Good work,Kari! You are making progress.
I found that I prefer shower curtains over shower doors. I can throw it in the washing machine on gentle/cold every so often and throw it out when it wears out.
I am glad the weekend is here. I am starting to get back into the groove at work. I was less tired yesterday. I am a person who needs the order of a daily routine and don't like change.
This weekend I need to:
Do one or two loads of laundry
Grocery shop
Clean the kitchen and bathroom
Pick up the dog yard and clean the cat box
If I can remove one trash bag of clutter, too, I will feel like I am back on track.

Good morning everybody! :D

Diane, WTG! working the clinics. :)
When you get home the important things are rest and maintaining your clear/clean areas.
My Granma had a sweet little cottage on the shore of a small lake out in the country in Michigan.
When I am feeling at my lowest that's where I daydream that I am.

Hi Kara :) you little sleepy head. ;)

Hi MayMay :)
The smoke last night was the worst yet. Had to keep all the windows shut. Went onto the porch to see if it was any better at 11pm and my eyes immediately started burning. Thanks anyways ;D

Hi Karl :)
WAY TO GO! scraping gunk and finding homes for some stuff in the "holding pen". :D

Have absolutely no idea what I will be doing today.
Could ask him if he has any plans but he has been acting like a butthead so I'm not speaking to him. ;P
I fed all the cats & made my bed. Now time to get dressed, brush & braid my hair, brush my teeth and wash my face.
Hoping the wind will blow from east to west today and blow that forest fire smoke away.
TTYL :D

I've failed at shifting to an earlier schedule; it's going on 3:15 now and I'm only going to get about 6.5h of sleep. Then eat breakfast and head over to the blood center to donate. I timed it so that I'll be finished there at about the same time that a board games event will be starting just a couple of blocks away.

Cleaning status -- well, I did spend some time scraping at the gunk at the bottom of the shower door. And I went through a few things that were in the "temporary" holding pen in the garage, and found a "home location" for them with the household tools.

Hi everyone! :D

Thanks Roxie,
Yeah it was a really cool experience! WOW! A baby raccoon in your kitchen?!... That would totally freak me out! I think raccoons are cute; but if I ever saw one in my kitchen, it would totally freak me out! Great job today! :)

Hi Karl! :)

Hi diane,
Great job today! I love the name "Creative Cottage". You've now made me want to name my room too. :)

Hi SusanL,
Congratulations on getting your hearing aids. :)

Hi Tillie,
Sorry to hear about the smoke from the fire. I hope you will be able to sleep okay tonight. :)

Hi Kara! :)

Thanks Tillie, am really enjoying the name,
Creative Cottage. I have always wanted a cute little cottage, so to name this Creative Cottage, is so funny to me. Not the cottage I imagined, tacky little room, with weird boards, with lots of holes that still need to be patched. By classing it up with a cute name, tickles my funny bone.
Finished painting a section of trailer, in walkway, then a huge thunder storm came and rained fast and hard, found a few leaks in walkway roof, now that junk is mostly out can see where I need to patch roof, seems never ending, good thing I enjoy it. Started getting clinics scheduled for next two months, hope work doesn't interfere with decluttering too much.

WAY TO GO! Karl for getting the trash out on time! :D

Diane, "Creative Cottage" has so many possibilities and potential. A pleasant place to create anything and everything! :D
I too like when an item makes up my mind for me by breaking, tearing or simply wearing out. ;)

SusanL
SO WONDERFUL! I am so very happy that you have hearing aids! :D
(((HGS)))

I haven't done anything really today.
Tidied up, took out the trash, ate lunch & took a nap.
Hoping the smoke from that fire in the Tahoe area doesn't get thick here again. Has been worse at night and makes sleeping hard. Cough, cough, wheeze wheeze. lol

Hope everybody has some fun planned for the weekend. ;D

Hi all,

Self care - got hearing aids after postponing that for a long, long time. I've been missing both conversation and sounds in nature.

As always, inspired by your stories and struggles. You guys rock.

Hi everyone. I worked on walkway all morning. cleaned and painted a section of the trailer that is in walkway, then put up storage rack that I washed last night. Rack and wall are the same color, off white, looks good so far.
Tillie I actually did a happy dance in living room and in room that is insulated out there, my dog was wondering what was going on, she is better today.
I wrote a bunch of names for the room out there, and for now, she is named "Creative Cottage". Gives me unlimited possibilities for adventure in creating, so happy I am finally cleaning up areas. Still difficult for me to focus on just one area, so for now I am giving myself permission to do whatever I want out there in the morning then in afternoon, do some work in here. Now will make good lunch and do dishes. It was great yesterday, knocked over coffee so had to clean whole counter, under microwave etc.
I have dropped so many things that I was trying to decide if I wanted to keep, broken, easy to toss!!! I am getting help making decisions in funny little ways.
Sounds funny MayMay, thanks Roxie for kind words. Yes lots of us are feeling tired, took afternoon off yesterday, may do the same today, after dishes of course, my fav. Happy so many of us are sticking with this.

I just got up, and saw a reminder about the semi-official Friday chat. I'm in there now, but will probably be multi-tasking while waiting to see if anyone else shows. I haven't been getting much cleaning done lately, though I did get the trash out to the curb on time.

Good morning :)

Hi :)
Diane, Barb, MayMay, Mare, Roxie and everybody else. :)

The cats decided that I needed to get up early and feed them breakfast.
I got up but made them wait till I was good & ready to feed them. ;P

Friday...
need to get ready for the weekend & "him" being here.
Can't paint with him here so will do that next week.
The washing machine is filling very slowly because the water lines need to be cleaned out.
Planning to have him fix that this weekend.
Unfiltered well water with tree roots in the well tends to do that.
I would fix it myself but don't have the strength in my hands to unscrew the parts.

My To-Dos for today...
Tidy up around here. That should take about half an hour.
Planning to put on my music and just sort of hang out around here and play. :D

Last evening I was messing around outside in his clutter and discovered a Yellow Jacket nest with at least 60 wasps on it.
Sprayed it and ran away!
Will check to see how many are still there today. :D

May your Friday be filled with fun too.

I just went on my first ride along with the guys! It was SOOOOO AWESOME!!!!! I got to ride along with them to a 5 alarm fire. Getting to watch them in action was SOOOOO HOT!!!!! LOL. And it was so cool getting to see all of the fire trucks with their lights flashing at night; it was very pretty! :D

We were all posting at the same time hahaha. It threw me into an emotional tizzy so am still processing and will answer later tonight or tomorrow

Hi Barb! :)
Sorry I forgot to say hi to you in my last post. You must have posted around the same time that I was posting; because I didn't even see your post until just now. :)

Hi everyone! :D

Hi Cory,
I can't wait to watch the 20/20 episode. :)

Hi Dianne and Mare. :)
"The Real Housewives of New Jersey" is my second favorite "Real Housewives" show. I hate "Toddlers and Tiaras". I would never put my kid on that show. I do love its spin-off show "Here Comes Honey Booboo!" though. "Here Comes Honey Booboo!" gives me hope. If Honey Booboo and her family can get their own reality show, then hopefully I will be able to get my own reality show one day too. Lol. :)

Hi Tillie. :)

WAY TO GO diane!
It sounds like you're doing great! :)

Hi friends,
You are making real progress Diane. Woo-hoo!
Tillie and Diane: painting the room and hallway are great ideas. Fresh paint always makes a place seem fresh and new. And pale, pale blue is a great color to use in a space with no windows. It adds a light, airy feeling. My laundry room and unwindowed bathroom are pale pale blue.
I went back to work on Monday. I'll be working 6 to 6 1/2 hours a day five days a week. I have been very tired in the evenings. But my workmates have also said they have been very tires this week. I think once we get back into the routine and used to the daily schedule we will have more energy.
Progress on the clutter has stopped temporarily. I am just trying to maintain the status quo for the time being: dishes, laundry, sweeping, scooping the litter box, garbage taken out, etc. I just need to keep from neglecting the daily chores for the time being.
The 20/20 show should be very interesting.
Barb

Thanks Mare and Tillie. It felt so good to read your comments, I have missed this board this week. I think i will go out there and do a happy dance right now to christen the room, too serious to dance, I will fix that right now. Thanks.

Hi Diane :)
WAY TO GO!!! :D
You have really been doing a fantastic job there!
Make sure to do a Happy Dance every chance you get in all your pretty and clear spaces! :D

Wow diane that is all so amazing congratulations and I LOVE the idea of shopping in out own rooms for "new" treasures I am so going to start doing that!

Hi Everyone. Monday I went to see a friend who moved to a tiny tiny town north of here, it was great fun. Past 3 days I have worked many hours the walkway and little room that is insulated. It is almost useable now, and stays so much cooler than my trailer. I still have about 10 bins and bags and boxes to go through then will need to finish organizing some things, then will be able to use the room any way I want, craft, happy dance, relax, sort stuff from house or garage.
will be so great on hot days to have that room to go hang out it. It is starting to look really great, relatively speaking, considering it was thrown together with all kinds of wood etc., but now that it is all painted, it looks so much better.
I worked non stop many hours yesterday/ again last evening and this morning knowing she was coming over. I was not worried she would judge, just happy I could have someone over, this is amazing coming from the person who began 4 months ago saying I was afraid to clean cause then I would have to have people over!!!!!!!!!!! We had such a nice visit, my life is definitely getting better inspite of the hoard that is still here. Garage sale season is almost over, happy about that. Won't have to see those pesky signs on all the corners soon. They were my drug of choice for sure. As were thrift stores. Now I shop in my own garage and bedrooms. Keep plugging away I tell myself and anyone else who wants a better life.

Cory, the more the merrier.
Looking forward to this. :D

Hi MayMay :)

Hi Dianne :)
I have always loved "spooky". Maybe because I have always been "spooky".
No kidding, my family nick named me Morticia Addams when I was just a tiny little thing. ;)

Hi Mare :)
(((hugs))) and thank you. :D
Reality shows I watch are Survivor and Amazing race.

Hi Cory :)
Nice to see you today. :D

Found a can of very very pale blue satin gloss enamel. Perfect for the hallway! :D

Tillie,
That is great, after all it is for you guys, so you do what works. I can imagine if you get 20 people, that is still a very long night! We are moving both our house and one of our offices so my weekends have not been much fun lately. I am going on vacation in 2 weeks, so that will be a nice getaway from it all!

Thanks for agreeing to be on for the filming. I think it will be great exposure for the website, the support group and the message boards. You may see a lot more people joining your discussions so just be prepared :)

Count me in as well... it being a few weeks away will give us a chance for more input and support, although it is good now, it can always get better.

These days I would feel lost without all of you, thank you again, everyone.

Cory, count me in! :D
Looking forward to getting the word out to more people. :D



P.S. We all voted and changed the rule for chat.
Everybody gets 15 minutes to "talk" then we move on to the next in line.
After we have all had a turn then people can say or ask anything else that they want.

Hi All,
Just a heads up that 20/20 is doing a story on Hoarding. We have filmed a few days with them at different homes and now they want to do a quick filming of me on the Sunday night support group. It won't happen for a few more weeks and I will definitely let you know when they plan to do as soon as I know just in case you want to change your screen name that night. It will be great if you all will log in so this story will show once again that there is help and support available. The more we can educate, the more likely that change will be possible for so many out there. Keep up the great work and incredible support to one another!

Roxie I hope we get to feeling better soon, such a pain in the neck isn't it? Thank you for the encouragement it keeps me doing what I can despite it all.

Gosh Tillie I was sorry to hear about that bad day and hope today is going better... you can rant here anytime, you know! I liked Dianne's answer to that...

Dianne said... Since I have avoided dealing with people helping with things around here for so long it surprised me how debilitating the stress can be. The build-up of dread, the twisting gut when they're here and the......I don't know what to call it when they leave. I just want to eat, watch cop shows or Fearnet movies (those are my cable vices) and go to bed.

I can really relate to this and it was a relief to see it in writing and so well said. I avoid having anyone in especially repair or improvement people unless its my son-in-law who is a pack-rat (hoarder) himself so he doesn't mess with anything or move anything without letting me know first. So odd to have him understand anything really let alone something so very personal.

Really, getting the crap cleaned out of our houses is just one part of changing our lives.

This is SO TRUE!!!

Roxie we seem to be in sync with our nights and days... today I was up at 3 in the afternoon but still draggy... I'm trying to listen to my body but also trying to puch a little as that is always what it takes to get anything done or even thought about. Not sure why I am feeling so stressed ohwait... hahaha yes I am. Daughter still out of town, house not all the way moved into yet, a million boxes in storage to be dealt with this month (son-in-law came by today and told me not to pay for another month of storage and that he is moving everything into the warehouse he has... this is mind-bogglingly distressing) kids started school on Monday, laundry still to be done, no fridge or stove still...

Tillie be kind to yourself, no, you are not alone but I wish there was more I could say or do to help you get through... cats are always a plus if you ask me though! You are such a blessing to all of us and you take such a proactive role here, thank you for that. Your freak-outs are OUR freak-outs! I am glad that is behind you and you got a nap in afterwards. And phobias are by their very nature irrational.

MayMay I confess to being a TV addict... not much better than being a gamer (Tillie can relate, Dianne too...) I like reality shows, too but different ones (Big Brother what a waste of time haha, Survivor, Hoarders of course) and crime shows, suspense flicks... nothing spooky though. Its just another escape and I try to multi-task with little BUT SOME success haha.

Hugs, Roxie... I love reading your accomplishments everyday it really helps me to get or stay motivated especially with the relapse of recent days now going into a week I think. I am not fighting it now, sleeping and up as its dictated to me and feeling alright about it for the most part. This too shall pass!

I am glad to see you on track, Tillie and the Terrible Day past thank goodness!!! Your posts keep me going too I am so grateful for all of you ladies and Karl haha. Why don't we have more men?! STATISTICALLY WE SHOULD!

The summer flew by, we are having that same nip in the air which is seasonally unusual and early... and me with no heat source yet :\

Dianne I agree with so much you said about the shows... and the childhood memories and sparked interests. Very insightful, thank you.

It was nice to see Cory stop in and that was a good tip and now I know why my walls are a light brown in colour haha.

Thanks for that great tip Cory. :D

Hi everybody! :D

I just had the weirdest dream! :D

Cory,
You were in my dream. :)

And so was Matt Paxton, Kim Kardashian and her family, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, Russell Brand, Justin Bieber, and of course me. :)

It was seriously the weirdest dream I've ever had! In my dream we were all trapped in a hoarded house together and we couldn't get out because of all the stuff that was blocking the windows and doors.

Hey Cory,
Do you know if Matt Paxton has a crush on Kim Kardashian? Because in my dream, he kept chasing her around and was trying to kiss her. And then you ended up locking Matt in a closet because he kept freaking Kim Kardashian out. LOL. :)

Hey Tillie,
Here is a fun fact for you in case you didn't know. If you mix several colors of paint together, they typically will mix to make a shade of light brown which will be perfect for your hallway. This is the same thing all the cities do with the household hazardous waste collection centers they run. They mix all the paints together they received to make a light brown paint for their graffiti removal programs. You would probably need to mix several colors for this to work though. Have a great day!

Good morning :)
I'm up early today.
Feeding the cats and have the sprinkler going on the lawn.
Going out to water the trees and bushes in a bit.
Accomplished nothing yesterday so today I am ready to get back to my real life.
Planning to look through all his paint and find something suitable for painting the hallway.
There is an Autumn like chill to the air this morning. Time to start thinking about the coming winter.
Where did the Summer go?
Where did all the posters go?

Anyways,
Happy Thursday :D

Hi everybody! :D

Sorry I haven't been posting a lot. I've kind of been going through a funk lately. I don't really know why. It's kind of a weird time to be going through a funk though; considering the fact that in a week and a half I will be going to Los Angeles. You'd think that I would go through the funk after I get back from Los Angeles; not right before I go. :/

Hi Dianne,
I LOVE reality tv shows! My favorite reality shows are "HOARDERS" (obviously!) LOL, "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" on E! (Kim Kardashian is my idol!), "The Badgirls Club" on Oxygen (I actually thought about signing up to be on that show.), "The Real Housewives" on Bravo (I watch all of the different "Real Housewives" shows, but my favorite one is "The Real Housewives of Atlanta"). I also like watching "16 and Pregnant" and its spin-off show "Teen Mom" on MTV, and "Ink Master" on Spike (I've also thought about signing up to be on "Ink Master" too. Not as a competitor, but as a 'human canvas' aka, the person that the tattoo artists tattoo on.) :D

WAY TO GO Roxie! :D

Hi Tillie,
I'm glad things went okay for you today. :)

After a couple of hours the phone guy finally left.
He will return later (tomorrow?) to change out something outside that he has to get a better fitting part for.

I laid down on the couch and immediately fell asleep. All the cats came out of hiding and took a 3 hour nap with me.
I am still exhausted.

Thank you for being here and listening to my freak out. :)
It really helps to know I am not all alone even though my phobias are irrational.

Off to take a long shower and get to bed early. (((hugs)))

((((HUGS))))

Thank you Dianne (((hugs)))
This is totally for him.
My computer speed is fast enough for everything I do but he wastes many hours playing games online and gamers always want faster & faster speeds. :(

One thing that really depresses me is that when he should be doing something/anything around here I see him sitting/hiding at his computer in his bedroom or in the garage playing stupid games.
This fiber optic cable installation would also allow us to have cable TV but I have made it very clear that there will be NO cable TV installed here.
He would just watch TV non stop. Stupid stuff like sitcoms from the 50s & 60s.

Good morning :)

Sure is quiet around here.

Today is the day :(
My hoarder scheduled for the phone company to hook up the fiber optic cables so that he can have faster internet speed. Of course he won't be here cause he's at work.
This means that a person or people will be coming to my house and will talk at me.
I do NOT like people coming here.
I am feeling very anxious and want to cry, lock the doors, close the drapes and pretend I'm not here.
All my "no clutter zones" are clean and tidy but that has nothing to do with how I feel.
I was told that after they install the stuff outside they will be coming inside to mount something on an interior wall.

I like when my few acquaintences come over and am happy to let them in.
But I hate hate hate having to allow other people inside.
My stomach hurts.

This whole thing is just ruining my whole day. :(
Thank you for allowing me to rant.

Hope you all are having better days. :)

Hello everyone, great job Kara, so nice to have you back!

After 3.5 days of Brownie Holiday I spent 2 hours of cleaning the village hall 60 miles away from home. Swept floor 4 times, hoovered the entrance, and cleansed the worktops down between 5 of us.

I have done cleaning just not my home.

Good morning evertbody! :)

My To-Dos for today are few...
Cook food then clean the kitchen.
The goop he used to fix the leak under the kitchen sink should be all dry by now so this is a great way to test it.
Looking forward to using my new faucet. :)

Well I am making good progress and an online friend has been spotting me for 15 minute stints, its been very helpful of course...

Cleaned and swept the bathroom
cleaned the kitchen and swept it and the hall

Still working off and on, 15 minutes, 15 minutes!

Oh p/s!!

I will be in and out of the chat where if anyone would like to join me for chat and/or chores!

Today I want to get back into things... feeling a little stronger today, so will do some hits every time I get up to include:

Clean the bathroom
Sweep and mop everything I can get to
Start back in on the bags and boxes, 1 at a time in 15 minute spurts
Vacuum
Dishes (only a couple)
Keep my little dog happy!

To the Day!

Bonnie I love this too, it helps with everything from doing a chore to posting my accountabilities stuff to just hearing how everyone is doing and feeling more connected and motivated.

I haven't been able to do much this week but coming here helps that, too... not feeling so down on myself and knowing this will pass and I can get back into things again when I can.