Good morning 🙂

Hi LR2014 🙂
WAY TO GO! 😀
For making daily goals and seeing them through!
Making plans to take breaks is GREAT!
Keeps us from burning out, getting discouraged or just giving up.

Hi Cory 🙂
Wonderful to see you here! 😀
Maybe you will be able to drop into tonight's chat?
Hantavirus is a big worry here for me. The virus is here in my area and we tend to get lots of the deer mice that are known to carry the virus.
Since it seems to be spreading throughout the country, it is always good to keep reminding people to be safe.

Hi Diane 🙂
WAY TO GO!!!! for all you got accomplished!! 😀
Sorry about your heel but happy you are having someone look at it for you. Want your heel to heal well and fast.

Hi Roxie 🙂
Even me, a non hoarder/clutterer makes messes with piles of stuff.
My kitchen counter is centrally located in the house.
Here I put stuff that I am planning to use that day and I put stuff there that I plan to put away properly after I have used it.
But every day I make sure that I clear and clean this counter and put all the stuff where it belongs.
Decluttering my recent clutter is part of my daily maintenance to keep the house uncluttered. 🙂

Hi Barb 🙂
In the desert we never say rain rain go away. 😀
So WONDERFUL to hear that you are working through BIT! 😀
Good luck and best wishes for all your plans.

Hi SusanL 🙂
So Happy to hear from you! 😀
Feather pillows are alright if they are zipped up in one of those thick plastic covers that constantly make a crinkly noise and make your head sweat.
Nice thing about my foam pillows is that I can wash them in the washing machine and dry them in one day hanging out on the clothes line. 😀

Hi Karl 🙂
Hope you had a GREAT time and looking forward to seeing you tonight in chat. 😀

Hi Everybody else! 😀

My screen was so dark it was almost impossible to see and was getting darker.
We went into the computer controls and tried several different things.
My laptop is plugged into the outlet, the cord is good and not malfunctioning but there is a battery too that is recharged when the laptop is plugged in.
The laptop was programmed to operate the monitor off the battery power.
The battery is failing, so the screen was not properly juiced up.
We reprogrammed the laptop to now draw monitor power from the power cord, not the battery.
So, I am back online. 😀
Planning to purchase a new laptop so spending lots of money for a new battery is not logical at this time since the laptop has other issues telling me that it is not long for this world. 😀

Anyways...
Got very cold over night and will be cold the next few days then the temperatures are predicted to get up near 80 degrees.
That rain has caused everything to grow like crazy.
Lots of tall grass and so many weeds now. 🙂
Baby sitting the neighbor's cats & dogs went well. No accidents in the house, nothing chewed up and the cats didn't bring in in any dead things.

Hope to see you all tonight in chat. 😀

Diane, I hope you know how inspiring you are to us! Take care and hope your heel is better soon.

Your friend with the panic attacks who wanted your other feather pillow might be allergic to feathers. Maybe encourage him to try a non allergenic pillow for a couple nights to see if that helps.

I loooved my feather pillow but breathed and slept better with foam.

I am posting on the correct thread today (I think). Yea, me.

Diane: I'm so sorry you hurt your foot. (I'm especially sorry that it kept you awake.) Hope it heals soon. Wow. you have really accomplished a lot. I'm super excited for you that you had not just one, but two people come in. That's huge in my book. You said, "There is room to sort in other rooms now, . . . " That sounds terrific, too!

Roxie: Thanks for the encouraging reminders.

Barb: Thanks for letting Cory know about the message board access issue. I agree with you about the helpfulness of open and honest sharing. I got inspired this week to start on a certain room I have avoided attacking. It's just a start, but at least I see a glimpse of progress. The inspiration for it started with the open and honest sharing of someone on this board.

Everyone: Looking forward to "seeing" you at the chat tonight.

Me: I got all of my goals for yesterday (the ones I posted on the wrong thread) done except for one, and I plan to work on that today. I also plan to add to my gratitude list and do some work in my BIT book. I need to put away laundry that didn't get put away after my trip to the Laundromat yesterday. Other than all that, I plan to go light on my goals for today. I need a mental break.

Good Sunday morning,
Karl: I hope you had fun at your puzzle hunt and got your flat fixed OK.
Tillie: Rain, rain go away. A little is refreshing. Too much makes us long for the sun again. I hope your computer will keep working so that you can join the support discussion group tonight. We need you.
Roxie: I'm glad you continue to do well and have such a positive attitude. Take care of yourself and keep us updated post surgery.
Diane: Whoop! Whoop! Whoop! You have made amazing progress on the windows, living room and dining room. Celebrate! I hope your friend can help you find out why your heel hurts. Then you can do the happy dance.
LR: I'm glad you had a good day working outside and took good care of yourself as you worked.

I have used part of this weekend to read and do some of the work in the Buried Treasures book. I am recording the results of the self quiz book in my journal so I can easily refer back to them. I wrote out and signed the "Contract with Myself" pledging to work no less than 5 hours a day 5 days a week on decluttering. This is not unrealistic as I am not working outside my home now. Decluttering is priority one.
I am continually inspired by the honesty and openness that you all share as you struggle with and overcome your own issues. It helps me face and deal with my own.
Have a great day everyone, whatever you choose to do.

goodmorning--heel kept me awake, finally just got up with only a few hours of sleep.
Yes Roxie, I saw you posted that you leave things and it gave me permission to be honest. You caught yourself before it got bad it sounded like. My leaving stuff around took a few months to become bad, but thank goodness living area is ok again.
Today my only goals are to soak my foot and do dishes. There are hardly any clean dishes. I got fixated on doing work on deck, then on living room, now kitchen, then would really like to do maintenance on all clean areas, and only tackle other rooms without hauling stuff out here to sort, seems some of it always stays out here. There is room to sort in other rooms now, so no reason to haul out here to sort.
A friend dropped by yesterday who wanted some pillows to help him sleep more upright. He had never been here before, he knows of my hoarding. He was surprised I let him come in here. After 3 long days of getting rid of stuff in living room, he said, boy you have a lot of stuff in here. He said it is so comfy and clean, has been to homes of hoarders that are really filthy he said. (retired house painter) He chose my 2 best pillows, I said you can have one but not both, they are Ralph Lauren, and cost a lot of money. This morning I was still feel upset he wanted both, so silly. He had called and said he was waking up with panic attacks because he could not breathe, so I offered pillows since I still have to many. I thought he could take several several regular pillows but he wanted the big feather ones. Funny I have given away so car loads of stuff, and that one pillow is a big deal, and it was given to someone that really needed it.
A woman friend is coming over this afternoon to look at my heel to see if there is glass or something in it after I soak it. I told her I get leg cramps every time I try to get it close enough to look, and she offered to come over. This is a big deal, 2 people in 2 days, when I am most comfortable with no visitors.

Diane, that was what I mentioned last time, the relapsing into "it falls there, it stays there; I put it there, it stays there" syndrome. Remember, Cory says there are relapses so just keep on going. Good for us all to be reminded. Hugs to all.

hello everyone. My window project took muuch more time than I thought. I scraped and painted the edges after I washed them all. Painted wall around window, ended up painting the whole living room a lighter tan, looks good. screwed all things back on., Can see out so much better now, although it was way more work than I thought, and I got drenched washing windows in yard when had a big rain storm roll in right when I finished.
I finally realized the reason I don't vacuum is that a bunch of stuff found it way to the floor. I spent the last 3 days reorganizing living room and dining room. There was so much stuff all over. It looks so good now, I never want it to get cluttered up again, so will have to learn to do maintenance and be more observant when I start leaving stuff around. Fridays Spring free debris pickup was a huge success for me. I filled up several bags of junk and big plastic outdoor shades that would never fit in can. I also have 3 bags of donations ready to go. I did not pace myself, just worked for hours on end daily. Really wanted to get junk out of here and reclaim my living area. Have any of you done that, get it finally cleared out then rejunk it? Let me tell you, it sneaks up on you until it steals your comfort.
When I was hauling donations out today, I cut my heel on something, peeled pack a good section, and it hurts so much. Made me realize I am now forced to slow down. I took a shower, washed my hair, which I have not done in days, want to prevent infection, so really took care washing foot. Then washed 2 loads of laundry and hung out. It is supposed to rain tonight, no rain today so far. I have many dirty dishes, but will rest for at least an hour with foot elevated. May have to wait until tomorrow, if foot continues to be this painful, will bring laundry in before rain. It is so nice to sit here in clean room.
Fun reading all the posts. Thanks for continuing to post and make progress.

We seemed to have a brief outage of our message boards. Thank you Barb for letting me know. All seems to be working now, but if you guys will take down my number and call me any time something like this happens I can get it resolved as quickly as possible! 1-800-462-7337, ext. 111 or option #1 after hours.

Thank you! Have a wonderful day 🙂

Oops... I did it again. Posted my goals on the wrong thread (on the "gratitude list"). I won't relist them here. Have a great day, all.

Good morning 🙂

Drizzled all day yesterday except for the times it actually rained.
Really have to go grocery shopping today. Running very low on stuff.
Have my list all made up.
So cold today that I have to wear jeans and not a dress. 🙁
That old saying "April showers bring May flowers",
they also bring lots of weeds.lol 😀
This laptop computer is almost at the end of it's life. Lots of problems and now the screen is going dark.
Hard to see to read.
Oh Well, some more duct tape and chewing gum should keep it running a bit longer. 😀
Will probably get a new one very soon now, we have been researching them.

Have some fun today 🙂

Karl: Hope all goes well with your event tomorrow.

Tillie: I didn't realize hummingbirds were such curious creatures! Interesting! When I got out to that rural area this morning, the first thing I saw was something that looked to me like a road runner (or at least it had a gait similar to a road runner). I don't remember seeing one around there before, so that was fun.

Cory Chalmers: Glad you were able to have a day to relax!

Me: I got my maintenance request written up, but I didn't get it turned in yet. Spent most of the day in that rural area and was pleased with what I accomplished out there. I was very tired when I got home, so maybe I'll sleep longer and better than I have the last two nights. (Exercise was actually one of my goals for going out there today.) I did remember to wear my dust mask, take Benadryl, and wear sunscreen. I could have improved the hydration part. Beautiful day, beautiful scenery, very enjoyable experience.

Have a good evening, everybody.

WAY TO GO!!! Cory
For doing nothing today! 😀
Sometimes nothing is really something good.

I am doing...nothing today!
I took the day off and am having a very relaxing day. Tonight and tomorrow it is supposed to snow so I think I will enjoy the sun while it lasts.

Have a great day everyone and keep up the amazing progress!

Goals for today: (a) Fix flat tire on bicycle. (b) Take inventory of one box of board games; I need to find one or more of my own inventions to present at an event next month (I've already paid for a badge as a designer). (c) Get to bed early -- I'm participating in a team puzzle hunt tomorrow.

Good morning 🙂

Windy, dark, cold...
cats are not happy.
I am in a pretty good mood. 😀
Been messing around on the interwebs, drinking tea, not dressed yet.
Thinking about doing some sewing today or maybe paint some doll house components or maybe both.
I always write things on my calendars. Good way for me to keep track of what I did & when.
Have a fresh, new to me book to start reading, YEA!
The Hummingbirds are back!!!! 😀
Just saw two fighting over territory in my garden! 😀
Out of all the birds, Hummingbirds seem to be the most agressive and territorial. Also curious, they will hover over my shoulder to see what I'm doing. They will also hover right in front of my face at times.
I don't think they realize just how tiny they are.
Wishing everybody a GREAT Friday, no matter what the weather is like where you are or what you may be up to today. 😀

Good morning, everyone.

Tillie: Sorry the weather did not cooperate yesterday! (Mine didn't cooperate with my plans, either, but I just wasn't checking the forecast.) Glad you enjoy animal-sitting.

Roxie: Hugs to you, too!

Karl: Good to see that you have the memory and the organizational skills to know where your spare calendars are! Cool.

My goals for today: I am planning to leave shortly to do the outside work (with masks, Benadryl, etc.) in that rural area I intended to go to yesterday. How much else I get done when I return depends on how long that outside work takes. I do plan to add to my gratitude list. I am also planning to turn in another maintenance request to the office to get some caulking done before some water goes into areas it shouldn't go into.

I need to remember as I work today to wear sunscreen (and apply it frequently), and also to keep myself hydrated and to eat when I need to.

Happy Friday.

Reading posts is good for me. I note I am back to old tricks of putting things down and there they stay. Don't remember doing anything useful yrsterday. Not much hope for today. Will see. Hugs to all.

I only use a calendar this way if the original never got used for its intended purpose. (Often this happens because I received a new calendar from two or more sources the same year.) I happened to label it this time around, and I was ready when it became "legal" again.

The weather forecast said that today would be nice. That the next storm would blow in sometime this evening.
They lied.
The winds began raging again by noon, blowing in big dark clouds that blotted out all the sunlight.
The cats & I had been having a good time out in the yard but when the wind started up they all went back inside to mope.
I finished up watering the trees & bushes & flowers and went inside to mope too.
Since I was in here anyways, I did some cleaning and stuff in the kitchen then took a short nap.
Neighbor came by & we chatted about stuff. I will be baby sitting their 2 small dogs and 3 cats this weekend. They will be at their house and I will walk over to play with them and feed them.
I enjoy baby sitting animals. 😀

Karl: Yeah, I have to confess that I did at first take the time to stop and figure out when it would be good again. But I figured that by then, I would either have forgotten that I had it or would have forgotten where I put it.

Barb: Yes, I found that part about the categorization interesting, too. As for the hiking shoes . . . I relate to that feeling. Sometimes, as I've slowly started getting myself to actually throw away really old but beloved clothes (and especially old clothes that belonged to a deceased loved one), I do it kind of ceremoniously. I feel a little bit better if I place it "lovingly" in the disposal bin. (Hey . . . whatever works or helps for me to let it go, right?)

As for my final plans for the day, they didn't end up being so "final" after all. By the time I got everything loaded to go to that rural area, it was pretty late in the day and was very windy. I was afraid I'd either not have time to get the things done that I wanted to do there or else that I'd end up with a big headache tomorrow (allergies). I did get my notebook bought (and disposed of the old, damaged one). I decided to just come back and work some more on that bedroom, eat supper, wash dishes, do a bit of paperwork, and hit the sack early. It's not supposed to be so windy tomorrow, so I probably can get the outside work done then.

Hope everyone has a good evening.

Karl, I admire your frugality, but it wouldn't work for me. I mark up my calendars with appointments, events I want to go to, birthdays with the age the child will be, etc.
Do whatever works for you.

But a 1988 calendar will be good again in 2016... (Yeah, I do that. The calendar currently on my wall was originally for 2003.)

LR: I love your song lyrics. Pete Seeger's Step by Step has been a favorite of mine. I have a hard time discarding clothing, too. When they wear out it is like losing an old friend. I replaced my worn out waterproof hiking shoes this week and am breaking in the new ones for my trip but have yet to throw out the old ones. I remember hiking the Columbian gorge in them and viewing the beautiful hidden waterfalls. I still have the photos. it's time to let the shoes go.

I started reading Buried Treasures this week on Kindle. I took the Hoarding and Clutter quiz today. I came out much better than I thought I would. Although the clutter score is in the severe range, the activities of daily living, living conditions, and safety scores all fall in the mild range. That means I still manage to function in my home regardless of the clutter. The scale applies to the last week only. Last fall, I would not have scored as high. So I am making progress and that is a good thing.

One observation struck me.. The authors say that people who hoard have difficulty putting their own items in big categories. It is not that we are unable to put things in categories but that we over-categorize. In other words, when we sort we subcategorize too much.
This is true! My spice rack has meat and stew spices on the top row, baking spices are on the bottom row, etc. Each spice has a specific slot. All my soups are in a specific section of canned goods. Fruits in one. Vegetables in another. No wonder putting away groceries takes up so much time! I've noticed that when my sister shops she just loads everything onto her pantry shelves wherever there is an empty space. No fuss. No bother.
I don't think I am ever going to change. But it does give me some insight into how and why I do the things I do.
Have a great Thursday everyone.

Barb: I like that you have a vision in your mind of what your place will look like again at some point. I need to constantly hear that reminder: step by step. Hey, I just thought of a new song. I remember the old song, "Step by step, row by row . . .gonna make this garden grow . . . ." Maybe I'll go around singing, "Step by step, fast or slow . . . gonna make this clutter go . . . ."

Tillie: You said, "Sometimes things have been around the house & in our lives for so long that the thought of tossing them out just simply never occurs to us. HaHaHa" So true! I find I have "strange vision" when it comes to my clutter. For example, I often find that even though something in front of me is obviously worn out or faded, my mind often sees it the way it used to be. Sometimes it takes me a bit to step back, look at it, and say, "Wow, that's really, ahem, past its prime now." I'm glad I was able to do that with some clothes recently and chunk them. (They were so old, thin, and ragged that no self-respecting person shopping at Goodwill would have wanted them.) In the past, for some reason, I would never have dreamed of throwing away an item of clothing! So. yea for progress.

I had so many things to consider working on during this rainy morning that I was having trouble setting my goals, so I put each task I thought about on an index card and just drew a card out of the "deck." Result: to work on clutter in my bedroom for about an hour. So I did that. I also added to my gratitude list and did a little bit of work in my BIT book.

Now it's not raining, and I am planning to do some outside work at that rural area I've mentioned. On the way, I plan to pick up a notebook to use to organize some paperwork.

Hugs to all.

Good morning 🙂
Been up since before 5:00am.
Not because I wanted to be up but the cats said so.

Hi LR2014 🙂
WAY TO GO!!! Keeping on track! 😀
Sometimes things have been around the house & in our lives for so long that the thought of tossing them out just simply never occurs to us. HaHaHa
This is why it's important to take a few seconds on every article and ask ourselves "WHY???".
Especially the stuff that we have seen every day, year in and year out, until we really don't see it any more even though it's right there in front of us.

Hi Karl 🙂
Happy you finally got an answer as to what's wrong with the phone there. 😀

Hi Roxie 🙂
You have been doing a fantastic job keeping up with the daily maintenance! 😀
Make sure to get more rest and take care of yourself. (((HUGS)))

Hi Barb 🙂
WTG! for mowing the grass! 😀
Try putting up a reminder for the night before trash day and getting the can out then.
It will be so nice for you coming home to a clear & clean entry, kitchen and livingroom. 🙂

I have a load of linens out drying on the clothes line.
Soon as I post this I will be outside watering the trees, bushes and flowers.
When that's all done must shower & wash my hair to remove all the pollen.
Need to do some work in the kitchen.
Tomorrow another storm is predicted and today is the only nice day we are having this whole week.
I plan not to waste any of this day cleaning inside. 😀

Everybody have a wonderful time today. 😀

Good morning, all.
Hi Tille, I hope your allergies are better. Remember to keep yourself hydrated as medication increases that need. I thought of you as I was sneezing and dripping while I mowed the grass.
Roxie: I appreciate your posts and additions to the gratitude list. I hope you continue to do well.
LR: You are making great progress. I hope you are having a good day.
Diane: Whew! Your window project sounds ambitious. I hope you find what you need. You are very resourceful and I am sure you will find a way to make it work. I am going to wait until it is consistently warmer to wash my windows and redo the screens. Two need replacing and one needs repair. It is in the high 40s today. That's a little brisk to have the house open.
Karl: I'm glad you tracked down your phone problem. My experience is that phone through the computer can be a little glitchy, but you are more computer savvy than I am.

I did get the lawn mowed yesterday. I trimmed the front and side yards but not the back. There are weeds and vines that need to be taken out in back, but that will wait for later in the week.
Today I am focusing on the inside. I have decided to spend an hour in each room. First the kitchen, then the entry, then the living room. By then it will be lunch time and I will need a break to regroup. I have some paperwork to complete and get in the mail.
I forgot to put the toter out for the trash men this morning. It is half full. I do have another garbage can with a lid in the garage I can use if I fill the toter before next week.
I want to put on a "full court press" to get as much accomplished as I can before my trip. I'll take it day by day.
Back in the old days, I used to thoroughly clean my house before a trip so it would be clean and welcoming when I returned. I will get there again one of these days. I have a vision in my mind of what that looks like. For now, my goal is to have a clean entry, kitchen, and bathroom to come home to. Step by step.

Roxie: I'm glad you're able to "finger" a few lines for us each day. It's so good to hear from you.

Karl: Good to hear about your progress on the phone situation.

Me: I eventually did my goals for yesterday. I was very tempted to put it off that dusting task I mentioned and do it on some other day. However, since I had posted it as a goal and had no truly good reason for not doing it, I eventually did it. (Yea for the message board!)

I am still working on my goals for today, but two of them will definitely be adding to my gratitude list and working some more in my new book. FYI, I just posted something on the "Why do you hoard?" thread that I wrote the other day after going through some things in my filing cabinet. In case you read it: I really did run across a very cute 1988 calendar . . . and I did chunk it. But there was certainly some debate in my head at first.

Have a good day, everyone!

Does me good to read your posts. Diane, can you hire help for the window job? Can't type enough to respond to all. Takes too long 1 fingered. Thanks for b'day wishes. Need to empty dishwasher and sink, sweep more. tired.

AT&T Repair guy came by today. He confirmed that the phone jack in the living room wasn't connected to the outside wiring, and fixed that, but it seems that the jack in my bedroom is somebody's add-on that connects to parts unknown. He said I could buy a cable and fix it myself, but I'm not sure if that means just running a long wire down the stairs and into the living room jack, or what.

I've since realized that now that I have Google Talk working on my computer, I can place or receive calls without a land line anyway. Maybe I should just cancel the service.

Tillie: Glad to hear you did get some sleep.

Diane: I know it will be nice to have your windows clean and looking the way you want them to.

OK, now for my goals for the rest of today: Spend a maximum of 30 minutes cleaning up from the "aftermath" of this morning's maintenance work. (I can go overboard with that, so I have to watch my time on that.) Spend at least 15 minutes each on the goals I didn't get to yesterday. Add to my gratitude list. Inspired by many of your posts, spend 15 minutes dusting a specific certain area that hasn't been dusted in a while (understatement).

Have a good day, all.