Day Three

Still working on "organize yourselves".  Before I can really get organized around the house I need to clean up some of the mess.


A few months ago I was visiting Alex and Ryan in Vegas.   While there I was introduced to a show called "Hoarders" that documents people who are compulsive hoarders.  Their houses are over run with possessions and garbage sometimes stacked to the ceiling.  It's embarrassing for those people to have others come into their houses with cameras and go through their things.  Since then I have watched more episodes of this show on Netflicks.  It amazes me as I watch these people going through the process of organizing their stuff.  Sometimes they are so slow you wonder why can't they see that there is no value in that thing and just toss it.  But then I look at the piles of things I have around the house and I feel like I need to go through that stuff before it goes.  Alex has offered to come up and help us go through stuff in the garage.  She says she would love it, and I believe she would.  But I don't think I can do that. . .maybe I'm a little like those people in the show.


Bill and I watch the Biggest Loser.  Bill says it motivates him to loose weight.  I watch it and think that I would never let myself get that out of control.  As I've watch Hoarders and also think I would never let myself get that out of control.  But what I'm thinking today is maybe I have let myself get out of control to the point where I am now uncomfortable with my weight and with my mess.  Don't get me wrong you can come into my home and walk through the house, use the bathroom, eat at the table, sit on the couch and feel good about it.  If you see me on the street you wouldn't think of me as an overweight person, maybe average.  The problem is I do over eat the wrong types of foods and I do fill every flat surface in my house with stuff, usually bills/papers.  And there are now clothes piled up (folded neatly of course) on the cedar chest which I don't have room for in the closet or the drawers.

I have begun this journey without any psychologists or professional organizers to help me.  Maybe there will be a time when I'll ask Alex to help me figure out how to organize what's left.  But for now I will tackle each pile one at a time, going through each item to make sure I don't accidentally grind up a check...I did find one the other day so it is possible.

Today my efforts yielded this garbage bag half filled with shredded documents.  Another bag was taken to recycling with papers that didn't need to be recycled.  So it's not the throwing out that bothers me it is the making sure I don't get rid of something I need.  It's going to go slow, but it is going.