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Hoarding Help Message Boards : The Daily Chat : Lost items
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Lost items
   

diane
Posted: 23 December 2013 - 09:17 PM

yesterday I found $12 in an old tin of tea. Today I found $37 in a purse I used a few times last year. I still have not found the $3000 in $100 bills, I hid a few years ago and have looked many hours for it over last few years. I always kept it in one place then decided that place was too obvious, so moved it. Not so obvious now, not obvious at all to me. Sure could use it. My magical thinking says, you found $12 then found $37, tomorrow could be a big find!!!
My scissors, pliers, wrenches and screwdrivers are all grouped together in one place as of today, started on it yesterday. I didn't get rid of any, just put them in separate drawers, will weed later.
I could not find what I needed when workers were here, now they are in an "obvious" place, guess I better write myself a note so can find when needed!!!!
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dAVE
Posted: 23 December 2013 - 01:39 PM
FOUND!
The heavy duty ice scraper and long handled windshield brush.

LOST:
Cold resistant fingers!
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Dave
Posted: 22 December 2013 - 05:48 PM
The box with the caulking guns turned up. I can't remove them right now due to other time pressures, but hopefully can keep track of them. Maybe my drillmotor paint stirrer is in the same box.
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Roxie
Posted: 20 December 2013 - 01:46 AM
For paperwork, I have found that fat 3 ring binders and those plastic page inserts work wonders for preservation and keeping everything handy. You can have binders for different purposes, by different color and a designated place to keep them.

Works for me.

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diane
Posted: 19 December 2013 - 10:27 AM
Labels might help, I organize like things together then can't find them months later when I need them. At the time it seems like an obvious place to put them, then months later I have no clue. Yesterday thought maybe I need to put things alphabetically, then thought, if you had less things it would be so much easier. Still too much stuff to find what I want.
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Karl
Posted: 19 December 2013 - 01:04 AM
Lost: Insurance forms. (Can't be too far away -- I had them on moving day, they've never been to the storage unit, so they must be somewhere in my tiny bedroom.) Need to find and submit them now that my bill has arrived for the physician's office visit in November.
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Roxie
Posted: 18 December 2013 - 09:48 PM
I'm enjoying the adventures immensely! I am most guilty of the "it's right where I put it" -- "now where is it?" phenomenon.

During cleanout one of the workers finally found my photo album from 1961-1968, which I'd hoped to find. Invaluable, irreplaceable photos.

Now it is being held hostage by my 8th-9th grade boyfriend in Spokane, who borrowed it because he lost all his pictures of us together then. LOL

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Dave
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 01:11 PM
Tillie,
I'm sorry. Your situation is beyond my imagination. You show a lot of dedication and determination in continuing to maintain your relationship and your efforts to support others on this site.
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Tillie
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 12:55 PM
We lost our home owner's insurance due to his massive hoard all over the property.

He also had a big stash of tubes of caulk that after so many years they were all dried up and useless.
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Dave
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 12:27 PM
Caulking gun deterrence-Lack of parity.

I'm behind! I only have 2 (or maybe it's 3, I'm not sure) amongst the "disappeared". Should I run to Ace Hardware this afternoon? OOPS, I forgot I'm unemployed - Not a good choice - From a hoarder - avoiding shopping!- I must be delusional.

I don't think I have any clear silicone caulk so I am behind there as well. I do know where my white is (following best hoarding practice, I bought a case when it was on sale a few YEARS ago), so when I find one of my guns over the next few days I can do some sealing on the garage.

I am considering creating an "arsenal" on nails under the basement stairs.
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Dave
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 12:15 PM
And then there is not refinancing a loan for more advantageous interest rates because one is afraid to have an insurance person in taking pictures.
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Tillie
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 12:15 PM
I know for a fact that there are at least 6 caulking guns out in that hoarded garage here.
When I need one I just go borrow the neighbor's caulking gun because his is always right there where it's very easy to find. ;D
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diane
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 11:32 AM
Dave, you made me laugh when I read about your stuff, exactly what I went though yesterday!! I had put all my caulk and guns in one bucket when organizing months ago, except the tube of clear silicone for faucet. The one I needed was in back bathroom in cabinet, took 1/2 hour to find, good thing I "organized" caulk. When I need a hose to empty crud out of water heater, couldn't find old hoses so had to cut off section of new hose. It was really long with frozen water in it, so cut off the length I needed. What a waste, glad I am not alone. You mentioned insurance adjuster, I do not have insurance because I am afraid to have insurance guy here. Progress not perfection
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Dave
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 11:24 AM
Ha!
Doesn't everyone store their drywall screws in the (hidden) empty out of the way space under the wood chipper?

Now where do you suppose the caulking guns are? I know, they are in a box! (Only 60 or so, blocked by the empty box mine and the saws and machetes.)(Or they may be blocked by the 6 box stack containing the valuable 20 year old cache of garden hoses. I am in "hose heaven". 2 different kinds of sprinkler hoses, 2 diffent kinds of soaker hoses, plastic hoses and 3 or 4 better quality rubber hoses. Invaluable for starting the lawn. Now that I am 20 years out and the lawn has failed .......)
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Dave
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 10:23 AM
Hmmm....
Saws and Machetes.
Thinking outside the box, if I did a Jackie Chan routine with the (or perhaps better for my skill level-just one) machetes on the boxes, then I would have to recycle them!

I did find the finish nails I was looking for for a project two days ago.
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Dave
Posted: 17 December 2013 - 09:49 AM
I want to put up some drywall around my garage door. I need to be able to remove some of the panels sometime in the future for some electrical work, so I want to use screws instead of nails. My bucket of drywall screws is right where I left it. Unfortunatly that location is unkown. I must gather my helmet and magic ring and enter the "Cave of Stuff" for excavations.
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Karl
Posted: 15 October 2013 - 03:00 AM
I found the phone items where I expected them to be. Since I currently have two working phones (study and kitchen), I probably won't be putting these to use for now.
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Karl
Posted: 10 October 2013 - 03:22 AM
While going through the far corner of the closet, I found the sneakers that I'd expected to be there.
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Karl
Posted: 18 September 2013 - 05:24 PM
These aren't exactly "lost", but I'll add them to the list anyway, since the box that I'm pretty sure they're in is kind of inaccessible at the moment.

  • Headphones
  • Portable phone with charger
  • Belt-clip phone
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Dianne
Posted: 18 September 2013 - 10:40 AM
Karl, cool finds with the Baskin Robbins coupons and little magnifying glass.

Yesterday I took my grandkids to Baskin Robbins. They got cones, I got a milkshake and my grandson talked me into a second cone (not hard to do).

Then we bought an ice cream cake. I could have used some coupons for sure!
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Dianne
Posted: 18 September 2013 - 10:32 AM
Tillie, thanks for what you said about my Dad.

{{{hugs}}}
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Tillie
Posted: 17 September 2013 - 05:29 PM
Good luck with your search Karl! :)

Wonderful organization skill having a place for every thing and remembering to put everything back in it's proper place. :D
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Karl
Posted: 17 September 2013 - 05:23 PM
Sorry to hear of your loss, cindy. I'm glad he was able to enjoy a long life with you.

Not only do we have both dianne and diane, but we've had a second diane (from CA rather than OR) on occasion.

See if you can establish a "home" location for keeping your glasses, phone, and keys when they're not in use. And make sure you put them back there when you're done with them!

OK, back to my own reason for posting. I wanted to add a couple more items to my "Lost" list before they actually turn up in the paper stack.

  • Rules to a game that a friend published on his blog.
  • A series of puzzles that I've been meaning to show to some friends.
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cindy
Posted: 16 September 2013 - 11:27 PM
i guess that some of u know why i can be 40 minutes or two&a half hours late cuz i cant find my glasses and by the time i find my glasses, i have lost my fone AND the keys. Most people just think i disresect them& dont care if i am on time. some think i have an unconscious desire to remain a child (read this in Glamour magazine myself.) i am beginning to think there is a dianne AND a diane. i enjoy reading posts of both. today i found nothing but lost my cat to the infirmities of old age.tonight he is not sneezing &his back does not hurt but i miss him so much already& he's only been gone a couple of hours.
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Tillie
Posted: 16 September 2013 - 07:20 PM
WOW!
Buried gold.
4 coupons for free ice cream!!! :D
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Karl
Posted: 16 September 2013 - 06:27 PM
Found several credit/debit cards that were near the bottom of the pile of papers on the desk. (None are currently valid, but I'm glad to have closure on them.)

Found an unopened envelope with four of the coupons for a free pint of Baskin-Robbins.

Also found a small magnifying glass which is handy to have with me if I need to read fine print and don't have my glasses -- I think I'll give that one a home in my backpack; I'm more likely to need it while away from home.
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Karl
Posted: 08 September 2013 - 10:23 PM
I've just found the lease that I signed when I moved into this place in 2000. It was in an old suitcase, along with a few photos and some sunglasses and a few other miscellaneous items. Not a place I would have considered looking for it!
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Tillie
Posted: 08 September 2013 - 01:44 PM
WOW! All that buried treasure! :D
Great job tackling that area.

I feel the certificate was put there by your Father to remind you that life is precious and that we have no guarantees on how many new days we will get here, and to treasure every day as if it were our last.
(((hugs)))
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Dianne
Posted: 08 September 2013 - 12:14 PM
Some fun stuff now ~~~

In a giant feed bin that was partially blocking the door I found great stuff. A big Vera Bradley purse with 8 smaller purses inside. Inside of those were over $300, lipsticks, and bunches of keys from the beach. Unfortunately because I couldn't find the keys in the past couple years I had a locksmith redo all the doors and cabinets I kept locked for summer rentals. But still fun to find those keys. Found bunches of specialty light bulbs for the Murphy bed at the beach. A couple of lamps filled with seashells. Some LL Bean flip flops, cookies and fudge that look absolutely fine. haha I guess sugar really does last forever. And now I know my kitties have been good mousers because there are no mouse droppings even with the zip locked bags of treats.

There were CD's and framed Christmas pics and canned fried onions (for green bean casserole). Colored tissue paper and little notebooks with puppies and kittens on them. Leather gloves and cat treats (never opened, expired). A bag of mini marshmallows for hot chocolate and the inevitable piles of folded up papers. Also lots of napkins from fast food places.

I'm going to move that bin so it doesn't become the dumping container anymore. That area still has piles of treasures so back to it. :)
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Dianne
Posted: 08 September 2013 - 11:36 AM
While clearing a pile of crap so I could open the door to the garage wider (it's the door we use all the time haven't been able to completely open it in years) I found a folded up piece of paper on the floor in dust, Christmas tree pine needles, dog hair, etc.

It's my father's death certificate. Have no idea how it got there. But it reinforces my feeling that I have to look at every single thing before it gets tossed. :(
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Barb
Posted: 04 September 2013 - 09:30 PM
Found my watch! On the floor next to the couch. Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.
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diane
Posted: 04 September 2013 - 05:33 PM
congrats Karl. I am still looking for my favorite dansk work shoes, they are black sling backs that fit and look great, where are they hiding? I plan to find work clothes for next week. I hang my keys up when I come in the door. Had to buy new keys for car and they have sensors in them so was hundreds of dollars, don't want to do that again. Had extra RV keys made, knowing my track record with keys, has a key for door, one for ignition, one for gas, one for hood, and I am sure more, it was incredible when I lost the gas cap key.
Now that there are less piles makes it easier, but still forget where I "organized things", like I had a cute basket with lid, of summer shoes, and couldn't find shoes because they were no longer all over floor, forgot they were in basket. Found walking shoes buried on deck under clean empty bins yesterday, my excuse for not going for walks is now gone.
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Karl
Posted: 04 September 2013 - 04:05 AM
I found a pair of shoes that I'd forgotten to put on the list. Which reminds me that there should be one other pair in the closet; I haven't checked for them yet.
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Roxie
Posted: 01 September 2013 - 02:17 PM
Mare, where have you been? Missed you.
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Mare
Posted: 01 September 2013 - 10:34 AM
This is a brilliant idea!

I have lost an important data stick for the computer and its small. I am looking for it as I go and will be happy if it shows up, otherwise I will try to figure out what's on the darn thing other than pictures.

A lot of things are gone from when I got a new hard drive so am also looking for the older ones in case the stuff is on any of those. Drats!
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Karl
Posted: 31 August 2013 - 02:05 AM
Hah! I've got a file where I've been listing lost items. Several have already been marked as "found"; the two most recent were a couple of technical books that were somewhat important. There are a couple of items that I know are not in the clutter -- the keys that fell out of a hole in my pocket while I was bike riding (since replaced), and the thermos bottle that I left behind at the cafeteria when I was in a rush to leave. But there are still four items that might yet turn up...

  1. My spare pair of glasses. I recall that when I had my volunteer cleaning crew here, someone asked me if I was saving them, and I said yes; but I haven't seen them since then. I hope that they're in the box of office stuff stored in the garage.
  2. A disk of audio files that my brother gave me. I recall having seen it within the last couple of months, but I didn't put it "home".
  3. The USB cable for my camera. Someone's given me a replacement, but the original is probably in the clutter.
  4. My electric razor. It's been gone for so long that I'm reasonably sure that I set it down on top of the car that day, and forgot it was there. But I'll be pleasantly surprised if it does turn out to be in the house.
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Dianne
Posted: 30 August 2013 - 06:32 PM
Haha! Great thread, Barb!

A few months ago I bought 3 pairs of real glasses (after an eye exam), 1 for distance and 2 for close-up. Lost them pretty quickly and bought 2 more, one of each kind. Lost those too.

So I'm back to my dime store magnifiers.
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Tillie
Posted: 30 August 2013 - 06:30 PM
LOL :D

My hoarder loses everything in his hoard.
He spends hours and hours every week just looking for stuff.
I had to buy another set of silverware and steak knives because he lost most all the other ones somewhere in there.
He even keeps having to buy new socks & underwear because he can't find the other ones.
He has a lot of only "one shoe" issues.
Important papers like vehicle titles and the house deed haven't been seen for years.
Keys! Keys are always lost.

He used to always ask me "where is my....?"
My answer was always it's "where ever you put it down". ;)
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Barb
Posted: 30 August 2013 - 05:07 PM
In the past three weeks I have managed to lose my work ID badge and my watch in the living room clutter. I need to find both of them.
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