Hi 🙂

Looks like we have all been pretty busy.
WAY TO GO!!!! 😀

Well, today I finished the living room area and then did all the dining room area.
Then I got the kitchen area all ready to do tomorrow.
Since the living room area, dining room area and kitchen area are all in the same room, it will be nice when every area of wall and ceiling are all washed.

Also got the usual daily stuff done.
Laundry, dishes and cat related tasks.
Been taking my time washing the walls and ceiling. Haven't been bothering to do any other type of cleaning in these areas because I plan to do that afterwards.

In doing all this cleaning I have only found three small spiders, Scooter ate them for me.
But absolutely no other types of bugs. 😀

Diane, have a great time at work tomorrow. 😀
Tatoulia, good luck and best wishes. 😀

What a lovely post, Diane. I honestly don't know how you do what you do--so much labor! Ah the first really cold night --stay warm and enjoy the air.

Always happy to hear from each of you. Have a wonderful night.

Ps I hadn't realized that I repeated myself re mom's condition. Thank you all for your support. I will be there tomorrow night, after work. My boyfriend has boxes for me and I will get to work once mom is done with her dinner. I need to remind myself to Be Kind. Be Kind. Be Kind. Kindness is all we need.

Tat thanks for telling us all that is going on with you and mom. I did not see my mom as a hoarder until I had to empty her apartment. Just saw her as messy. I support you and your kindness to your mom. Tillie, you are such a good girl, eating well, taking breaks while working.
I woke up too early again today. Got up, finished scraping steps, got up on roof, cleaned chimney with chimney brush, then cleaned out the stove. Washed dishes. Watered bushes, then took a shower, washed hair and went to work. Been reading my medicare book that came in mail today.
I have no energy left, darn, really want to get more done, maybe will get second wind tonight.
Get to work with a friend tomorrow, looking forward to that, we have a 45 minute drive to another town, so will get to catch up on her trip to coast this weekend. Will work at a bank and a lumber mill tomorrow, so will be lots of fun. Today went to 2 companies that have the happiest employees, with good friendships, I never had that at my jobs, always focused on work, not friendships, so today realized how lucky I am to work tomorrow with a friend. Today I was more open to befriending the person I worked with, need to be more accepting of people that have different values.
Going to be under freezing tonight so that motivated me to clean stove, now will make a warm fire in wood stove. Want to clean out a teapot that I put on stove, increases humidity in here plus can have tea whenever I want, also so fun to cook soup on wood stove.
Fire starter is signing off.

Tillie that sounds like hard work--congratulations on the deep cleaning. Good to hear from Mel and Jar. Jar, I can't go to anyplace with vintage stuff right now. I do not miss digging for treasures--the treasures just became too much for me and I feel like I've od'd on it.

I was up at 3:00 this AM worrying about where to start on my mother's place. I spoke with her last night to give her a pep talk. I keep telling her that it breaks my heart to see how she's living. Again, I knew it was messy but I didn't ever really see it before. She has one tiny little area to sit and eat, and she's jammed up against an overflowing bookcase filled with books, junk, magazines, all of which are just waiting to topple on to her. It's a mess. And I know it's going to be a struggle but it will be worth it.

Tomorrow's the night. All suggestions gladly accepted. I actually thought I'd start on the overflowing bookcase by the bathroom first because it looks like it has fewer Things That Must Stay and it will be good practice to get rid of stuff.

Regards to all.

Hi Tat, and thanks!! 🙂 I knew there was someone else here who had a love for vintage things, but I couldn't remember who.

Hi there, Mel! I sell most of my stuff through an online buy/sell site. If it doesn't sell within 1-2 weeks, I re-list it and lower the price. Sometimes I have regrets...when the customer is all happy and excited to receive my stuff, I start thinking whoa, if it's that great, maybe I should keep it?!?!?

Hi all, and happy Monday!

It's such a good feeling to accomplish something even if it's not "huge" in the scheme of things. Every little bit helps. Tillie, I love the idea of the washed walls. This gives me something new to put on my mental list of things I can do around the house.

Tatoulia, lots of support to you. I'm glad that it sounds like your mom is willing to 'make a deal' to get some stuff out.

Those of you who have sold stuff... How did it go for you? If it didn't sell, did you re-list it? Did you have a hard time sending it off once it was sold?

I'm trying to hold myself accountable to doing at least a little something every day. Today I cleaned the bathroom sink and the toilet, and hung up a bunch of clothes that I washed on Friday. I'm currently relaxing but I think in a little while I'm going to grab two boxes from the other bedroom and sort through them. My favorite feeling is when I get everything out of a box and i can break down the box and put it in my recycling bin. I sold Avon for a while so I have tons and tons of Avon boxes all over the place (all filled with stuff, of course).

Sometimes I just want to take everything, all of my stuff, and throw it into a garbage bag, but i'm so paranoid that I'll throw away something important or something that someone can use to commit identity theft. But the idea of just stuffing everything into garbage bags until it's all gone is extremely tempting.

It does occur to me that once I get rid of all of the excess paper and trash and get some things given away and/or donated... i'm still going to have too much stuff and I'm still going to need to work on that. If I think too much about it I get overwhelmed.

I hope we all have wonderful Tuesdays!

Hello 🙂

Hope you all are having a good day today too. 🙂

Hi Jar Lady! The color scheme sounds really pretty. I too love vintage items, which I have been working in to get rid of. I love them all, and have significantly pared down my collection. One thing I did is I tried to keep representative pieces rather than all of them. I also was able to let some things go by saying "I loved them enough." I ended up donating my items because I was afraid that 'selling on eBay' would end up being, for me, code for 'let's continue to keep'. I applaud you and LR for finding a way to sell your items! That makes me very happy, even though I can't do it myself.

Hello everyone! I plan to do more fall cleaning today, and also want to rearrange my spare room. I have a lot of pretty vintage items stored in boxes, which I want to pull out to change the look of the room.....trying to work with a white/pale yellow color scheme.

Hugs to all, now let's take on the day!

Thank you LR for the suggestion. Last night I stopped by mom's and was there til about 11. We talked about all sorts of things including reducing her items. It is so shocking to realize she has one little area on her dining table where she can eat her breakfast. And the chair is jammed against a bookshelf that is piled beyond its capacity. It is uncomfortable and packed and poised to fall. We talked about reducing books and what it's going to take for her to agree to get rid of some of them. I mentioned sample titles to get a feel for the level of difficulty in getting rid of books. I also made the suggestion that we get her 3 stuffed bookshelves down to one, meaning she can keep one third of her book hoard. I will go over Tuesday or Wednesday night and start the process

I could tell she has opened her eyes a sliver because she did say if she ends up in a wheelchair, it would never fit.

We have made a deal that if she lets me take out six boxes of stuff, I will take her to a specific place she wants to go.

This will not go easy but i will be starting this week. Digging Out looks like a particularly good book because it appears to be addressing exactly what I am addressing, an elderly hoarder who has safety/fall/balance issues.

Oh and I told her last night that she's done it 'her way' got the last 10 years in her place and we are doing the next 10 my way--goodbye clutter.

Thank you for your support. This is going to be a toughie. When I cleaned out the trash hoarder's place, it was emotionally easy because he just let me do it without a fight. Of course it took a terrible toll on me, seeing how he lived. But it brought me here to deal with all my stuff.

Diane, I'm sorry about that wreck that was near you. It really upsets me when those sorts of things happen. Yea for laundry, dishes, and for having some fun. (I also relate to things getting cleaned up after spills, such as the inside of my refrigerator.)

Tillie, yea for the rain!

Tatoulia, many hugs as you deal with the situation with your mom and your feelings about it. If you don't have the book called Digging Out, I would encourage you to get it. It will help you as you try to work with your mom on this issue.

Me: For part of my goals for the day, I plan to spend 30 minutes looking for items I can sell. I've already set aside a few give-away and recycle items.

Hugs to everybody!

Nice to hear from everyone. Have a lot going on but wanted to take a minute to say hello. Diane, enjoyed the fact that you reacted to your spills with humor. Good to keep moving forward! As to having a job and dealing with hoard, I'm not sure that anything makes dealing with a hoard any easier OR any harder, it's just hard no matter what. I don't think my situation would've been any different if I only worked part time.

Ok, I realized something about two weeks ago and I've been upset ever since. My mother, who lives in assisted living and is walking distance from my house, is a hoarder. I knew she had messy issues and I recall how difficult it was to get her to let go of stuff when she sold her place(10 years ago). I just hadn't realized she's a hoarder until about two weeks ago and I was upset. There is stuff piled everywhere. Now, I see my mother all the time but I guess I never really noticed it. We had a very difficult discussion that night and mainly she's in denial. I have now convinced her to let me come over and clear out her place. She has worked through her anger at me and I've agreed to hold things up one at a time and let her decide without a fight from me. We will hopefully start Tuesday night since it promises to be cooler and I really need cool weather to be in her sticky, packed place. I also will have access to boxes on Tuesday night.

This has been very, very upsetting for me to open my eyes. I am very upset that I never noticed. I just thought she was a slob. She cannot open her closets, there is stuff everywhere.

I know I don't have to ask for strength. I know I will find it here.

Hi T&T, nice hearing how life is for you. Rain is so great to clear the smoke, happy for you T.
I worked until 6pm last night then to Costco, then on way home, had to slam on breaks, fatal accident in front of me, took a long time to get home. So today I washed dishes then painted some stuff for my relaxation. Then decided to take deck umbrella down, knocked over paint on deck, what a mess, fun cleaning it up, slapping it on a board. It was can of red hi gloss enamel, so was funny on my newly painted deck (from this summer) I also knocked over the cup of water with paint brush from earlier this morning. It was on kitchen counter. Seems I have to knock something over on counter to motivate me to clean it. I made a fire in wood stove, cool day. One load of laundry, still on line.
Today I was thinking how much harder it is to work on hoard while working, thinking of people on here with real jobs, not easy, happy my job is only 2 months.
Tomorrow I plan to cook some soup, vacuum.

Thank you Tatoulia and my cats thank you too. 🙂

Still raining here! 😀
Went into town, shopping, and almost everybody is in a GREAT mood because of all this wonderful rain.
Sun has not shone at all today and that makes it cold, 40s to 50s but that's just fine too. 🙂
Splurged on some mini candy bars, Snickers.
They will come in handy when the chocolate cravings strike.
When we came home Scooter ran out the door and then ran right back in. LOL
He hates getting wet. 😀

So, what have you all been up to?
Missing reading about your days.

Tillie I've been praying for better weather/clearer air for you! And of course my cat has been praying for Marty and Scooter!

Much love--I must say that everyone's Autumn clean up plans and winter preparations are very inspiring! Thank you all for your stories!

WAY TO GO!!! Tatoulia 🙂
For keeping up with the maintenance.

Started raining at 10:45 last night and is still going on!!!!! 😀

HAPPY DANCE!:D

So happy to have time his morning to catch up on everyone's posts. You are all doing great! Busy week for me but kept up with basics--all dishes done and our away, kitchen counters clear and clean, all laundry done and put away.

Will write more later. Stay well, keep up the good work, and I'm so glad you are all here!

LOL!!!
The garage is stuffed floor to rafters, with a narrow goat path down the center.
No way I could possibly maneuver through everything to find it.
He would be furious when the credit card bill came and he saw that I bought insulation, when he already has insulation in the hoard, somewhere.

My chili turned out fantastic!
I have 3 days worth in the fridge to eat now and 3 one gallon ziplock baggies 2/3 filled of it in the freezer to eat later.
I love having home cooked meals in the freezer all ready to eat.
Keeps me from nibbling on nonsense when I am hungry and no time or inclination to cook.

I also made a big double batch of corn bread and wrapped & froze a lot of that too.
Goes so well with the chili. 🙂

Thank you LR, I am feeling better. Today was restful and more vitamin C should knock things out soon.

Tillie, your bison chili sounds yummy! Can you order some insulation online? Or while he's at work can you look in an area where he may have put what you need?

Hi 🙂

Got a good night's sleep last night so woke up with energy and motivation.
Temperatures have dipped over night into the low 40s.
Winter comes early at the higher elevations.

Started a huge pot of chili soon as I got up.
Special chili, made with ground bison! 😀
Smells so wonderful simmering on the burner.

Just did an inventory of my cold/flu supplies.
Have everything I would need except fresh lemons which should be easy enough to get should/when I need them.

Have my & the cat's winter bed linens all ready.
Quilts, comforters, flannel sheets, afghans, blankets.

Have enough winter clothes all ready.
Jeans, warm tops, socks, flannel night gowns, shoes/boots, coats, gloves, hats.

I need window & door insulation.
Scooter (the cat) has removed what I already had in place on the two doors and one window.
My hoarder won't let me buy any because he says he already has lots of it, somewhere.
He can not find it in his hoarded garage.
This is so frustrating and always happens.

WAY TO GO!!! everybody for all your accomplishments! 😀
Even if you have just been doing the mental work of processing through all your emotions and thoughts.
This process is very important to getting you to where you want to be and keeping you on the right tract.

Dianne: I'm so sorry you're feeling ill. I do hope you feel much better soon!

Mel99: I hope you find the source of the odor. It's great that you got rid of a lot of things in there while trying to find it! Way to go!

On the Sunday night chat, I mentioned that the next area I want to work on (with more concentrated effort) is my living room. Well, yesterday in the middle of the day (when I was present), my "main" TV set (the one in the living room) died. Perfect timing! Now I can take it (and a few other things) to be recycled. Getting it out of the way will allow me to more easily access other things in that living room that I need to deal with. I don't plan to buy a replacement TV right now. Have a very small one that I can use if I "need one."

Hugs to everybody.

Thank you, Mel. 🙂

Your enthusiasm is wonderful. It will give you so much energy to continue your work. WTG!

Dianne, I hope you're feeling better soon. There seems to be a lot of sickness going around so hopefully you're at the tail end of it.

It's so exciting reading about everyone prepping for winter. We'll have decent weather for a couple more weeks but I have lots on my to-do list to get ready.

I came home on Sunday night after being away for the weekend to a strong mold odor in my bedroom. There are no pipes on that side of the house so it wouldn't be a pipe, but I've searched and haven't been able to find anything that's wet that would be contributing to it. i've had the air filter and fans running but it does't seem to be making any difference. This weekend I'll check the gutters.

This morning before leaving for work, in searching for something that might be causing the smell, I filled a grocery bag with trash, pulled out a couple of clothing items for donation, and filled a large tote bag with books. I noticed a book drop box near my boyfriend's house so I got excited at the thought of being able to get them out of my house and have them be potentially used by someone else.

Have a great day everyone!

The last couple of nights I've been fighting off flu-like symptoms. We got vaccines a week ago with no problems. During the day I'm congested, achey everywhere, sneezing, coughing, bit of a sore throat. By nightfall I have a fever and chills. I've been slamming it with massive doses of vitamin C and chicken soup.

Taking a break from afternoon tasks and reading posts. Dianne and Tillie, your plans/prepping for winter is impressive. Yea for you! I'm in an area where winter is not as "challenging," but there will still be faucets to insulate and a few other such tasks. That thought of "fall cleaning" (to have the home pleasant for the winter months) sounds like a great part of the plan. I hope you get the needed rain, Tillie. Have a good day, everyone.

My winter has been prepped. The house is solid against leaks and drafts and the furnace guy always comes in early September to give it a tune-up. I had oil delivered last week which will cover us until the spring.

I think one difference too is that, for me, being a hoarder meant I had lots of stuff that made me feel safe but was unable to access much of it. This kind of seasonal prepping reminds me of the organized mom I was for decades. It feels good to be on that side of it again.

Good morning. 🙂

TTYL 😀

Thanks Tillie, best hug I had all day, actually the only hug!!!!!! Work was good. Still raining, rained all day which is unusual here. Hope you get some rain Tillie.
Plan to cook soup tonight, need some healthy food to feel better. Too bad I threw the mouse away, good protein Tillie.
Sure hope everyone is getting lots done. I am planning to finish washing a few dishes, cook soup and watch tv and give myself a break tonight. Tomorrow morning hope energy is up so I can do maintenance in here.

Hi Tatoulia 🙂

Hi Diane 🙂
WAY TO GO!!!! for tossing that flood soaked fabric! 😀
Does sound like a lot of fun organizing all the other items.
Happy Dancing about no leaks between the areas! 😀
YEA!!! for tossing the mouse too! 😉 lololol
Enjoy the clinic time. (((hugs)))