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Hoarding - A New Start
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I blame Blue Peter, myself. Been exposed to so many ideas for making stuff out of other stuff that any random bit of packaging is glowing with potential and hard to discard.
And that way lies madness, or at the very least, an awful lot of flammable richard.
In my job, I talk to people who are having upgrades to their homes such as heating systems, bathrooms and kitchens. What should be a time of pleasure (albeit with a messy stage first) is often turned into a handwringing exercise of stress because they will be required to move stuff for the work to happen.
I've known people to refuse to have work done, to hang onto an obsolete and inefficient form of heating, because they'd have to move the china cabinet. Or something of that nature. This is madness of an advanced order.
Our possessions are meant to serve us, aid us, cause us to enjoy our lives more than we would without them. If they don't fulfill those criteria, they need to be given the sailor's elbow.
And yes, it is exhausting. I think it's because we are suddenly calling upon ourselves to make a whole load of postponed decisions in a block. To face the physical remnants of bad decisions (or good decisions which went bad) and to process all these at once.
Some decluttering schools of thought suggest limiting yourself to no more than half an hour a day, or you start to lose effectiveness and may end up just churning.
The Plastic Bottle Saga.
I have stored in a place away from my bathroom, a few bits and bobs which I use when travelling. I used to have 5 small bottles into which I decant toiletries when travelling to avoid lugging the 1 litre bottle of shampoo, etc. Last Easter, I had friend and neighbour SuperGran over here one evening in a total muck sweat because she needed a small plastic bottle to go collect holy oil from the cathedral for her church (summat to do with Easter, I believe).
I was able to supply her with one of them. So then I had 4. The only toileties I have which are liquid is actually shampoo, so I don't need 4. And I was thinking about trying that solid bar shampoo you can get before I travel next time.
So I binned 2 of the 4 into the recycling. And got them out again. Should I call SG to see if she needs them for holy oil? Nah, she'd ask if she needed them. See, I'm thinking about other people's theoretical needs, now. So, they went back in again....................:rotfl:Every increased possession loads us with a new weariness.
John Ruskin
Veni, vidi, eradici
(I came, I saw, I kondo'd)
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I have been to the cs and unloaded from the boot one of their donation sacks and seven large carrier bags full of clothes and shoes that no longer fit.I feel lighter even though I'm still putting on weight! I'm sure you all know what I mean. Thanks again everyone. There's still a lot to go, but I've made a start0
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eugh mini my sympathies, I'm not a fan of crawlies, esp the 8 legged kind (shudders!)
Have been having little forays into the kitchen cupboards a bit at a time and have managed to clear out one corner cupboard and have put the big sack of dog food, the chick food, the straw (for chicks) and the cat food in there so it's not floating around the kitchen floor annoying me ( now the veg box is doing that instead:o Til I find a new home for it) and have jigged a few more things around.
I'm having trouble with my mixing bowls - I have a lovely old fashioned large ceramic bowl that I rarely use, but is lovely and good for breadmaking(a rare event sadly). I have a melamine one which I use loads as its quite big and has a non slip bottom so I have to keep that one obviously...I have a metal one, for all those meringues I make (not!) and 2 glass pyrex ones, one of which belonged to DS so can't really get rid as he might want it back and then if I got rid of mine and he did want it back I wouldn't have one!! And I need that one in case I need to melt chocolate - over a pan, double boiler style. So... I have a shelf full of mixing bowls:eek:And that's not counting the nest of 4 pretty coloured melamine bowls, that I need for....Well I do use them for putting garlic bread/salad/etc in, but could probably improvise with others, but they are pretty....:eek:
I have managed to let go of a large plastic bowl and a mid sized measuring bowl so it wasn't completely hopeless:oOfficial DFW nerd - 282 'Proud To Be Dealing With My Debts'
C.R.A.P.R.O.L.L.Z member # 560 -
Oh, just remembered I have another that's part of the mixer (but I only use it as a hand mixer), that's up on top of the units so I forgot about it....I 'pose that could go, but then it's breaking up the set as I use the hand-mixer bit....
AAGH, Help.....Official DFW nerd - 282 'Proud To Be Dealing With My Debts'
C.R.A.P.R.O.L.L.Z member # 560 -
Hello peeps - I've been a bit awol. I have still been reading avidly every day but I seem to have lost my mental energy to actually post.
I also seem to be having a natural go slow on the decluttering, in part because my life seems to have got very busy recently (much of it in a good way, with new opportunites popping up) and I only have so much energy to go round: I certainly think I'm experiencing the concept that decluttering and simplifying your life somhow creates metaphysical space as well as physical, enabling unexpected new opprtunites to arise.
As ever, I remain so impressed with the level of support on this thread and the sharing of difficult decluttering experiences, be it how to even start or getting further down the road on the declutter journey and the many up and downs on that road.I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days attack me at once0 -
:hello: BB - you have been missed!You never know how far-reaching something good, that you may do or say today, may affect the lives of others tomorrow0
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Some of the above stories sound so familiar. We rarely drink 'real' coffee but I had an empty Illy tin - nice, shiny, well-fitting lid - that's been hanging around the house for ages 'in case.' Of what? First, it went in the kitchen cupboard. Then, it moved upstairs to the drawer where all the charity shop stuff goes. Finally, I convinced myself that the charity shop really would have no use for it and put it in the recycling bin. That took about five weeks.
Anyway, inspired by the Lent ladies, today I managed to do this
a) clear out the charity shop drawer and put a bag in the hall to take tomorrow.
b) do a ten-minute sort of the tights/socks/scarves drawer and throw some stuff away.
c) sort out the magazine basket in the living room and rehouse/recycle what came out of it.
So there is hope.0 -
Going into town tomorrow to my version of the Magic Greengrocer - have decided to do a quick detour with two bags of CS destined books.
Sometimes I'm glad I didn't declutter something. Today I found two candles that were a gift from a friend who has just died. I was so pleased that I still had them, as I know I'd semi-earmarked them for going out, as they were a bit dusty. They have been carefully cleaned now.Erma Bombeck, American writer: "If I had my life to live over again... I would have burned the pink candle, sculptured like a rose, that melted in storage." Don't keep things 'for best' - that day never comes. Use them and enjoy them now.0 -
I think I have a real problem emerging with hoarding and don't seem to have the energy to tackle it all. I seem to freak out when faced with it. I am not yet at Richard levels, but it's all family stuff from downsizing a relative's home, and the idea was to flog most online, but we have been so busy. My house has hardly any storage and the whole thing is so depressing. How do other people get started with the Big Declutter? I have hired people in the past, but the stuff creeps back - agah!" I refuse to allow the banker to be the only one who laughs!":beer:0
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Heya, I hope you don't mind me joining this thread.
Basically, I live with my partner, our kids and my dad. My dad is a hoarder. Over the last couple of years I've been working really hard to get the house decluttered and organised but it's causing a lot of friction between us. I've only recently realised how stressful it is for my dad when I'm trying to get rid of things in the house. He has two bedrooms, they've always been quite full and untidy but recently he's been moving more and more stuff into them because he doesn't want to argue about the mess and clutter in the house.
His rooms are now stacked to the ceiling with cardboard boxes full of stuff. Literally things I cannot imagine why anyone would want to keep - old broken things, calenders from 20, 30 years ago, pens that have run out, electronics that don't work anymore, newspapers and magazines.....
I just don't know what to do. I keep trying to help him get his rooms sorted but he get's very defensive and angry when I suggest throwing anything away.
I guess I don't really know why I'm posting, to feel less alone with the situation maybe...Misc debts - £5,000 | Student loan - £9,000 | Mortgage - £180,000
Goals for 2015: Sell house & downsize + Increase income + Get debt Free :shocked: {Diary}
DS born 05/05/2009 & DS2 born 12/02/2011
Smoke free since 01/01/2010Paid off credit card 04/04/20110
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