Hi tilllie!

I don't know how "exhausting" became "e gay sting"

I'm sorry you couldn't sleep.

We will find a way to help you. Maybe we will enlist Cory and all come to meet you and be on tv.

My trash STILL isn't picked up. I am very annoyed.

I filled one wheelbarrow working on drainage. It was only a tiny improvement, but it was enough for now. The "dirt" is very wet and heavy - almost like cake batter. Or wet cement. I pushed the wheelbarrow aside in the barn so it can dry a little before I have to push it any further.

I went out to my studio and filled and labeled just a few drawers. I found the container for my favorite low fire firing stilts, and it turns out I can order a pack of 72 for $45 (including shipping). That is a little expensive, but I am extremely fond of them, and they take up so little storage space. Maybe I can get dh to buy them for me if I agree to give up some other things I have out there that I use less.

Dh and I have semi-separate finances - he makes a lot more money than I do and pays for all my day to day necessities - food, electric, water, gas etc. along with the property tax bill, my car insurance, medical, and usually essential clothing (if I have to buy it new, in a regular store for work or a special event). I contribute to the mortgage, cover all the farm related expenses except property taxes, and bought my own car (almost paid off). My "disposable income" - for shopping, classes, and non-date activities (he bought the tickets for tonight) is whatever is left of my income after my expenses.

Good Morning Everybody

Hi Tess
WAY TO GO! for being a more conscientious shopper!

Hi Subclinical
Don't feel bad about only doing the absolute necessities until you are all better.


Terrible dreams & thoughts all night long.
Super depressed today from it.

My mind was insisting on mentally dismantling that hoard all night long.
What am I going to do about all the derelict vehicles?
What am I going to do with all those (100?+) cans of paint?
What do I do about all those things that are way too big and heavy for me to carry out to a dumpster or put into the truck?
Living out in the country in a rural county there are not as many resources to unload things as there may be in a city.
All the physical work involved is just too much for one little old lady to do and would end up killing me or crippling me completely.
This is all so unfair. :(

Tess, you did great! If I had to go to the apple store I would call that a day! And returns are e gay sting.

I did my one return and stripped my bed, washed the sheets and blankets, and remade it yesterday. That was pretty much it, except for dishes and putting away some laundry. I was as tired as I had feared.

Also I discovered that my trash is on a holiday delay schedule, so the cans won't be picked up until today. Which kept me from getting out into the studio and starting in on more trash.

While I was out yesterday, I stopped in a couple of stores on purpose. My aunt had given me money to buy a Christmas greenery/decoration and I tried to send my dh out while I was sick. He came back with one pink amaryllis, demonstrating complete lack of understanding of what I said.

So, yesterday I bought four more amaryllises - red, which have gone by of course, but will be beautiful next year, and enough LED lights to go around our garage, and because I had some money left - when I was at the grocery store restocking staples - a box of candy and a pair of grinch pajamas. Everything was 50-90% off.

I did not get to any of my grading or paperwork - I just curled up on the couch and read and watched videos between laundry/dish tasks.

I slept late and am less tired today, but dh and I are going to a concert tonight, and I need to do some physical labor tomorrow, so i'm going to be a little lazy again. This cold is never going away.

Hi ladies!
Quick update...Today I didn't get any housework done. I did pick up after myself, but today was a "there's not enough hours" kind of day. I had an appointment at the Apple store today. I finally have my phone updated and working again. I had been using an old phone for a couple weeks. It feels good to get that over with. I had been dreading it. The Apple store is a bit too much for me...too bright, too loud, too cool, too fast moving. Just too much. I also ran some errands I know I won't have time to get to over the weekend. Including a bunch of returns. I've been trying to be mindful about money. It was so so hard to go in all those stores (especially target) and not impulse buy. I only came home with 4 things that were not on my list. When I went to target, I went straight for the cat food and straight to check out! I feel like I deserve an award for that! So, that was my day. I didn't do too bad money wise. In the end, I returned more than I bought, so I'm calling today a success! I hope you all had a good one!

Good Morning Everybody

Hi Subclinical
Once your home is all finished with remodeling and all sorted out from being a house filled with children and now a home with just you and your DH,
It will be so much easier for you to maintain all the reduce/reuse/recycle that you wish for your lifestyle.

When there is a lot of stuff in a home that needs to be removed it is almost impossible to responsibly recycle/donate everything and would take way too long to finish sorting things out to even try, years as opposed to months.
Trying to just turns a house into an extension of the dump.

In reality the amount you send off to the landfill is like a tiny drop in the ocean when compared to what goes into the landfill every single day.

When all the excess has been removed from your property it will be so nice there.
You will very easily be able to compost & recycle and you will be more aware of every new item that comes in to the home.

If it falls to me to dismantle the hoard here
I will just get it all gone as fast and easy as I can and that means a dumpster.
The items in the garage really should not be donated because of the rodent contamination.
Sure, I could wash the poop & pee off things, wash all the clothing & cloth items but it is still wrong to donate or sell them.
And trying to salvage everything would mean that I would be spending years sorting through that massive hoard.
Best to just be done with it and get on with life. :)

Good job Tillie and scooter!

I can see where it would be hard to keep dresses neat without a hanging space. Tillie, you are very resourceful.

Tatoulia, good job on your sheets and your walk.

And Tess, I am glad you had clean sheets too.

I am very tired this morning. It was hard to get up. My body is sore, but the decision making was just so draining. I will try to do easier things today. Maybe some grading. Maybe I will get my basket out or some of my paper piles and tackle them.

My big goals for the day are to finally wash all of my sheets and blankets (kitty spent a lot of time sleeping on our bed when the doggies were here) and to take that return to the store.

Thank you for the feedback on my decisions and thought processes. It is still very hard to trust my judgement. I was afraid that I had just forced myself to make too many hard decisions - I HATE trash. Taking things from the earth and doing things with them that render them useless or even dangerous, and then carefully preserving them in that state (in a landfill) seems so insane to me. I thought maybe I had just given in to exhaustion and tried to soothe myself with the chair and drawers.

The chair I am still doubting, but again, it is wood, it is not "trash" and we were very tight for chairs we could pull up to the table at our party.

Wood and steel. The key to getting out of the waste stream is to stop the waste from flowing into my life. Once a piece is here, I need to let it go on to it's destination. Keeping it "in case" just makes it more likely that I will get overwhelmed and something else will get diverted to waste.

I'm very sure there were recycling and food scraps in the trash bags from the party, but I was too sick and tired to avoid that.

LOL Tatoulia :D Just as long as you remember the basket/hamper plan. :D
WTG! getting tasks done and also walking 3.3 miles!

Hi Tess
WAY TO GO! on what all you got done today even though you're tired!

The Marie Kondo show was...
She comes into the people's homes
talks about her methods to them
We see the people briefly sort out something
they talk about some difficulty they are having with sorting
Marie Kondo returns and looks at the home that is now all sorted out, clean and tidy.
We do not get to see much of the people's work.
It is mostly just a rehashing of whatever it is she wrote in her book.
A visual of her explaining her methods.

Hi Subclinical
ABOSILUELY LOVE YOUR THOUGHT PROCESSES
for sorting out what should be tossed/donated/recycled!!!
So true, not everything has to be completely used up.
When it comes to fixing things or not, I like to ask myself
"even though I can fix/mend/alter this
is it really worth my time and effort when I already have other nicer similar things to use/wear or could easily and inexpensively replace this broken item if it's something I actually need?"

Steven has a problem with bringing home broken/damaged items saying he is going to fix them.
Dumpster diving mostly but some broken things he actually buys.
These are things we have no need for and he doesn't fix them.
When questioned about a broken something in the hoard he says he's keeping it for spare parts to fix some other broken thing he may find someday.
All the while the house is falling down around us.

Well, even with Scooter's help...
I was able to rearrange two of my drawers.
The socks are now in the other drawer with my skirts and I moved my two fancy party dresses into the same drawer as my night gowns so my drawer with my other dresses is not so full.
I think I can live with this. ;p
It's a little more difficult to nicely put clothes away when you don't have a closet for hanging dresses & blouses.
I'm just very grateful that I have clothes. :)

Hello ladies !! SubC what a lot you accomplished today! I am so proud of you! Taking strong advantage of the trash service! Getting those metal boxes for your tools! Great work! I'm impressed with your decision-making process! WTG! So happy!!!

Tess you and SubC have done so much! WTG on the clean sheets! You did so much and you'll be rewarded with your clean bed tonight!

have clean ones today instead of this weekend. My laundry in the building won't be available for about a week. I used to have my own W&D yet the three year old washer broke and the guy tried several times to fix it. Since I've gotten used to using our washer downstairs, I've decided to get rid of the W&D when I re do my kitchen.

I am back from dinner, got 3.3 miles in there and back.

I took the wreathes out when I left for dinner and will now and the garbage and recycling out in the AM. I will clean kitty's box at the same time.

Tillie my dear I've now forgotten what you've written.

Ttyl.

Hi Tess!

I have a basket, but I am bad at keeping it processed. Mostly it just gets full and then I pull a bunch of stuff out and move it. Sorting and filing defeat me.

I don't have Netflix,so you will all gave to tell me if something important comes along on the new show.

I made a decision tree to help me fill the trash cans. I look at an object and ask what it's final destination is (trash, recycling, compost, burn) if it is going to be trash eventually, I ask if I really still need it. If not, I assess whether I can donate it. If it isn't good enough to donate, then I should go ahead and get rid of it now, while I have trash service. Not everything has to be completely used up. Not everything can be fixed.

Examples of things I got rid of were five pairs of shoes that were really only good enough to wear around the yard in the mud to spare my other shoes - I have boots! And a nasty old plastic shower curtain that I am just not going to wash (my new rule is to only buy machine washable shower curtains. Target has very nice ones that are quite waterproof and last ages) and a cracked waterbucket that I was using as a feed bucket because the feed doesn't leak out, and a lot of plastic foodpackaging containers that I kept because they might be useful, but really, I had too many, and I need to shift my focus to finding alternatives to buying those foods instead of warehousing packaging.

Tillie- I agree with wanting to tell certain items they were a disappointment. Lol! How did you like the show? I just added it to my list. Also, I love your basket idea for papers. I might use that for myself. It will serve as a reminder to go through them more regularly.

Tatoulia - that was my reasoning with the books as well. I can always replace them on my kindle. These days I prefer my kindle anyway. Plus someone else is going to get to enjoy them. They live on :)

Subclinical - 5 cans is amazing! Good for you!!!

Today I didn't do much of anything in way of cleaning. It was a workday and I'm tired. I did take out that garbage from my decluttering session, change my sheets and clean the litter box. I also took care of paying bills, adjusting my retirement contributions and I cleaned out my purse. Now it's time to relax and watch a movie.

Hi Subclinical

WAY TO GO!!!
You sure did a LOT.
FIVE CANS AND A BLACK TRASH BAG AT THE ROAD!!!!
WOOHOO fantastic start utilizing this service!
24 shallow metal drawers sound like the most perfect storage place for your tools.
Have fun organizing it :D
Keep taking care of yourself so you don't relapse (((hug)))
Great job estimating how long the detergent would last and not overbuying/underbuying for your needs.
Good luck with the chair project or gaining a little more fireplace warmth.

Oh my, I have been good today, and I am tired.

Started this morning doing yoga with dh. Fed him breakfast, packed his lunch, got him off to work and did my chores.

I have washed and dried (but mostly not put away) all the sheets, towels, and blankets from company. One bedroom is guest ready again.

There are five trash cans and one black plastic bag up at the road. I walked a total of 1.2 miles to do that.

I got feed, went to the bank, paid the farm sitter, went to a different bank to pay my car loan, dropped a full carload off at goodwill, and bought fruit and laundry soap (remember way back when laundry soap was on super sale and I bought enough for "the rest of the year"? - it is almost gone.

"Bad" things I did - I brought home a pretty chair with a broken press cane seat from someone else's trash but I really want to fix it. And if I can't fix it, it's wood, so it burns.

Also, I bought four little metal cabinets at goodwill. They each have six drawers - 9"x16"x2" deep and they used to hold filmstrips. Three of the cabinets still have removable metal racks that kept the filmstrips in place. Each drawer has a metal handle with space for a label on the front. I intend them for small tools (paint brushes, texture rollers, stamps, carving and shaping tools) and have already set them up on my counter, but I have not put any tools away in them. I am saving that for a reward after I fill a trash can in the studio barn for the next load.

The only errand I didn't do is a return to a store that isn't near any of the other things I did. I will do that tomorrow if I am not wiped out from today.

I still have a mild sore throat from drainage and a bit of a cough, but I think I am finally close to well.

Hi Tatoulia

Great plan to combine the paperwork with something you already now do automatically!
Have fun tonight with your friends.
YEA! many cities now do recycle evergreens into mulch to use in public parks or put them into community ponds to promote healthy ecosystems.

Been rearranging some clothes drawers.
One was too crowded and one was basically empty except for just a few items.
This would be an easy thing to do except that Scooter insists on helping me. ;D

Tillie, yes it was papers and cards and stamps, etc. I love your solution! And the basket will remind me to go through them once a week. Maybe I can combine with changing my sheets, so it's shredding and sheets day. Something to prod me into doing it!

Glad your cold is better. I too was a worrywort last night. I'm glad I'm home today.

The work on our laundry room is going to be next week rather than this week. So I'm laundering my sheets now, in the event it's hard to get at the laundry over the weekend.

Meeting friends for dinner tonight. BF is out of town on business.

I'm feeling better than I did this AM. Having a fresh cup of coffee. I've taken down one wreath and will get the other one down now. The city recycles them, as it turns out.

Good Morning Everyone

Hi Subclinical
No worries about Steven "shopping" at the dump because they strictly forbid you to take other people's stuff. ;)
WAY TO GO! for all you did!
Good luck with your goals for today.
Please don't over do (((hug)))

Hi Tatoulia
So, that big mess all over your desk was mostly papers?
Here is what I am envisioning...
A nice looking small basket hamper type thing about 12X12 inches.
Placed somewhere near the desk where you could put the incoming papers rather than on the desk top.
This would keep the desktop clear, pretty and useable but all the papers would still be right there where you would see them and remember to sort them out.


Going to be tired today, didn't get enough sleep last night.
The cats were doing stuff and playing and disturbing thoughts kept going through my mind too.
This cold is slowly but surely clearing up, yea.
Yesterday I actually ate and could taste the food too.
There is a thick covering of frost on everything this morning
Good day to play inside. :)

Great work, SubC! Please don't over do!

Ok I was up worrying last night and as I crawled out of bed, I realized that I don't want to go to work. So I'm working from home. And it's great. It's damp and raw but the truth is, I'm exhausted.

My desk looks great. Now to finish the coffee table/staging area.

I am so so tired. I hope I can stay awake.

Way to go on the desk Tatoulia!

Tillie, I hope you figure out the trash. I would be worried that Steven would bring the truck back more full than when he left.

The paper village is very sweet. It belonged to dh great uncle, who never had kids. Then it belonged to dh grandfather. The grandfather also had a wooden farm that is a larger scale, and every year mil set up the farm on a bench and then set the village up on the windowsill as if it were farther away up on a ridge. But I guess she got tired of the village. It has three little houses and a shop and a sawmill and the whole thing folds flat into a box that you might buy Christmas cards in.

I was slower and lazier today than I wished, but I am resting. I got all of the sheets and blankets washed from one of the rooms the kids stayed in with dogs and vacuumed the floor, but I do not have the bed set back up in case of guests.

I also emptied and ran the dishwasher.

Aaaand - I filled a trash can! It is mostly trash from our party and guests because I was too sick to limit or manage packaging and disposables, but there are a few things I cleaned up from the garage and yard.

Tomorrow I have to run errands - I think too many, so I will see how far I get - and also finish the first week of trash cans and take them up to the road.

Thank you, Tillie! Btw, your tidy friend is trending on twitter!!!

I have cleared off my desk and it looks beautiful again. Just a silver tray with my desk lamp on it and a small Lalique bird. There's a decorative lidded box and a small framed picture of a long gone yet dearly loved cat. And a placemat which I use under my laptop. The other stuff has been removed (all papers) and I'm going through them now. After I cleared my desk I took a few things to the dry cleaner together with his Christmas box of chocolates (I didn't make it there by Christmas) and then I visited BF for a bit. Getting home and seeing my desk clear, and a little kitty sleeping on the chair next to it, well it warmed my heart. I think I'll put on fireplace, to complete the picture.

On the window sill above my desk I kept a tiny paper Christmas house and a really beautiful tree next to it. They are on a silver oblong tray and my precious carved mouse paper opener is on it. I generally have a vase there with the mouse but I decided I liked my little winter scene and will keep up for a while longer.

Oooh SubC I just know I'd love your paper village.


I'll now go through my papers from my desk and continue to sort through and shred.

Tillie I know you are sick and I really appreciate your helping me make these plans. And execute them. Thank you. Sending you warm thoughts and much love.

Hi Tatoulia
LOL :D

GREAT! starting on something you see all the time, your desk top.
WAY TO GO! relocating the clutter to new territory.
That always helps us to actually see what's really there.

Can you think of better ways & places to keep the desk top stuff from becoming clutter?
Do you need to use a basket/box/drawer organizer?
Once the desk top is decluttered try to keep it from becoming a "catch all" where things are just dropped to be put away properly someday.
One reason a lot of things are just dropped in a convenient spot is because their assigned storage places are too inconvenient to easily use.
Try to rethink how these assorted desk top items get stored.
Find someone to ask for a solution because they will have a fresh perspective, something simple you have never thought about before.

If you put the paper shredder in a convenient but out of the way place
(Where Miss Kitty will NOT mess with it and get hurt)
Bring out some papers to sort through, not too many all at once and work on shredding a few of them when you find you have a few free minutes to spare.

So, the top of upper cupboards are ancient unexplored abandoned places...
Do you have a sturdy ladder?
If so you could venture a peek up there and from what you learn make a solid plan of attack.
Top of my cupboards have paper spread out on them because it makes cleaning up all the dust easier.
There is also a pewter bowl filled with 6 glow in the dark glass globes and curly "icicles".
Nothing else because I need a ladder to access the area, it is never regularly dusted and gets disgusting quickly.
Steven wanted to mount the cupboards all the way up to the ceiling but then I would have needed a ladder to reach even the lowest shelves.
Anyways, once you have seen the top you will know what's up there and can start planning how to proceed.


In the meantime if there is another hotspot you want to start on just let me know.

Now get busy working on your desk!
No excuses, no more procrastinating.
Get that coffee table a clear again! ;P

Ok I'm going to clear off my desk. I'm going to take everything off and put on coffee table. Coffee table will be my sorting/staging area. It will look so pretty again. It has collected clutter. Bad desk.

Keep fighting the virus, Tillie! It would be nice if Steven could get on a routine where he drops off stuff once a week, starting with the stuff already on his truck.

Cleaner texted me. She is all alone today and asked if she can come on Monday when she has her friends with her. That is fine with me. My house is dirty but maybe I could do a little sweeping?

Tillie I have too much stuff. I need to get rid of more stuff. I just do. There is still too much for me to handle easily. I might catch a little of tidying up and see how that helps me. I do have more papers in my closet that need to be shredded. There's always more. Always.

Tess I think you mentioned books. Books are so difficult to say goodbye to. That's where I started my dehoarding process. Twenty boxes of books. I got rid of those I won't read again, I got rid of books I loved but I can replace on my kindle, should the spirit move me, I got rid of books that I bought in my 20s to show everyone how artsy and progressive I am. It was tough. I'm so grateful they are gone. I still have books. I had my mother's wedding china and I had to find room, so I used that as an excuse, that I'd rather have my mother's china.

Tillie I really need to be told what to do. I'm sorry. Could you pretend that I'm Steven? I'm so sorry to put you in this position. Ideas include shredding more papers, checking out what's on the tippy top shelves of my kitchen cabinets, clearing off my desk which is cluttered all of a sudden, etc. sorry I need this.

Good Morning Everybody

Hi Subclinical
You mentioning the vintage paper village brought back some sweet childhood memories for me.
So nice that your MIL is decluttering and letting family things go to the family to enjoy now.
GOOD LUCK and best wishes filling those trash cans fully every week.

Hi Tatoulia
Hope you are all rested up from the other night. :)

Think this cold is going to go away soon, nose is still stuffy but other symptoms have decreased significantly.

Steven used to take the trash to the dumpsters at his job about monthly.
Now he's no longer working he must now decide how we will handle trash here.
I would like him to empty the hoard of stuff out of his truck.
Fill the truck with lots of crap from the yard along with the household trash and drive it all to the dump.
If he would do this once every month we would begin to see improvement here in about ten years. ;P

The damp feeling laundry felt totally dry after only a few hours inside on the drying rack.
Folded it and put it away last evening.

No real plans for today except to continue to drown out this cold virus.

Tillie I can't wait to watch the show! Yes there are some things that need to be scolded, others I shall salute to thank them for their service!

SubC I forgot to mention how much I love, sight unseen, the paper village!

Ok I need to get up for work. I slept with cell in the room in case the cleaning ladies called. They did not.

Tillie, so funny about the stuff!

Tatoulia, you have done well with the Christmas stuff! I'm not taking mine down until the weekend.

Some of the inflow was not exactly gifts. - the spoon, photos, sad irons, and paper village were all things mil was getting rid of. (She had a big table full of things but that was all I took.)

The useful cloth napkins are from aunt S, who was getting rid of ones that were partial sets. She knows I use cloth napkins every day and pack them in dh lunch, so I can use these for the lunch box instead of my "fancy" ones. Five of the books were from a box my mother was clearing out. The other one was a gift from dd. I actually have to return it. It was an excellent choice, as it is a book I both enjoy and use for work, but it is also a book I broke down and bought myself about a month before Christmas. She doesn't know, and it was a very generous gift for her budget. So, I am not going to tell her, I will just figure out a way to return "mine" somewhere and mentally keep her copy.

I also have to return a gift I bought twice because the shipping was delayed on the first one.

Today everyone else goes to work and I begin cleaning up from our vacation - laundry, and putting things away and cleaning out the fridge, getting the mail, restocking feed, paying the farm sitter....

I also need to start working on filling those trash cans for dh. The first set goes up tomorrow night.

Hi Everybody!

WAY TO GO!!! Tess! :D
What a wonderful decluttering session you've had!
So nice you found things that you had been missing.
One good way to help keep from keeping things for "Justin Case" is to always put yourself first.
Think "how does keeping this benefit me and help me to reach my goals".

WELCOME BACK Subclinical
May all your new gifts bless you and your home.
Please take extra good care of yourself.
Sleep/rest whenever possible (((HUG)))

Hi Tatoulia
WAY TO GO! dismantling the gingerbread house and tidying up at Mom's.
Great that the donation bag is filled and out of the house.
So now, go to bed!
You were up late last night and busy all day today and tomorrow is work.

Brought the laundry in.
The sheets, pillow cases and dish towels were dry.
The wash cloths, hand towels and bath towels were still feeling a little damp so I have them on the drying rack.
Scooped litter boxes, washed dishes and not much else.
Now I will get ready and sit in my bed till I fall asleep.

Was checking what's new on Netflix and discovered
"Tidying Up" with Marie Kondo
Eight episodes where she goes into different people's homes and teaches them her methods then leaves them to it.

Was thinking about always having to thank items before releasing them.
There have been many things in my life that I would have to say this to...
"You have always been a total disappointment to me.
Everything you told me in the store was a bald faced lie.
Now I will thank you to get the Heck out of my life and don't let the door hit you on the arse as you leave." ;P

SubC the socks and the cloth napkins will be very useful! I only use cloth napkins at home and I adore them all, esp as they get softer with time!

Tillie! Yay for orangeade and soup with cheese-its! Keep taking good care of yourself! I bet the Neto pot is helping too.

SubC boy you've been battling this for a long while. Sending you hugs and giant well wishes. I am so sorry this has been really sticking around for you.

SubC, My goodness that's a huge Christmas haul! The demitasse spoon sounds so lovely, as do the other gifts. I did well. A woman at work got me pjs, as previously mentioned, and the pjs she bought me a few years back have been washed and out in donation bag, I got the new sheets from BF, and today I have put an older, but still usuable and nice, set in my donation bag, BF cheated on the no gifts rule and bought me an updated TV and he also got me a gift card for beauty services. One friend at work gave me a new, very nice spatula and I used it four times during the holidays. And that's it for non- edible gifts. Pretty snazzy. Oh our overseas friends sent nice gifts. The wife is the woman re-doing my house so there was nothing excessive or unusable. It all goes with my decor, including the dress she bought me.

Tess! You are a powerhouse!!! Fantastic work! I'm so proud of you and you are serving as an inspiration! Thank you!

I got my Christmas stuff put away, minus two little things I consciously wanted to keep out. I also cleared the hallway of my Christmas decorations.

I finally left the house at four, ran into some friends, went to pharmacy, walked around a bit, met up with BF and we shopped for a new baby in the family then I went to mom's yo visit. I pulled off all the usable candy from out gingerbread house and tossed it then I changed kitty's box. I also took my donation bag to the car since the items would not get the right quality for my cleaners. Old t shirts and pjs and sheets. Nothing I could give to them and feel ok about it.

I'm running the dishwasher. I still have more to do here but I'm tired and want to go to bed. I'll declutter tomorrow, unless I stay awake, in which case I'll declutter.

Happy New year!!!!🎆🎈🎊

A pair of socks
A dozen cloth napkins.

Hi!

I am home.
And still sick.
And I don't think I can summarize. Or even list all the things.

Maybe:
Two scarves, a hat, a necklace, six books, a puzzle (passed a puzzle on to dsil, so broke even there), hand carved wooden spoon, special cow bell, two antique sad irons, the paper Christmas town that has been in dh family since around 1900, a barrette, candy, a cool chicken art print, the pastry cutter I asked for, a puppet, lotion, two t-shirts, a dish towel, a clay yak, a big cool lidded basket, an antique silver demitasse spoon with millifleur handle inlay, family photos, and somewhere there is probably a partridge in a pear tree.

Very tired. Will return to regularly scheduled life tomorrow.

Hi everybody! Happy New Year!!!

Thank you all for your kind words. Taking care of others and taking pride in being able to supply what they need has pretty much been my identity. Well, I'm ready to find a new identity and I'm looking forward to figuring out who I will be now.

Today I came across a declutterthon. It was on a conference line. Everybody announced what they planned to do and updated the attendees when it was complete. It was extremely motivating to listen to what everyone was accomplishing while I cleaned. I did quite a bit:
-combined a couple small containers of paper to be shredded. I'll have to buy a new shredder this weekend and get busy
-cleared out, cleaned and decluttered my entertainment center
-decluttered my bookshelf and craft bin. I'm donating approximately 15 books. Books are not easy for me to part with. I also boxed up several books and put them out of sight.
-gathered purchases and receipts for returns. Put them in the car
-cleaned and decluttered my coffee table (it has storage room on the bottom too)
-cleaned out two of my "hoard bins". I found so many clothes I've been looking for. Also found a purse I love and thought I had thrown away. Gathered the clothes and I'm headed to the laundromat to wash them now.
-began decluttering my kitchen. I have a whole bag of stuff ready to take to the trash.
-took down and boxed Christmas decorations. Now I need to take them to the basement.

In all, I have a box and a bag ready to donate and 7 bags of garbage ready to take out. I'm going to call today a success!!!

HELLO EVERYBODY

Hi Subclinical
Hi CriticalMass
Hi Motown
Hi Tess
Hi Anonymoniker
Hi to everybody else ;)

Hi Tatoulia
WYG! getting the trash out last night!
Great planning getting laundry done before the room is out of service.
Good luck getting XMas all put away until next season.


I made some orangeade
ate some tomato soup with cheez-its.
Used the Neti-pot and it really helped me to breathe through my nose rather than my mouth.
Almost 3:00pm so soon I will bring in, fold & put away laundry.
If something is still a bit damp I'll hang it on the drying rack.
He was going to the grocery store anyways so I asked him to bring me some of those nice tiny tangerines & he did.
So I used the last few oranges I had to make the orangeade.
Will wash up the few dishes after the laundry is taken care of.
Also still need to scoop the three litter boxes.
With only three cats and three litter boxes this task is easy & the boxes never get to overfull.
In between everything I have been doing I am doing a LOT of resting. ;)

The word Fresh particularly resonated with me in your new year's message, Tillie. We can do this! I am putting away my Christmas things now and doing laundry before our room is temporarily unavailable due to structural work.

I am grateful I got the garbage out last night as it was up and away before I got up.

Warm, sunny and windy here. As soon as my laundry is done I will get dressed and run an errand or two. We were out well past my bedtime last night. We got in just before 2 and then another hour or two before ready for bed. I'm exhausted today!

I'm making myself a little list, including I must take bag for goodwill to car. I also need to pick up a prescription. Stuff like that.

But first, Christmas needs to be put away. I mean it. Oh I didn't take off wreaths yet from my windows yet. I will do for Friday's garbage. Cleaners come tomorrow.

What are you doing today! Looking forward to a fresh new year, I hope.

I have the clothes line all filled with linens this morning.

The sun is shining but it's so cold the laundry froze solid soon as I hung it out. LOL

My cold seems to be on the decline, fingers crossed x
Planning to spend another day trying to drown it out with soup, tea and oranges.

Seriously need to come up with a plan to get him on some sort of schedule so he is not constantly underfoot & in my way.

Happy New Year! We are just getting in.

Glad the shower helped, Tillie.

HAPPY NEWYEAR EVERYBODY!!!

Hi Tatoulia

Happy to know that I am not the only one addicted to moisturizers and lip balms. ;)
Yep, I use/have used all those balms too.
It was having a tube of Bert's Bees lip balm that got me to thinking about making up some of my own.
Kitty's lip balm tin sounds so cute!

Have a wonderful time ringing on the new year.
How charming to stroll along those old scenic streets.


When I was in the hot steamy shower I felt lots better, hated to get out.
Still have a wonderful selection of soups & crackers on hand.
Stocked up a few months ago. YEA! me. ;D

I'm home. I was very cold on walk home. Just took my garbage out. Didn't do any housework today.

I'm going to nap til I have to get up to go out.

I am hooked on moisturizers and chap stick. For the most part, I find that traditional chapstick is a good favorite. I also like aquaphor and the occasional Vaseline intensive lip. For Christmas, kitty got me a lip balm made by three sisters soap company and it's lemonade flavored but the bigger news is it's in a little cat tin. All natural. Smells like lemon furniture wax from long ago. I'm good with it.

I took a walk to Charles Street today, on the foot of Beacon Hill. So charming. I bought a blouse and now I'm getting mani/pedi. I hope to make it home before the rain starts. We do not celebrate until 10 PM.

Will nap during pedi.

Good Morning
sniffle, sniffle, sneeze, sneeze, sneeze...

Hi CriticalMass
Staying at someone's house for three whole months is not "cat sitting".
That is "house sitting" along with taking care of a resident cat and everything else concerning that property.
You have your own life to manage and that would be too much to ask of you.
Happy the vehicle incident was only a minor thing.
I try to never drive after sundown because it's hard to see with headlights coming toward me.


Hi Tatoulia
What an exhausting dream!
Nice you caught up on the phone with your former coworker.
YEA! for regularly scheduled trash pickup!


Living here in this high Sierra desert the air is very dry all the time.
I am addicted to lip balm here but when I travel away from the area my lips are alright.
I started making my own lip balm
food grade bees wax
Vaseline
honey
and a touch of anise flavoring
Found the recipe online.
Works well, tastes good and costs less than commercial lip balms.

OK, now off to drown myself under a nice extra warm shower. ;P

CM you made the right choice to stop cat sitting. That is a long period of time. I can understand why they don't want the cats to be alone, but my goodness, you can't put your life on hold for someone else. It must've been a tough decision but you need to take care of your own life. You are working so hard and making gains everyday, even if it doesn't feel like it.

I had a busy dream last night where I had to defend my thesis and things kept getting in my way and my 11 o'clock spot came up and I realized I had copied something wrong and the next thing I knew, I was out of the building, someplace else, and trying to figure out how to explain that I'd missed my appointment. It felt so real and I kept saying, I wish this were a dream and how am I going to get out of this?

I had a nice long call with a former co worker today. It was great.

So time to shower and time for a walk. My walking buddy already has 2.5 miles in for the day, and I've walked as far as my couch, with a stop at the coffee machine.

Luckily our garbage is on its usual schedule so I can take it out tonight. I changed kitty's box last night.

Tess, so good to hear from you - sometimes it is just time to make those big changes, and it's scary and everything feels topsy turvy for awhile but knowing how much better it's becoming is the fuel we need to keep going forward.

Tillie sorry about the cold - but good to know it was a man cold - we women can handle those! 😂 But do rest and use your best remedies. Feel better real soon.

You are so right about 2018 being one huge roller coaster ride. I'm sure hoping 2019 will be a time for consolidating the gains we've all made, and being able to make plans and see them come to fruition.

I'm very gradually feeling the benefits of catching up on some sleep. Still sorting my mind out from Thursday when I got discouraged and demotivated on the doll clothes and some other things. My roommate returns later today, so I will be free of kitty routine tracking. I may take a nap in a bit. Then hopefully wake up motivated to finally finish the doll clothes. I am still wanting to make more, it's just the pressure of doing a commission that freaks me out. I tense up. When I sew on my own schedule and just make things and let customers pick from what's currently available, I do fine.

I have difficulty slipping smoothly into someone else's routines. There is that friend of mine you may recall that I used to cat sit for and this year I'm pretty sure that she will be getting someone else, and I'm fine with that. Even though I love their cat - they're down to one. But she was wanting me to move over to the other side of town with my bunnies and stay for three months.

I'm just not readily adaptable to that. As much as I may bemoan my lack of privacy here, there are many ways this feels like home and with my anxiety I don't travel easily. My church and most of my life is on this side of town, and if I forgot something or needed something and it was late at night, I would be spooked to drive back here. And in my life, three months is plenty of time for hectic things to happen, and I just don't need extra responsibilities and worries that aren't my own.

It's hard to explain the whole thing because it's my mental quirks that make it more difficult than it'd be for the average person. But I believe I have the right and even the duty to protect my health and not spend the first quarter of the new year putting my needs last. The couple made the reservation for the time share out of state without thinking about the cat sitting, so why is that my problem? In January I had difficulty doing it for three weeks! And then I got criticism which is why I questioned the whole thing. I thought, maybe this worked once upon a time but it just doesn't seem to be working as well anymore. Things change.

I had a minor scare with my new van the other night. I backed into a guy's bumper. No damage of significance, no cops, none of that. Prayers thanking God it was so minor. But I can tell how the cataracts are impacting my night vision so I'm going to have to make adjustments accordingly.

Tatoulia, I'm so glad for you having made the difficult changes - you did what you were able and we can pray he gets help. But you tried and gave it so much, so be at peace.

I hope Motown, SubC, Anony, Joan, and anyone else we don't hear from often will pop in at some point. If I don't post again before, have a Happy New Year.

Sorry to hear about your cold. Yes plenty of tea and oranges! And keep chapstick on your lips! My lips get so dry and painful.

Good Morning Everybody

Hi Tatoulia
Have a wonderful time out today with your Mom.
WTG! for making the time for un-decorating!
Hope it all gets nicely organized and fits perfectly in it's storage spaces.

Well, Steven has given me his cold. :(
It's annoying with a stuffy runny nose but no where near as bad as he makes it out to be.
He acts like he is at death's door.

My plan today is to clean the kitchen again.Not very many dishes to wash so it will be quick.
Want to wash my hair too but might put that off till tomorrow, I dunno?
Have plenty of soups & tea & oranges on hand to help flush this virus out. :)

Hello everyone!

Tess I am so happy to hear from you! Great list of accomplishments! Both physical and emotional! I used to put other people first, to my physical, emotional, financial detriment. Slowly but surely I turned that around, with help and support from everyone here. First, I used to hoard for many reasons, but a large reason was that I wanted to be the hero. The one who had just the thingamabob that someone needed. If it was on sale, I'd buy multiples so that anyone who needed it would be able to get it from me. Now it all seems so stupid. (To me, for me, no judgment on what anyone else is doing.). The day, four or so years ago, that I realized there are STORES where people can get their needs met was EYE OPENING. Another thing was, for decades I took care of a mentally and physically disabled person who was a trash hoarder (although maybe just a slob since he had no issues with my cleaning his place) and was a financial drain and was mean and abusive. I finally set myself free this year. I feel some guilt but nothing I can't handle. So I now have energy to do things for myself and others without compromising my health. I never believed people when they told me to let go of family member. I felt no one understood my guilt. Do you know who had a firm grasp on my guilt??? The disabled person. He manipulated and twisted my guilt to the point where I didn't recognize myself. So kudos for looking out for yourself! You can still be loving and kind and caring. But you first.

Tillie we will continue to get through our challenges together.

Today I am getting mom out of the house and I have something I want to do tmr. Then tmr night BF and I will do our usual.

Today I want to stay off the internet and work on putting Christmas away.

Hi Tess

We all support you 100% in putting yourself 1st. in ALL things.

Keep holding your head up high.
Be proud of all you have done and accomplished.

WAY TO GO! for that big long list of what you did today! :D

Good luck finding a dentist you like and WTG! for your plan to schedule an appointment.


We all have faced so much this past year and I am very proud of everyone for staying the course and coping in the best ways we could manage.
((((HUGS))))

Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't posted very much this year. I've been struggling a bit with depression and changing relationships (romantic and friendships and family). I've been fighting it tooth and nail. It has been a struggle, but it hasn't pulled me completely under! It's actually been a good thing because this year has taught me that I need to put myself first. Nobody else is going to take care of me or save me, so I need to do it myself. This year has taught me to take the energy, love and resources that I poured into others and focus more of it on myself. For the first time in a very long time (maybe ever!), I'm walking into 2019 with my head held high. I know I've done the best I can. Not everyone may think so. Many probably could have done better. That's fine. I'm only comparing myself to who I was in the past. As I said, it was a year full heartbreak, stress, disappointments, and hard lessons, but I'm coming out stronger than ever for it.

Enough of my year end reflection. Today I got a late start, but I accomplished a good bit:
-I did a little bit of work work that needed to get done
-drop off/pick up at the library
-laundry
-cleaned the car
-dropped off two boxes at goodwill
-bought a new Dutch oven to replace my ruined pot. I'm proud of myself because that's all I bought!
-cleared off coffee table, kitchen table, and bathroom counter. Also wiped them down. The toilet too.
-Cooked lunch

Coming up next (likely tomorrow):
-change sheets
-put away laundry
-make an Apple Store appointment
-find a dentist (will make appointment Monday)
-take out a bag of garbage
-get gas for car
-church

Good Morning Everyone

Hi CriticalMass
Wishing you a "New Year" with only tiny bumps in the road.
Happy you have simply accepted that your plans for this week just couldn't materialize.
Lots of pets & hugs to all the animals in your care.
Hope you are able to stuff the recycling bins every week!

Hi Tatoulia
I consider ginger ale to be medicinal rather than recreational.
But then again, I have always been into old time simple home remedies.
My chai masala that I drink every day has lots of fresh ginger root cut up in it and it really does work to fix a lot of my ailments.
YEA! for cute new sheets!
Happy your alcoholic gift has arrived and now you are free to roam.
WAY TO GO! having a bag ready for donation!
Good luck finding a way to recycle the wreaths.

Sunny blue skies today but colder than a well digger's arse out there.
Thinking about writing down a list of goals I would like accomplished in the near future.
#1 is to try to get him to get all five of these derelict vehicles out of here.
So sick and tired of looking at them and trying to maneuver around them and always fighting nasty vicious wasps nests in them.
#2 still undecided...

Morning

My mornings start late... But I love being able to be a night owl all over the house like I could when I lived alone. When roomie is home I can only be a night owl behind my bedroom door and quietly.

Really am also feeling the Mama Bear hibernation instinct since the passing of Christmas Day and the coinciding temperature drop.

I'm glad I recognized that unfortunately this time on my own won't be the opportunity I'd hoped for getting big projects done. I just accepted it rather than getting all bent out of shape. The kitties and bunnies need me, and the whole year has been one chaotic string of fires to put out - the old van with its problems, my roommate's health problems, major home repairs, and much more.

Things got shifted around and piles formed - it's just going to take time to chip away at it all.

The good news is that we have some new things going on that will facilitate the goals of decluttering. We have the recycling service and we're both excited about that. Some of the excess items languishing under bathroom and kitchen sinks got put out of their misery when the plumbing leaks happened (silver lining!). They are gone and it has spurred her to go through more stuff and get rid of the duds.

And I am going to do the same. Spring is not that far off either, despite the dreary days trying to convince me otherwise. The days themselves are getting longer now, and the weather around here usually gives a break even in the coldest times.

In short, it is what it is, but I can still work with it. Iced tea clinks!

I washed my new sheets and put on my bed. They are pretty cute. Martha Stewart Whim sheets with cats on them. They are subtle enough to not look babyish and they look pretty with my white quilt and duvet cover.

My Adult Beverage gift box has been delivered so I can now roam around the world freely. I'm hungry but think a juice/water fast would be nice today.

It's beautiful out. Sunny and cool but not cold. I aired out the living room and will give the bedroom a quick airing.

I'm thinking of taking my wreaths down on Monday so I can put in garbage. There are farms that would take them to feed goats so I'll have to see if there's anyplace near me.

I am ready to put most of my Christmas decorations down. It's not wintry weather so they start to feel pathetic. To me.

I will get dressed now and go visit BF. Then I'll need to walk around. Maybe stop for a seltzer water.

Good morning!

I am up early for me and feeling great. I am healthy, Tillie, thank you-I use the expression "not feeling well and need a ginger ale/juice/seltzer" when I get overheated. I had been walking around and I got overheated.

You know when we were discussing pop I completely forgot my love of ginger ale. I bet I have it twice a month. So soothing. Last night I had a Jamaican ginger beer with extra ginger. I loved the ginger part of it but less crazy about the pineapple and honey. But the ginger was good and strong and delicious. Gave me what I needed to walk the next mile and a half!

Do not know what today will bring. I do need to change my sheets and other chores, esp since we are having internal work done in the house and the laundry won't be available for a week or so. I'll just send to the fluff and fold people if I find it's making me crazy.

I do have a bag for goodwill. I am not leaving house til my package arrives. I missed the delivery yesterday. I think I mentioned that it clearly has alcohol in it since it requires an adult signature.

So, what are you doing today??