Feeling overwhelmed!!

Karma67

OK its got this bad now

I know what the problem is.....im feeling very low about my lack of housekeeping skills

The house is cluttered, BUT not dirty/grimey, i know ive got a problem with throwing anything out 'just incase i need it one day' It's not as bad as some houses u see on prog like how clean in ur house and life of grime...thank goodness!! But its still getting me down

Ive started today with cleaning the living room windows :A and now i'm in the kitchen with a big black bag throwing out old letters, broken stuff etc...just seems ive got to do this in EVERY room So much to do...and for little thanks i hasten to add

I've signed up to FLyLadys yahoo group for inspiration :T

One thing that doesnt help is that ive got a hubby who is just as bad....for example we have old lawnmower hanging about as he said he wanted to strip parts of it for spares for new one if we need them....we got new lawnmower in the spring!!:eek: Plus loads...and i mean loads, of spare PC parts that he salvages each time he upgrades his or my pc ! Unfortunately we don't have any large cupboards/spare room etc for this stuff to be stored in so it seems that its always hanging around the place Grrrr...anyway enuff moaning about him lol

I think i feel worse coz im a SAHM so have no excuse for not doing it, i dont work, at home all day so its sheer laziness on my part

SIGH

Sorry to moan...i spose im doing this for a bit of self help/light bulb moment...bit like going to an AA or GA meeting etc...

'Hi im Karma and i'm a rubbish housekeeper'

So please help/advise/inspire me if you have the time or inclination..i would greatly appreciate it

If your still reading this....Thanks

Back to the kitchen i go.... lol

EagerLearner

Hi Karma - start with the FlyLady 15 minute cleaning burst as it's quick and easy - the Fling Boogie I think it's called.

That can then often inspire to do more as you cant to keep up the uncluttered look, plus as it's only 15 mins you'd have to try reeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaalllllly hard to come up with a decent excuse NOT to do it!

Come on - off yer bum and get into the 15 minute FlingBoogie - make a start on a 'pile' that you walk past every day - get some black sacks and start Flinging! :T :T :T

Biddyrolo

Hi Karma, I sympathise as I have a OH who hates throwing things away and is untidy, while DD2 has elevated untidy to an art form, a quick glance in her room and you'd think the burglars had just left:rolleyes: You are not alone, there are days when I just think *why bother?* but I can't bear too much mess so I do try to keep on top. We can do it Karma.

seraphina

Sorry to hear you're down!

Get a reasonable sized cardboard box. Go through the house and when you find something you haven't used for a while or a piece of clutter, put it in the box. WHen the box is full, seal it with tape and write a date on it 3 or 6 months in the future. If by the date, you haven't opened the box to get anything out of it, chuck it without opening the box.

That's what I do every so often - I wish i was more disciplined to do it as a running thing all the time but I'm not!

Karma67

Thanks everyone for your helpful hints/advice and words of encouragement

Well the kitchen looks like a whirlwinds gone thru it lmao...things everywhere from cupbords shelves etc..

1/2 binbag later....and found use for hubby empty carlsberg box all 'important papers/letter/manuals etc bee put in there...now where do i put the box? lmao!!

Back to clean sides and shift last of the debris....:A

newlywed

I hated throwing things out. But I think it was flylady that said take an item you haven't used or have two of. Ask yourself "who will appreciate this?". If it's you, keep it. If you think someone else will appreciate it more then give it away or take it to the charity shop and let someone else benefit from it.

Also the other thing was - I paid £xx for this and can't throw it away. Ask yourself did I get my £xx worth out of it? If so, then it's ok to let it go.

Someone else at freecycle or a charity shop may be needing just the item you have but not being able to afford a new one. So think of it as helping others.

I found asking those questions and not spending more than half an hour at a time trying to get rid of the stuff, helped me lots.

Edit: especially as if I did a marathon sort out I used to look at all the stuff I was getting rid of and panic and start saying ...oh but I might need that!!

waaag

Hi there, what you could do is get a shed put up some shelves in it and put things in boxes either clear ones with lids from wilko which you can see the contents thru or cardboard boxes free from local shop and write on them whats in at least they wont be all in your way and if yuou want to keep things than you can. Thats what i actually do, and all my friends call me 'mr trebus' (a life of grime)! You could just tackle one room at a time, i had the same problem but mixed also with some diy needing doing in every room plus collapsed ceilings....and rotted floors....but - i am getting there.!

Agutka

I'm not sure if this will help you in any way, but it was like reading a post written by myself! I had my garden re-done recently and when it was finished the skip had some space left in it and I had the opportunity to chuck the clutter out.

I placed four items :rolleyes: in the skip. FOUR. Because everything is useful, and even if I want to get rid of it I can't throw it away and keep promising myself to take stuff to the charity shop. I can't stand waste, but they would have to open a new shop to display all the stuff in my house.

And I can't FLY to save my life. When I try to get into sorting through stuff I get distracted by sentimentality and never get anything finished.

*sigh*

And I probably have grime somewhere. May come in useful one day


PS. I cried for days when Mr Trebus died. Such a sad story. I can't cope with melancholy old people, breaks my heart.

katieowl_2

Karma you have my complete sympathy....I am pathologically incapable of throwing out anything that might concieveably, ever, possibly even slightly come in useful. Waste makes me twitch....I save bits of string, and padded envelopes, and knowing that I like to recycle I get a lot of stuff given to me (I found two boxes of books on my doorstep a week ago!)

On another forum I frequent (Frugal Living at About) I posted a thread to this end...listing some of the rubbish(!) that I have in my cellar and how I couldn't part with it, and lots of people came back and suggested what I SHOULD throw out...I can't say I made a lot of immediate headway...but lets put it like this:- the sledge that hasn't been used in 20 years can go (on Freecycle) the only everso slightly chewed dog bed that I was told to send to a shelter, came out and was used when my two dogs were speyed about a week later (the usually sleep in a pile in the same bed) and the old rugs got soaked in a flood in that heavy storm we had a few weeks back and HAD to be chucked. One lady thought my idea of using the kids old Playmobile to make a christmas scene was worth pinching....

How about you list your stuff and WE tell you whether to keep it or not
You don't have to listen LOL but it might help!

Regards
Kate

dannahaz

My husband is the same as yours. I bought some folding crates (from B&Q/Tesco?Homenase, that sort of thing), and got him to put his PC spares in them.
Then he stacked them up against one wall. Not great, but a damn site better than before, as the pile of crates was neat.

Then after a few weeks, we moved them into the loft. Ha!

And recently I went up into the loft and sorted out the crates from last time we did this (about a year ago) and we sold stuff on Ebay, gave it away, or chucked it. He hadn't even thought about the stuff for over a year, so he couldn't pretend anymore.

When it comes to bits for spare parts, set a deadline. If it's not used within x months then you're obviously not going to get round it so bin it. (Personally I chuck or donate immediately. In my experience I only find I need something just after I've thrown it away, so I figure I might as well chuck it out now and get it over with!).

And the beauty of the folding crates is they fold. So easy to store.

Karma67

Feeling a bit better now

Kitchen's finished...i have workspace again!! woohooo!:j :rotfl:

i was ruthless...threw out things that have been in cupbords for yonks and never used...i feel very cleansed lol

Monday will be Dining room and living room...not too bad really....pile of pc stuff in dining room so will be asking hubby to sort it out this weekend...umm did i say ask? i mean tell him

might pop off in a sec to do bathroom :A