in the keyboard and sewing area, I wanted to play music and was fiddling with software to connect keyboard and laptop, didn't quite figure that out yet but I will... but ended up shoving sewing stuff aside and it ended up in a sloppy stack which discouraged me.

But upon reflection - sometimes the slowdown of illness is conducive to that - I bet it really won't be as bad as I'd feared. I'm ready to face it now. Tomorrow I do need and want to do laundry, so my bedroom will be better and I'll have things I want to wear. Just one load, slow pace, poco a poco.

Sorry you lost the taste and smell but they should return. I only had that happen with the 2022 covid, and read online to challenge the nose to retrain it. So I was sniffing my baking extracts, vanilla, lemon, mint, etc. The sense of smell returned in 3 days. So you might give it a try.

SubC, that is interesting about the food in our bodies. I've heard about water weight but that is more detailed. A little weird to contemplate, lol. And it seems more realistic to me. I'm wondering if I might want to play with some different things to eat, to break out of my rut, but definitely that must be a low pressure thing given my sensory aversions and history of kookoo dieting patterns in the distant past. My head's messed up on such things which is why I haven't chimed in on the diet thread. Exercising is my superpower for now in terms of lifestyle changes. Anyway, thanks for an intriguing read.

Lila, I can imagine how exciting your life is right now, and hoping it is positive excitement as much as possible. Sometimes I wonder about the future, like maybe getting my own place. There are a lot of unknowns. The thing about these roommate situations has been that I can live in a house, which on disability would not have been possible; the tricky part is that sometimes I and the other person(s) can get on one another's nerves, and that the spaces such as the kitchen are not mine to arrange as I'd wish. Plus the time schedule of some things ends up having to mesh at least in part with the other person's schedule. I lived a considerable number of years alone, and it hasn't been easy giving up that autonomy. Not to scare you! It is probably easier with family, because you have lived together in the past. And tot's enjoyment will be contagious, I should think.

Well, tomorrow is Day 5 for covid for me, so hopefully soon I'll be rejoining civilization.

SubC I am glad you had a nice time and that you acquired some tools. I trust you with what you are doing with the tools. You have made so much progress over the years! Two job offers! Wow!

My biggest problem with the lack of taste is learning how gross textures are. Food has a terrible texture. Haha so no extra broccoli for me right now!

I am doing some laundry. I've aired out my place. We had another day of sunshine and so I got a walk in today. I'm definitely on the mend. What a relief.

I took the recycling out today, which felt really good.

Keep getting better Tatoulua (you too CM!)

Sorry about the No taste and smell. I think I'd be eating stuff that is good for me but I don't like..

Teacher workshop was great today! I also got two job offers, which was very flattering.

I bought myself two small tools (I had coupons, so the total was just over $3) I am not counting stuff for/from my studio in and out right now. It is too complicated with flow back and forth between home and school and making and selling work.

Dishes are mostly caught up.

Checking in. Battling covid. Made it outside today for a brief walk and some sunshine. No sense of taste or smell. Need to eventually eat.

Happy new world Lila!

Don't put anything on the table.

I hope you can find a thing to let go of today.

Enjoy your family!

Tatoulia - good for you making decisions while sick!

My house is messy again and I have things to take care of, but today I go to a really great teacher workshop for pottery teachers all day. There will also be a really nice lunch and an all day breakfast buffet, so I am giving myself unrestricted food today. That will give me a chance to see how much weight I have actually lost - the "average" adult has about 6lbs of food in the digestive tract at any given time, but if you are eating less, that goes down (and if you eat more it goes up, which is why you can suddenly "gain" or "lose" 5 lbs. - apparently you can stuff as much as 25 pounds of food in your body if you stretch everything out!) my new eating habits never leave me feeling full - only not hungry for a while.

Actually, that's the whole brain reset I need! My house, my body, my life. the goal should not be "full" the goal should be "enough." There should be room for something else if I really want it, but not just because I can.

Oh no CM! I am battling this like nobody's business. Only skimmed the posts. Ttyl. I've made some decisions about my stuff while sick. More later.

Spring will come. Yes!!! Hopeful!

CM argh! I am sorry you have covid. Get enough rest. I hope it's not too bad.

Totsdad and Tot showed up a couple of hours ago. I fed Tot, we watched some tv, read some books, played. Now she is running around helping her dad, who has brought the beds and dressers so they really are all sleeping here tonight. Wow! It's really happening. He is on his third load of stuff he is bringing in his truck.

This is going to be a whole new world!

The kitchen table has everything off it except Son's monitor he needs to move, a box of toy training stuff I am giving to a friend, and 2 cans of soup that need to be put in the pantry. Then I will wash the table, and we can have dinner tomorrow night.

The bar/counter is a whole 'nother matter!

My bedroom has a path from the door, to my bedside, to the bathroom. I cannot get to the closet or anything. The desk is piled with stuff.

The little bedroom that is storage is soo piled up you cannot take 3 steps, much less get to the bed or the closet or anything else.

I also worked on the recliner and got about half the stuff that was on it, put away (aka thrown madly into another room).

Oh no CM, I'm sorry you are sick again. Can you get the paxwhatever to make you get better faster?

Didn't get to do anything today because the covid test was positive. Bleah! 😛

Feeling kind of brain fogged. For the last day and a half the symptoms were vague but now they are becoming more clear, though I don't foresee this being any worse than the time in December. I have a regular doctor's appointment next week after the quarantine time and I'll ask her when I should get a new shot.

The only obvious place I may have caught it was the bunny house and I notified them. This time of year it's everywhere I suppose.

Roommate is still fighting off her crud and we are distancing. I sure hope we both feel a whole lot better very soon! Once again we will each have to regroup on our goals. That gets frustratingly time consuming just figuring out where one left off and what one had intended to do before everything crashed. The regrouping time is necessary yet it doesn't bring the satisfaction of actual accomplishment. Sigh...

Hi CM!

Did you get to go to mass?

Lila, I'm sorry I didn't come by today. We seem to have opposing busy days.

You did a lot today. Sorry about teen messing up your kitchen, but I am excited for tot!

Sometimes you just have to move the piles so you can function. It is ok. You have accomplished so much! Just keep putting things away after you use them, try not to bring things in, and work on the piles when you can. It isn't worth giving up the family meals you would miss if you worked straight from the table.

I taught all day, cleaned up my classroom, dropped off some books, started a fire because the house was cold, did my chores, and cooked myself dinner. Now I am trying to relax a bit.

Yes, Imbolc is Celtic/pagan originally (Neolithic period - end of the stone age) it was celebrated on the actual astronomical cross quarter. Now it has become Neo-pagan/Wiccan and is pegged to February 1. I am neither Pagan nor Wiccan, (nor anything with a capital letter) but I do feel tied to the earth and the seasons and the natural world and I like to observe the quarters and cross quarters to mark the rhythms of the year and to honor some of the traditions associated with them that seem to run a common thread of human experience through so many religious traditions.

This is the cross quarter of new beginnings, fresh starts, and hope. The lighting of candles in the darkness, the purification of the Virgin Mary, the first planting of seeds.. (I will start some peppers on Sunday) winter will end. Spring will come.

update for Friday -

The kitchen table is about halfway cleared. Mostly, I moved things to other spaces, which is annoying. I did make space in a closet for some things, but I also took stuff off the table and literally opened the door to my bedroom and threw it in on top of a pile, to be sorted later. I also took things and stuck them in the little storage bedroom, again, for later sorting. Sigh.

But, I also threw out some papers and such, and put a few items where they actually belong. I made a stack of reusable grocery bags to put into my car for shopping.

I also had an experience I never want to have again - I baked some brie fresh out of the package, but expired... and took a bite on a cracker. It was spoiled and SO VILE. It did not smell bad but it was horrid. Ack!

What are you all up to today? I'm going back to working on the hoard piles.

FYI, I started a new thread called Lost and Found. Check it out!

CM, I think we posted at the same time last night!

So Candlemass, that is a Catholic holiday? And the others are Celtic right? It is interesting to learn of different traditions. I never even knew what Lent was until a few years ago. Our church has a special Ash Wednesday and then before Easter, a Maundy Thursday event which I never heard of either. I thought it was all pretty weird, but now I enjoy it, and the marking of the seasons.

TotsDad is bringing more things today. He said the goal is for them to be all moved in by Sunday. It is all very exciting and Tot is thrilled. She is ALWAYS asking if she can spend the night here and I often say no because I have to work in the morning, but now she will get to spend the night every night! They have not told her about that yet.. she is going to be so happy, lol. It is nice to be so loved.

That said, my kitchen is pretty clean. The table and counter/bar are piled high and I have to get those done this weekend so we can all eat together. It is piled high with stuff that was in the huge room we cleared. It is the last of the sorting from downstairs and the garage... so, for some reason I am quite resistant to it. Please encourage me!

I hope people will be posting today. I'll be back!

Tatoulia, covid!! ugh, I am so sorry you are sick! Get better soon! SubC, I will have to look up all those holidays. Except groundhog day, I know that one. I'm sorry you were alone a lot this week but glad CM came and posted. I'd like to make a goal of posting more often. I work very long days Tues and Weds, and some Thurs. And Sun. But, I would like to come post if I get home before 9pm.

I am so tired I am going to bed soon.

This morning I got freed from one meeting so instead, I stayed home longer and did the things I would normally do the morning of my day off:
- dishes
- stove
- counters
- trash
- consolidate laundry

I got the kitchen rather nice but when I came home from work Teen had spilled stuff all over and left dirty dishes out. I cleaned it again.

TotsDad and Tot came over tonight and brought some things. He says they are not sick anymore and will be moving in this weekend! Wow, big changes!

I'm off tomorrow so will post more and will catch up on a few older posts. My kitchen table is 2 - 3 feet deep. Goals..

Tatoulia, I'm sorry you had covid - it's the pits. Right now I have a "something that isn't nothing but surely not covid again" whilst roommate has been dealing with her super bad cold, hopefully by tomorrow beginning to get better. She tested negative for covid at the height of it. Could be that I have allergies or a lesser version of the cold. Winter sickness season, bah!

I'll probably do a test in the morning. I'd wanted to go to Mass for Candlemas but everything is so up in the air. Maybe watch it on TV.

Didn't expect things to become disorganized and weird again so quickly. Thought I'd been doing well in early January. Now things seem confusing and stalled out. Hoping this slump won't last.

Hi Tatoulia!

I'm so sorry you were sick!

I'm glad you could check in, and I hope you have a quick and full recovery!

I worked in the yard some today. I was mostly reminded that I have very little stamina. No house, school, or pottery progress was made, but no real set backs either. A few dishes and a bit of laundry accumulated.

My back is sore.

Been sick with full blown covid. Starting to feel human again. First time having covid. It was terrible.

Good evening.

I dropped off the recycling. The books are still in my car because 1) there was no parking anywhere near the door and 2) there was a woman going in with an entire shopping cart of books and I did not want to wait behind her.

Tomorrow starts a long "weekend" of holidays - imbolc on the first, Candlemas and Groundhog Day on the second, and the cross quarter at 2:38 a.m. on the 4th. CM, are you doing anything special?

I have a long list for tomorrow. I will try to get through as much of it as I can. It is definitely too long, but it is varied, so whatever mood I'm in there should be something productive I can get into.

CM, thanks for posting no matter what. It helps me feel less alone.

I have two things to say about the depression etc. - 1) sometimes, when I am feeling better, I look back and think it wasn't so bad. But I live with a person who has physically moved me around and verbally directed me to eat and wash and he objectively informs me that it was in fact so bad. 2) I also am not so fond of labels - having named myself over the fact that I have never sought an official label due to my faith that "it's not really that bad."

Or, as I tell people "the only thing I've ever been diagnosed with is anemia. Otoh, the only things I've ever been tested for are hypothyroid and anemia."

School day today. Maybe I will drop the recycling and take the books.

My old introductory thread dated May 30, 2015 - curious as to whether copy pasting the link will work...

https://hoardingcleanup.com/message-board/?msgbrd=1&topic=12435

I don't know if I was writing this today if I would say I actually have depression, I believe I was just on stress overload. PTSD likewise I doubt if I would say; not that I never had a few unhappy or scary things happen, but I don't know if it's full blown like a diagnosis. Maybe I'm just wrestling with the whole labeling thing. Meh. I go through times of reconsidering the narrative; probably lots of us do as life perspectives shift and change. We do the best we can generally, and try to find what might work better than what came before.

That's deep enough for now!

The last few days have still been harder to get going on much, but it will pick up again. Yesterday I did do a huge cleanup of the bunny cages and litterboxes. Roommate has been sick; thank God it's not covid. Could be severe allergies or just a bad cold. I'm fine so far. The cleanup of the bunny area should help both of us - and the bunnies.

Tomorrow I need to go to the bunny rescue house again and do more bunny care and computer stuff; then I should be able to do most of the computer part from home (or perhaps the library - it has been forever since I've had a productive library session).

Now that the weather doldrums have lifted, I do intend to get back on track with other projects that I had been doing 3-4 weeks ago.

I'm behind on everyone's posts too, hope to catch up soon. I prefer to post in response to what you all say, not just my isolated monologue, but better that than no post at all.

It is dark (overcast)
It is cold
It is wet outside.

Somebody come talk t9 me!

I can't find the Manila folders. Did I get rid of the Manila folders?

I did find the piano book I've wanted for Bean for two weeks that I finally told Bean I probably gave away.

I did add a couple of books to the out pile.

I did recycle four old fairbooks that I found in a file drawer while I was search8ng for Manila folders.

Full disclaimer, I tore a page out of three of them, because my kid was on fairboard those years. I did not tear out the grainy, basically unrecognizable picture of my other kid who was the reason I was keeping the 4th book. Also, I recycled the feedback page from his poultry project when he was ten. I'm giving myself half credit on the "things out" list.

I have a fire going in the wood stove, but it's not enough.

Good morning!

How is everyone?

Tatoulia, did Emiko help you last night?

Lila, what is the news on totfam?

Hi CM, hi Hope!

Bean and I went to library story time yesterday because his momma left for work from my house and I picked him up from his daddy a bit later than usual. It was ok. (His fever went away on Sunday)

Bean was not interested in the fingerplays and insisted on watching the playing with silk scarves activity from the doorway, but he was polite and attentive during the stories. A lot of the children were wandering around talking.

I had a little trouble telling if some of the women were moms or grandmothers (sometimes people think I am Bean's mom) But the three younger ones who each brought a child in, dropped all their stuff on the floor next to their chair, and immediately got on their phones never to look up again were definitely moms. They just wanted a break.

I signed up for the March/April session of classes at the downtown studio yesterday. I'm taking a sculpture class from an incredibly talented instructor. I'm a bit nervous, but I'm trying to push myself. It will be Monday nights, so I will take Bean all the way home (he lives seven minutes from the studio) his parents will like that.

It is still raining too much here and my pasture is flooded. The ducks are incredibly happy but the rest of the livestock are just annoyed.

I'm hoping to make some kind of progress in the house today, as well as working in my studio.

It is snraining here too.

Dh and I cleaned up the kitchen and he made a huge batch of heavy winter vegetable stew. I brought in wood and he made a fire. All I've done so far this afternoon is sit in front of the fire with a belly full of stew.

Sorry for the poor reading comprehension, SubC! Yes keep your daughter safe. You are lucky to be near each other.

Lila, I'm not surprised that you burned out. You've been doing a lot

I had a miserable night's sleep. I was clenching my teeth and had a terrible headache. No good. At one point, I thought I had a fever because I was freezing. I may be on the cusp of coming down with something.

It's either raining or snowing out. Hard to tell. I am going to try to get to grocery store. My friend Emiko is coming for dinner tmr night and she'll get things organized here.

Good morning!

Dh and I had a nice time at the concert last night.

It is not my Dd who is sick, Bean was sick (his fever is gone this morning) and my Dd has been staying with us so she didn't get his fever because she is newly pregnant and has had two miscarriages in just over a year. They are trying to be super careful this time.

They don't have tv at her house, so she will probably go home tonight after the ravens game (we don't have tv either, but we have a projector and can stream the game onto a big screen.)

Lila, you got a lot done yesterday - slow and steady. It's hard when other people set you back.

CM, it makes me happy that you have your cousin now.

Tatoulia, I'm glad you are making progress on your bags. CM's link is missing a ":" if you open it in a new window you can edit it.

I apparently never introduced myself in welcome and I have no idea when I showed up. Nony and Joan were still active back then. I think of Tillie every full moon. (And other times)

I miss road. And I hope Hope did not leave.

We have an event at school today for the kids to show off projects. I told people I was coming, but none of my kids asked me about it, or told me about what they were going to do, the weather is really grey, and my daughter is here, so I think I will stay home.

Dh is in a cleaning up mood, so I guess I will go help him.

heyyyy people! Nice to read your posts! I am jealous of having sun but not of the struggle. Isn't that how it always is?

I burned right out. The last few things I got done were:

- get second load out of dryer and put everything away
- heat up a potato and put broccoli soup over it for dinner
- pick up a couple more things

I am too done, and the table and chair are still piled with 80% of the junk. I did not work on my bedroom except for putting away the washed clothes. But the kitchen is quite a bit better.

I work tomorrow. I need to call TotsDad and find out why they have not moved in yet.

Okay I'm making decisions. Going well.

Hi everyone! Great work today, Lila! Wow! SubC I'm sorry your daughter is sick!

Cm I could not open the link. Upon reflection, I believe I started her in 2014, because I got rid of my storage space as of Nov 28, 2014. That summer, I had set a goal of Dec 31 so imagine my joy when I did it!

I'm going to out on some music and do some stuff around here. I need to get through these bags! I picked up my rug and then stopped by a shop to say hello to a friend of my Swiss friend. Then I stopped at grocery store and bought seltzer. I had probably just enough time to drop off at goodwill but I became nervous about getting the zip car back and decided I didn't have enough (a half bag) to justify chancing it on the traffic. So I'm going to force myself to go through my stuff now. Mom's stuff.

I did stop by mom's on my way back from dropping off the car. Old habits. Nice to see some people! Then I made lunch and fell asleep.

The Sun came out above Wichita this afternoon! And right now it is still somewhat light outside. It's kind of cute, my cousin who moved here is like me in that she hates winter too, and we text back and forth our grumbling about it. So we shared the joy of the moment when the clouds started to dissipate.

This past week has not been everything I would have wished. Times of great annoyance, like when I struggled to do that mail merge. Or the morning - grossness alert - I was in a chipper mood then stepped barefooted in cat vomit. (We have an ongoing problem with frequency of cat vomit, and the vet can't find anything definitive; most likely it's nerves because each of them would've done better as an only cat, but here we are.)

So I'm hoping and praying next week will be less aggravating.

Lila, I'm intrigued by your hour idea. Might be I could adapt it to my schedule somehow. Even if just as a check in with myself.

SubC, I couldn't remember until I looked back whether you had been with us as long as Tatoulia and I have. Glad you're here though.

Everybody keep plugging along, Poco a Poco!