Hoarding...not just on TV

whitewing · 30 July 2012 at 8:24PM

I used to be such a good girl that I would always do my best, except it got impossibly worrisome because it was never good enough.

Then I overheard someone say, 'Do the best you can in the time you have available' and that helped enormously to get a proper perspective on the issue because the best I could do in half an hour (or however long) was better than most people's efforts for half an hour on stuff that I was interested in.

So, how long does it take to knit a scarf? You will do better that I can in the same time so wear it proudly.

Tell us your unfinished projects and we'll give you a generous target time for it.

sjprmc01 · 30 July 2012 at 9:06PM

Right I know this one isn't about clutter or chucking/hoarding buuuuuut.....how do I go on a caravan hol (for 2days only) without taking WAAAAAAY too much stuff? I mean, you just never know whether it's going to be nice or horrid here and whether we will all need Welles and waterproofs or crocs and sun cream, lol!

SpikyHedgehog · 30 July 2012 at 9:09PM

I have problems with nearly empty things - for example, I'd been putting of having a bath (I'd showered instead ;-) ) because if I had a bath, I'd need to use the bubble bath. & if I used the bubble bath, it would be all gone.

There is no logic in this! The bubble bath police weren't going to break the bathroom door down & pull the plug on the bath if it didn't have bubbles in! I could buy more bubble bath at any supermarket, or use a bit of shower gel, or baby bath.

But I was keeping this almost empty bottle cluttering up my bathroom. & my life. & I do the same in the kitchen.

The bubble bath bottle is gone.

I've also sorted through the laundry basket of paper clutter & filed keeping stuff, shredded confidential rubbish, binned rubbish, put away stuff that needed putting away. I haven't tackled the bag of Scouts paperwork or a folder of work stuff. I had a little stack of papers needing action, so filled out a form that needs a counter-signatory, made various appointments. So I've still got some papers out like the form to take for blood donating. But the sitting room looks respectable!

My plan for the filing left in the tray is to do 15 minutes at a time of shoving stuff in the right pocket in the filing drawer not worrying about the order or getting rid of old unneeded stuff, till its all done. & keep putting stuff away as it comes in! Then, when its all done, I'll start to go through each pocket & sort it properly.

Went to MrS with DS2 this afternoon & got rid of the tetra packs, glass & carrier bag recycling. Took back a pair of trousers I'd bought the other week & hated when I looked at them again. Bought DS2 2 polo shirts for school having sorted out last years & knowing he didn't need a full set of new shirts. But I also got him 2 sweatshirts &2 tank tops from the school uniform section, not for school, for wearing at home as the plain ones work out so much cheaper than patterned ones, & a pair of pjs for me... We're going camping with my parents & DS1's best friend next month, & I needed something respectable to sleep in.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted · 30 July 2012 at 11:30PM

After an enforced rest yesterday - my RA is deciding to flare early again

(which makes me certain the nasty chemo drug is the way to go at the end of the month

and determined to be organised totally before I have new and glorious side effects to be getting along with) - I tried to declutter some more things that I have been putting off.

And then I saw a job advertised at my local animal hospital that sounds almost perfect for me. It's feasibly worth coming out of my life of luxury for it, even though the money is appalling.

So I had to make a foray into town for printer cartridges (£32 :eek:), used up the 5 collector loyalty cards to add up to getting some lunch from the sushi bar (so I'm down 5 bits of cardboard in my purse now), picked up a pair of comfortable black pull on trousers from M&S for prospective interview (and because I'm finding jeans harder to do up with my hands locking up) and planned the next two things that are going to leave the house to make room for the trousers.

Got back, blitzed the kitchen, and decided to sort out the monstrosity that is the wire cable creature living behind the telly. I swapped the TV table over for a broader one, took the DVD player out as I actually use my laptop on the rare occasions I watch a DVD (packed it up and allocated it to a recipient) and tangled with the wire monsters for two hours.

It looks much nicer now.

And I got 2 out of 3 unpleasant phone calls, one slightly irritated contact via email and changed gas supplier.

Just got 2 bills to get out the way tomorrow morning, do a bit of shopping and get started on the application form. Oh, and sand and second coat the mirror that's going in the upstairs bathroom.

I have just over a week to complete it - and probably a zillion competitors who haven't been sick for the last 7 years - but I'm telling myself that they;

1. do not live 7 minutes' walk from the place.
2. have absolutely no issues with shift work.
3. have experience with stroppy people.
4. have experience with sick people/relatives (similar to pet owners)
5. have experience with computers.
6. have experience and confidence with telephone stuff.
7. have reasonable qualifications, so shouldn't find it too hard to get the hang of.
8. genuinely love animals.
9. want to do this job, not any old job.
10. don't have a huge desire to become a millionaire/use the job as a springboard to something with more hours.
11. are not just so generally awesome where animals, upset people and random stuff like cleaning up dog wee is required as I am. (modesty is obviously taken for granted

:cool:)

My only problem is the non existent work history. But perhaps they'll accept it's OK to not work when you are ill and look at the fact I'm willing to give up what might be seen as a relatively quiet life for their benefit...

Sigh. I am sure that somewhere along the line, the memo telling me I should be sitting on the sofa watching reruns of Jeremy Kyle and all the soaps must have got mislaid.

Oh yeah, I also remembered to make the bed. Much nicer - when I finally crash into it in about ten minutes' time.

alec_eiffel · 31 July 2012 at 8:50AM

Spiky, yes I did have the same issues with nearly empty things, but mainly "nice" things to the extent that I wouldn't want to finish the bottle of juice or eat the last few berries or whatever, so they'd go off! Total waste. I think that just comes, for me, from the time I had no money or food and it's a fear thing. I just say to myself that I can get the same or very similar from pretty much any shop I care to buy food from!

I've found that I can use rules to my advantage, now I've let go of things needing to be perfect and to not worry if I run out of something, which was a long process. So I have a rule that I will only have one bottle of shower gel on the go at one time and I just don't buy any more until the bottle I'm using is empty. I don't shop for recreation and buy my toiletries online so I don't allow myself to go out and impulse buy things like I used to.

I see it as a kind of "precycling" you know how people buy things with a view to reducing future waste. For me it's all about thinking rather than feeling before buying.

calicocat · 31 July 2012 at 10:46AM

Good luck JoJo !

You would think and hope that that kind of job is based more on personality than anything else , that is usually th case with caring jobs with people.....personality suitabillity is way more important. Sounds like a fab job.
You certainly don't sound like a lazy person so mention things you do despite not having been able to work.

Say you run a therapy group for hoarders !

:)

Plus if you get your foot in the door you may well find you end up full time there if that is what you want. Plus you must have loads of animal stories to relate.

I so hope you get it !............sending positive vibes and fingers crossed. When is it ? , and we can all will them to hire you.

wannabe_sybil · 31 July 2012 at 11:22AM

Jojo - good luck!!!!

Two things leaving me wondering today.

What on earth do I do with the 'mum' stuff I get given. Little bear brought home a small teddy bear with 'Best Mum' from a fun fair. I can see a lot more of these sort of things coming in. I love the hug, but don't necessarily want to keep the bear, but couldn't bare to hurt little bear's feelings.

And I have just made home made bubble mix for little bear and didn't have a jam jar to put it in. I think I will save the next suitable jam jar and keep it just for that purpose.

Hugs to all

mollythewestie · 31 July 2012 at 11:48AM

Byatt wrote: »

My dad found one in a milk bottle once but the company wouldn't accept responsibility. It put him off milk for a long, long time.

.

I can well believe that, I once spent 1 day working in a dairy filling milk cartons for the major supermarket (It all comes from exactly the same tank just goes into bottles with different labels on - Tesco, Co-op etc.)
When the tanks came in from outside they were covered in slugs & snails and I was disgusted when the workers started throwing them at one another! they were being thrown over the machinery so Im not surprised if one got in a bottle.
I refused to go back there to work and quit on the spot

.

Brighton_belle · 31 July 2012 at 2:17PM

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

After an enforced rest yesterday - my RA is deciding to flare early again (which makes me certain the nasty chemo drug is the way to go at the end of the month and determined to be organised totally before I have new and glorious side effects to be getting along with) - I tried to declutter some more things that I have been putting off.

Is this Metho Jojo? I am on that for PA. Good luck with the job app, it's a tough one when health issues get in the way of your promise and general abilty/reliabilty.

AlwaysHappy · 31 July 2012 at 2:36PM

Just found this thread so only read the first and last pages - will try and read more later. This has resonated with me - my Mum is exactly the same (in the hoarding dept - not threatening). She is 81 and I have tried all sorts of ways to help her and get her to deal with some of her posessions but she won't have it. I know she hasn't got over the death of my grandma some 20 plus years ago (still infact has her furniture as well now) and hasn't thrown anything away voluntarily for long before that. I can't go into her kitchen - I wouldn't be able to ever have a coffee there again, and nor would I be able to resist sorting it BUT she has said that would be the end of our relationship if I ever did. I worry that I think about it a LOT and as an only child am concerned that when anything does happen to her instead of grief I am only going to have anger - it wells inside me now though I do love her. I have health issues of my own and am a carer for my son and I have tried over the years to reason with her that if she loved me why would she leave me with all this but to no avail - the illness (or whatever) is larger and I resent that. Oops, sorry for hijacking but it was great to get off my chest and you are doing really well.

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Hoarding...not just on TV

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