.....Tillie, its so strange cuz i look at the odd differences in our situations...i see your hoarder as having help to make the place really nice, and myself wanting that so bad...i know the only reason my Dad & his Mom(who i take after both) had nice places is cuz they each had a partner that kept it nice...otherwise, theyd have lived like i am living...i also wonder what you need to have things better? If it is just his willingness to let you fix it up and toss stuff? If theres a way you could fix up a corner of the property with a little cottage, if you could afford it, or what you would do, if you could? What would be your ideal situation, if you could have anything you want? 😀 ~♡~

.....oh, and i can pay myself $1000. a day for working on my place?!! ha ha ha 😀 And it is weird, cuz when i get objective & look at it like if i were hired to help with my place, somehow it makes it much easier...decisions come easier & clearer...the whole thing seems less overwhelming?! ~☆♡☆~

Tillie, thank you!!! 😀 The only 'company' anywhere near me is that ex army drill sergent or whatever she was, that kept asking me how legal my place was & how i should take drugs or im in denial, etc., etc. Or i could try a regular housekeeping service, but i was thinking how what gave me so much power & happiness when i quit drugs, was cuz i did it on my own. I did not expect anyone to save me, like AA...so, i need to quit wanting someone to save me from my mess & just get stong & independent with this as well!!! ~☆~Making my place lovely, is my new drug recovery~☆~

Hi Anonymoniker 🙂
Thank you (((hugs)))

Wow. Tillie, i wish you could have your place be nice, the way youd like it. That other thread about scam helpers really scares me cuz i know there are local people like that here. It is one of the main reasons i havent hired help.
Joan, its good to hear from you! How are you feeling these days? I dont like to use anything toxic around my place. I have cats, plus wildlife and id just prefer using natural things. The peppermint oil seems to have helped, tho taping up those holes likely helped too? No spiders since!!! Theres also food grade diatomatious earth, which im thinking of using?
I slept later than id wanted today...my duties for the next 3 days got cancelled, so instead of getting up & getting goals here done, like i was so excited about doing before going to sleep, i just slept half the day cuz i didnt 'have to'get up....geeez....

Wow. Tillie, i wish you could have your place be nice, the way youd like it. That other thread about scam helpers really scares me cuz i know there are local people like that here. It is one of the main reasons i havent hired help.
Joan, its good to hear from you! How are you feeling these days? I dont like to use anything toxic around my place. I have cats, plus wildlife and id just prefer using natural things. The peppermint oil seems to have helped, tho taping up those holes likely helped too? No spiders since!!! Theres also food grade diatomatious earth, which im thinking of using?
I slept later than id wanted today...my duties for the next 3 days got cancelled, so instead of getting up & getting goals here done, like i was so excited about doing before going to sleep, i just slept half the day cuz i didnt 'have to'get up....geeez....

HI Dave 😀

Thank you (((hugs)))
So nice to hear from you! 🙂

Things are still extremely difficult around here
but, I just have to do the best I can and patiently wait until things turn desperate enough to act on anything.
Meanwhile, I just keep doing what I can do.
With the areas I have declared "NO CLUTTER ZONES" there is more than enough to keep my mind occupied with "busy work".
As long as I don't have to interact with him I can do this.
Having to deal with him during the water heater fiasco made me a nervous wreck and subsequently physically ill.
But I wanted hot water so I pressed the issue until I got what I wanted even though he became quite angry/violent with my insistent unreasonable demand. LOL ;D
I try to get out of the house and socialize at least once a week and find that really helps lift my spirits.
I have sewing, beading, movies and reading, things I truly enjoy to fill my time.
The cats, all seven of them, are wonderful companions.
Living beside a wildlife sanctuary, I have so much wonderful wildlife visiting me on a regular basis.
I love to go out at sundown and watch the bat ballet in the twilight.
I keep watch on the night sky and enjoy the planets, comets and constellations.
There is so much here to appreciate and be grateful for and I do appreciate and enjoy all the good in my life. (((hugs)))

tillie,
If you exchange email with Cory on the side, Please mention that declutter your home thread and my post in it to him. Just wasn't sure how much his schedule is allowing him to look in lately.
thanks.
Dave

Tillie,

I'm not on here much recently. I just finished something, looked at the computer screen, saw the hoarding cleanup link and thought specifically of you. Sometime ago when I looked in for a minute, I saw a post about a bunch of stuff weighing you down in the head. Another time I saw a post where you were talking about not knowing how to help people-same here. There is a bunch of stuff that comes around here that is somewhere between extremely difficult and impossible to solve unless the poster and the situation are separated. I hope you have been finding some days to have things in your situation that are pleasant and rewarding for you. Think about you from time to time. Regards. Dave.

Hi Everybody 🙂

Was up and running all day!
Didn't get much sleep last night because Scooter (the evil cat) was running around playing all last night.
Hope to get to bed soon but it's not even 6:30pm yet.

Hi Tatoulia 🙂
Good luck moving the ACs out and gaining a little more free space over the winter. 🙂
WTG! for doing the dishes!

Good Night 🙂

Anony, I had someone once tell me that there was "new" stuff you could sprinkle around the outside of your house, and it would prevent spiders from coming in. This was maybe 10 years ago. I don't know if you would want to try it, or how toxic it may be, but I don't think it was too expensive.

You might ask around at a Loew's or a Home Depot. It's been on my list to look into since I heard about it, but I haven't investigated the product(s) yet.

Good Morning 🙂

Just a drive by post...
Have to do a lot of stuff this morning before I can head out to the grocery store.
Will post more later on today 🙂

Hello everyone

Not much to report here-got out for a walk today and didn't do much else. I kept up with the dishes but basically just fell asleep after the workday. I don't like doing that but will break the habit next week. Today, I just wanted to rest.

Tillie you are good to keep moving toward winter. I need to get my ACs out of the house--they are the portable ones (not the window units) and they take up a lot of room. I need to convince BF to get them out this weekend.

Hope all is well,

T

Tatoulia, that feeling of putting something away in its newly cleared space is awesome!!! Good for you! That is fantastic!!! 😀
Tillie, it is so inspiring how you have everything planned ahead of what needs done! Youre right about the winter being the best time for dealing with spider areas...i hadnt thought about that when i started...
I had that same reoccurring dream about my ex last night...im trying to get away, and my phone isnt useable, or isnt mine...it must mean something that until i understand that, ill keep having the dream...
~☆~Happy day to all!!!~☆~

Good Morning Everybody 🙂

Hi Tatoulia 🙂
WAY TO GO!!! for putting away the new shoes! 😀
I sure understand the space verses the stuff conundrum.
This house is very tiny & old without any real storage/closets.
To keep all the things that I need, I have to be extremely picky about keeping the things that I want.

Hi Anonymoniker 🙂
You're Welcome (((hugs)))
Keep up the good job of moving out clutter and disturbing long undisturbed areas to chase out those spiders.
Eventually they will get the notice that they are evicted.
There are millions of spiders here in the carport, garage and yard clutter because all the stuff has sat undisturbed for many, many years.
The safest time to move that stuff is Winter when the spiders are cold and mostly all dead and the snakes are hibernating. 🙂

To Winterize this place I still need to wrap the outside faucets & drain & store the hoses.
But I still need to periodically water a few more weeks.
Then I must cover the old single pane windows with plastic to keep the outside weather from coming inside.
Will do that at the end of the month because I hate having that plastic covering/sealing all the windows till Spring.
The evaporative cooler still needs to be drained and covered but I need his help because my hands are too weak to get the sides off to drain it.
Maybe this weekend?

Good morning!

I bought new shoes on my way home from work last night and have put them on the closet. That's a bigger victory than you may think!

So far today I've dusted the dining room table and put out an autumnal pitcher and vase. Looks nice. Now to put away the summer display. That is a bigger task.

I keep telling myself, if I don't have room to put stuff, then I have too much stuff.

Great work on the spider situation!

I'll report back later. Beautiful sunny day and I have the windows open. Y2

Tillie, thank you so much for your grounded suggestion! It REALLY helped me!!! 😀

Tatoulia, thank you! It is hard on me and i feel like such a dang wimp cuz of it?! I got a 2nd spider and still completed my goals of today, which was to get a the holes & cracks taped closed & the curtain fixed, then i sprayed the peppermint oil solution EVERYWHERE! I FEEL SO HAPPY THAT I DID THAT, AND STOPPED BEING IMMOBILIZED BY THOSE &@#&#@* SPIDERS!!! 😀 And yes, tbe internet is an enormous time sucker-upper....but its sooo fun!!! 😀

*not hot out
*honestly

Someday I'll read what I write before I post. Today is not that day.

Hello friends!

Just getting home from work. Although it's not hotbour, I definitely overheated during the walk home (somewhere between a mile and two miles).

Tillie I'm glad you are ready for winter. Anonybhinestky the spider stories scare me--don't stop posting--you need to post these--very important to be yourself--but honestly my skin crawls. So proud of you for tackling this and making your home more livable.

Thank you both for your support. I have to tell you anony, a lot of the tasks on my Sunday/Monday list were accomplished in ten minutes. Amazing what I can do when I stop playing with the Internet.

Well it's after 8 and I need to make dinner. See you all tomorrow!

I was rolling along, taped up tbe cracks next to tbe door & was trying to re-pin the curtain when a big spider crawled out...i got him!!! HA!!! ....now i just need to cry & eat chocolate for a bit till i can go back...ha ha ;D

Tillie, i just read the rest of your post. You definitely have the right approach! Have you ever considered helping people with this stuff as a profession? Youd be sooo good at it & it seems to pay well, too?!! Id hire you at whatever you wanted to charge me! You are very wise and very grounded and very compassionate!!! Im glad you got your projects completed! CHEERS!!! 😀

Tillie, i just read the rest of your post. You definitely have the right approach! Have you ever considered helping people with this stuff as a profession? Youd be sooo good at it & it seems to pay well, too?!! Id hire you at whatever you wanted to charge me! You are very wise and very grounded and very compassionate!!! Im glad you got your projects completed! CHEERS!!! 😀

Tillie, i couldnt understand how spiders not being attracted to light, could be possible, so i looked it up, and what i found was, they arent attracted to light, but they eat bugs that are attracted to light. I cant even imagine if there are actually even more spiders hiding away where i cant see them?!! Im going to also spray some peppermint oil & water all around! Keeping up with the spider webs this time of year is almost impossible. As soon as i clear them, they put them right back up, often within an hour or 2! Ive never lived anywhere that was anything close to this hard to keep clean! Im sure that is a lot of how it got this way. If i can ever get things cleared and clean and sealed up, id imagine it wouldnt be so impossible to keep it nice...(sigh)...im so envious when i read stories on here about family members offering to help clean for loved ones. I wish i could hire someone, but there is no reason i shouldnt be able to do it myself...i just go round & round...
I had more dreams last night about my ex cuz it wouldve been our anniversary yesterday.... 🙁
Im planning to post later about all my achievements today in the kitchen! 😀

Good Morning Everybody 🙂

Hi Tatoulia 🙂
WAY TO GO!!! 😀
Since your October challenge goal is the kitchen
I think that is very doable.
Working on one specific room, you can make a lot of progress over this next month. 😀
Once your kitchen is all decluttered, cleaned, organized and fixed up it will make a wonderful difference for you. (((HUGS)))

Hi Anonymoniker 🙂
Spiders LOVE dark secluded places.
Lights at night do not attract them.
The Brown Recluse spider is named recluse because he prefers seclusion, like hiding in clutter and wood piles.
When I want to know how many Black Widows are around my house I go out looking at night with a flash light because that's when they crawl out of hiding.
Since birds eat spiders in the daytime, spiders would rather be active in the dark at night.
Inside my house spiders like to hide behind the bigger stuff like the TV, dressers or my secretary desk because those things rarely get moved.
I use a long thin "duster" to regularly evict them from behind things.
Letting in fresh air & sunshine, regularly moving or dusting behind furnishings and reducing clutter will greatly help keep them from nesting and reproducing in your home.
Also, keeping the exterior walls of the house free from clutter and foliage helps too.
There would still be new rogue spiders coming inside but you would notice and evict them sooner.
😀

Did a lot yesterday.
Moving slow today.
Warm cat blankets & warmer blankets for me are out of their storage bins.
Space heaters are in/unboxed and ready to go.
50 degrees at 10:30am.
Did lots of small tasks yesterday too.
Had several all planned or started, got frustrated because nothing was seeming to ever get done,
so, I stopped and concentrated on one task at a time until completion.
One right after the other all fell into place and were easily finished. 😀
I am much closer to being prepared for Winter weather now, feels good.

TTYS 🙂

Tatoulia, WOW!!! THAT IS AN AMAZING LIST OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR ONE DAY?!!...id be pleased as punch to get that done in a week...or even a month...ha ha Good job!!! ;D
Tillie, i laughed so hard at your explanation of my wanting to play instead of work being normal...ha ha...yes, i guess that is true!!! And youre right, i should use the fun stuff as a reward for working!!!
There were no spiders tonight...tho, the night isnt over yet...tomorrow, i have got to finish that kitchen corner project. Im thinking the new curtains not blocking the light from outside at night, maybe attracting the spiders in, rather than just me clearing that cupboard? Also, the door curtain needs to be fixed to block the light & i need to check for & block any openings...the spider thing has gone on long enough! Ive got to finish that project TOMORROW!!!

Hello everyone--just woke up from a nap.

What have I done lately? Well, including yesterday, these are my accomplishments:
All winter cat blankets freshened up and are ready for the cat
Changed sheets
Got new electric mattress pad and put on bed
All laundry done
Ran and emptied dishwasher
Garbage and recycling up and out
Vacuumed living room
Took a bag to goodwill
Got another bag for goodwill together and took to car
Put finished jigsaw puzzle in plastic bag and put in goodwill bag (I worked on a puzzle for a few days to ease my mind)

Felt good to make a list. Am washing some delicates now and as soon as they are hung up to dry I will go back to bed.

Anony--Having fun always makes more sense than cleaning up--but I've found that little projects don't take much time AND I am happier when house is cleaner. I can't escape that fact.

Tillie, I hope I actually achieve my challenge. I need to feel better about myself. The best way for me to do that is to take care of my house.

Anonymoniker,
You want to play and you don't want to declutter/clean.
Sounds like you are absolutely normal. 😀

Suggestion...
Make a rule for yourself that you will do some tasks before you allow yourself to go play.
Doesn't have to be a HUGE MAJOR WHOLE HOUSE or ROOM task
just something to get you closer to your goal.
Using your play time as a reward for doing these tasks might give you the motivation to do them.

While I am doing my chores I really look forward to whatever I have planned for after I get done.
Motivates me to get it done. 🙂

Thanks, Tillie, maybe it is just my phone & not the website? I got on here easy just now! Happy kitty caring!
Tatoulia, your October challenge sounds like a good one! Having a nice, clean kitchen is wonderful!!!....from what i can remember?!?...ha ha
Im really loving the drumming circles & keep going to more. I just heard about a drumming class, too...the thing is; do i decide to go with something fun that im really enjoying, and live for now, or do i instead, just keep my focus on fixing up my place? I need to strike a balance of both...that is always challenging....hmmm...if i could just actually get something accomplished in the time i allot for my place, everything would work out great...what is my problem? (sigh)

Thanks, Tillie, maybe it is just my phone & not the website? I got on here easy just now! Happy kitty caring!
Tatoulia, your October challenge sounds like a good one! Having a nice, clean kitchen is wonderful!!!....from what i can remember?!?...ha ha
Im really loving the drumming circles & keep going to more. I just heard about a drumming class, too...the thing is; do i decide to go with something fun that im really enjoying, and live for now, or do i instead, just keep my focus on fixing up my place? I need to strike a balance of both...that is always challenging....hmmm...if i could just actually get something accomplished in the time i allot for my place, everything would work out great...what is my problem? (sigh)