Hoarding...not just on TV

wannabe_sybil

Elona - sending good wishes. Hope all is well, that your daughter is getting better and that you are feeling okay, those dreams sound terrifying. Also, you need to look after yourself enough to look after everyone else! hugs hugs hugs

I've had a poor day. I've cleared out two drawers in the big desk in the study. That is one bin bag full (decent sized drawers completely overstuffed). I feel I should have done more. A small amount of housewifery has happened as well, but really quite an insufficient amount.

I, too, have notebooks, and I am determined to use them. This is fairly okayish as at the moment I have four and I plan to keep one always handy for keeping track of knitting, marking rows etc. The others are good for to-do lists as they seem to get done better if committed to paper rather than a screen. I have got rid of/used up the batch of inexpensive mini notebooks, the post it notes were bought in bulk years ago and are gradually running out, not to be replaced. We have a HUGE file full of labels, but we are still using them. The were acquired by OH in his last job but two when we moved house in 1994. He got a bit carried away. We last used them last month. We will probably still be using them in ten years time. I don't want to get rid of those, they are not too bulky and live in a folder.

I am not often tempted to buy notebooks these days, but one thing I have done in the past, and I intend to continue, is to keep all the backs of envelopes together in a rubber band and use that for the scrap bits where I am working stuff out, noting stuff while on phone etc. Most common use for them was buying lucky dip lottery tickets online for darling father and then giving him the numbers.

I actually did an actual shop in a supermarket today instead of online. I didn't get any ys bargains - though I didn't really look. There was a considerable amount of impulse buying, but I think I could get that down. Little bear was 'helping' and convinced me to buy a coconut - I am delegating that one to darling father! However it was quite a nice change and I am hoping to continue to do this. I shall be using one of the sort of paper clip style thingies that kept little bear's shirts neat in their packaging to keep together the vouchers for schools that we got and send them in to schools. I am not wasting paperclips on schools.

However if I am going to get to grips with actual touch and feel shopping I need to know what I have, what I may need and what I really need. Also the next week's recipes. That means I really need to attack the kitchen between now and next Wednesday. I have a target and a deadline. I shall embrace both!

I also need to do something about a stockpile of chocolate biscuits. School seemed fine with a chocolate biscuit in the packed lunch until after I had stocked up at AF. Now they are completely forbidden. I may be forced to eat them myself.

Edited to add

Jojo - haggis sounds like good fuel, how are the injections, have they started yet?

KAT44 - it isn't easy, it is really hard. Hugs

valk_scot

I had a good evening, apart from losing DS somewhere between the two sets of rugby playing fields on the other side of town and only locating him ten minutes after I needed to pick up DD from swimming. Before that though I went to Tesco, it's a good time of night for the YS and I picked up a huge pile of soup type veg at 10p a pack for chopping up for the freezer. I managed to give the kitchenware aisle a miss too, they're having a revamp at our Tesco and clearing a lot of their stock. I most definately do not need to bring any more kitchen ware into this house! I bought another bag of bin liners instead, to aid with the decluttering.

Trying to think what I should do tomorrow. I'm finding it better if I get up with A Plan in mind of what I want to clear out that day. I need a run to the dump of course to get rid of what's in the car boot but there's room for a few more things and it would be good to collect them up first before heading out. There is a picture which needs the glass taken out and disposed of safely for example. Then if the weather is good I have stuff that needs taken to the allotment and some things brought back. But if the weather is bad what should I do? Part of the attic? Linen cupboard? Dresser drawers? Book cases?

Argh...too much to think about all at once. Lets hope for a sunny day!

Byatt

Well, although my bedroom is nowhere near being sorted, what I have done looks ok and when I went up the stairs (stairs goes straight into bedroom), and looked, I thought, this is going to look fab. Had a sense of pride.:D

Valk, I'm not sure what you should start on, I don't have a set plan, it's usually quite vague and then either snowballs or grinds to a halt. The decluttering of the bedroom also meant I could put things away that were cluttering the living room.

I have been quite firm with myself, and the acting part has worked reasonably well.

The car is loaded, but now I'm thinking maybe I can car boot it on Sunday as the weather looks to be good...:o

carlislelass

Attacked the tool shed, got rid of a lawnmower, pr of shears and numerous car bits to the scrap lorry. have put up hooks for some tools to make the place look bigger...it`s long and narrow. need to get wrapped xmas presents into "family" gift bags and that will clear spare bed.

Jettycat

wannabe_sybil wrote: »

I also need to do something about a stockpile of chocolate biscuits. School seemed fine with a chocolate biscuit in the packed lunch until after I had stocked up at AF. Now they are completely forbidden. I may be forced to eat them myself.

Don't you just hate it when they change the rules on you :mad:

Byatt wrote: »

Well, although my bedroom is nowhere near being sorted, what I have done looks ok and when I went up the stairs (stairs goes straight into bedroom), and looked, I thought, this is going to look fab. Had a sense of pride.:D

Hold on to that feeling :)

Byatt wrote: »

I have been quite firm with myself, and the acting part has worked reasonably well.

Good news. I'm definitely going to have to try this - I've been much better at clearing out MILs stuff than my own

Patchwork_Quilt

Has anyone decluttered their car boot? I did mine two weeks ago and found a set of Learn French tapes in the 'emergency' box. I haven't been able to play a tape in any car for donkey's years!

Since that initial declutter, however, I've taken back all the reusable shopping bags I took to Mum's and returned them to the boot. I then found two more, as well as adding one I couldn't bear to get rid of.

My plan is now to use these for taking things to the charity shop. Then I'll leave them there.

In other news, I have found a home for the breadmaker, but the jam jars will have to go in the recycling bin. Also got rid of a vegetable knife that was a 'twin' and refused to let myself buy a HFW book that seemed rather tempting.

Keep up the good work folks!

cyclingyorkie

Ah - stationery! The bane of my life! My OH is an addict - there is so much paper in this house I feel I need the plant a couple of trees! A lot of them are destined to head to local charity shops....

Our youngest has just finished 6th form and is not going to Uni - WE DON'T NEED THIS MUCH PAPER!

alec_eiffel

KAT44 wrote: »

Bad day today, ventured into the attic of doom, got completley overwelmed by it all and came back down without doing anything.
Then decided I had to do something so sorted dd and ds wardrobes out, bagged up the outgrown clothes and then threw the bag into the attic!!!!!! Honestly feel like crying today, don't think I'll ever get it clear. Why can I let perfectly good items go to the charity shop or for next to nothing on ebay, but waste half my life dithering over utter carp . Sorry for the rant.

KAT, stop beating yourself up. The perfectionist side makes it so easy for us to look at all the things we haven't done or to look at "everyone else" who can do all these things or to regret what we've been doing all this time and what we could have done instead. None of that matters now.

It is tough and it is overwhelming at times but all those clothes you dealt with today you never have to deal with them again. I always say it's like peeling the layers of an onion, there are some things at the top and they're pretty easy to get rid of so they go. But we all have our sticking points and when we say them out loud they generally sound a bit bonkers, but it's our connection so it doesn't matter.

If you can now see that it's junk rather than something you can never be parted from then that is a big thing. You should be proud of yourself for knowing that. I don't think there's anyone here that hasn't at one time or another walked into a room and walked straight back out because it's just too much for that day. A room is too much sometimes, a box can be too much, so if it has to be item by item then so be it, one item dealt with is one item you don't have to dread dealing with again.

valk_scot

Patchwork_Quilt wrote: »

Has anyone decluttered their car boot?

TBH that's one area that stays almost organised, despite what OH says. I have a plastic tub with the usual car emergency stuff like jump leads, foot pump, spare bulbs, hi-viz jackets, red triangle, first aid kit, water and oil. There's another box with an old waterproof, some cartons of orange juice and biscuits and a wind up phone charger. Therer's a big brolly and a fold up camping chair (this is for going to DS's rugby matches), another old quilt on the floor of the boot to protect it against the mank I carry around from the allotment. A shopping bag of shopping bags for the supermarket. A pair of leather gloves and a pruning saw. (My neighbour has a woodburner, she pays in eggs for wood.) In the car proper are two fleece blankets for my kids to snooze under and in the glove compartmet there's a tin of sweets, a cosmetic bag with scissors, needle and thread, paracetamol, my spare glasses and the car handbook.

Spade and rag rugs will go in once the winter closes in.

That sounds quite a lot, actually! Is that clutter or is that sensible prep stuff? Sometimes I'm never quite sure what "normal" is tbh.

alec_eiffel

It sounds prepared. We have a bag of stuff like toilet paper, biscuits, sweets, extra gloves and things but we don't keep it in the car all the time, just if we're doing a long journey. In the bit where the spare wheel would go (we don't have one just one of those tins of stuff that fills the tyre with... something) we have a box with a triangle and other car things, I have no clue what they are. Plus a little petrol can, thing with a light and something to do with pressure. When it's cold I take a blanket out with us too.

So we don't cart it round with us all the time but we do have it ready to go.