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Are you one of those people who can't throw anything out?
I find satisfaction in shedding things; not hoarding them. But this story says there are up to 2 million people in the US who are compulsive hoarders. One says: "I'm confronted with an object, and I think I can save it, I can use it later, I can use the packaging, I can sell it, I can recycle it. It just takes forever. I have to make a decision, and usually I'll procrastinate." (San Francisco Chronicle)
March 18, 2008 | Permalink
Comments
HEY! Get out of my garage! And the Shed! and the spare room ! and my kitchen...that's valuable stuff, I'm making a wall hanging from that lettuce.
Posted by: nellagain | Mar 18, 2008 6:33:08 AM
My daughter is sort of like this, she's organized but she rarely gets rid of anything. I'm a minimalist. The less I have lying around the better I feel. I give stuff away or get rid of stuff constantly. The only thing I have too much of is books. But they're all in their place.
Posted by: Cherie | Mar 18, 2008 6:33:26 AM
I think Delta Burke recently went to rehab for this.
I wouldn't say I hoard things. I keep some things that have sentimental value, but mostly I'm lazy and let a lot of crap pile up before I'll finally cave and get rid of it. But I have no problem whatsoever throwing stuff out once I finally get motivated.
Posted by: Lois Lane | Mar 18, 2008 6:35:02 AM
Lois, me too!
Posted by: twerp | Mar 18, 2008 6:45:31 AM
I have so many broken down carboard boxes and peanuts, but I can't bring myself to put them in a landfill.
Once there is a car load, I suppose I'll drop them off at the recycling center.
Posted by: Sean, Torrington CT | Mar 18, 2008 6:54:00 AM
twerp - I don't know about you, but my closet is the worst. I have to clean it out several times a year to make room for all the new pairs of shoes that keep finding their way in there...
Posted by: Lois Lane | Mar 18, 2008 6:59:22 AM
mine is the den. We've been using it as a spare room and crap is piled up every where in there. I'm cleaning it out during the next few weeks.....yeah, I'm lazy and let it pile up for too long...anyhey, I'm having a yard sale and what I don't get rid of, I'm giving to Goodwill. I'm turning the room into a play room for my son. I'm just getting fed up with tripping over toys all the time in the living room.
Posted by: twerp | Mar 18, 2008 7:11:43 AM
If I could get my oldest kid to get his Sh*t out of my cellar, that would make my chi flow much better! I have only a very few things with "sentimental value". I'm of the thought that "you cant take it with you" so I'm more attached to my memories than any material thing. I have a ring that was my grandmothers, then my aunts and then mine and of course my photos of my kids when they were little. Other than that...I could loose it all in a fire and care less as long as my kids and my animals were safe.
Posted by: Cherie | Mar 18, 2008 7:20:18 AM
I tend to hang on to things for sentimental reasons. Plus, I hate to throw anything out that isn't completely destroyed. Everyone in my family is the same way, so our house is cluttered. My younger son is particularly insistent about wanting to hang on to all of his stuff, although I've been successful at persuading him to give his outgrown toys and clothes to his cousins. We're not at the point of the guys in the article, but we're hardly minimalists, either. We are all in the habit of collecting interesting things with the idea that we're going to use them for something -- which we eventually do, but not as fast as we accumulate them. In the meantime, we have to find a place to put them!
We do try to deal with the clutter. Periodically we do an "organize and purge" sweep where we go through our stuff, pitch what's broken, set things aside for the thrift store and the cousins, and organize and put away the rest. A "rolling purge" of clothes works pretty well, too. We keep a bag by the closet and toss unwanted articles of clothing in it as we go along; when the bag is full, it goes to the thrift store.
But it's still challenging to keep stuff organized. Adding to the problem are relatives who give the kids large presents that we then have to deal with. Although now that they're a older, my kids want smaller, more expensive electronic items that don't take up much space, so the problem is waning.
Posted by: Phranqlin | Mar 18, 2008 7:26:54 AM
Sean a little gas and a match will take care of your problem and you can stick it to man at the same time.
I don't keep much of anything myself. If it has no real purpose I will throw it away. If you ever need something throw away, I'm the guy to do it. I don't care if you buried a loved one in a suit or dress. I'll toss it right in the can for you.
Posted by: The Asshole Guy | Mar 18, 2008 7:27:24 AM
My mom is always after me to clean out her garage, which I'm happy to do. But she won't let me put more than two bags of trash out for pick-up. That's sort of counter-productive, believe me. I could do a pretty good job in one fell swoop, but heaven forbid there's a full trash can and four or five bags out at the curb. 'What will the neighbors think?' Sheesh...
Posted by: jilldini | Mar 18, 2008 7:33:58 AM
Not a hoarder per se but certain items I'll save/collect,such as - umbrellas,old chair legs,maps of Albania,12 volt transformers,pictures of Bella Abzug,lint,small blocks of wood,anything with a chain attached to it - you know,the usual stuff.
Posted by: the man in the trout mask | Mar 18, 2008 7:42:51 AM
I throw things out constantly....I threw out two ex-wives and quite a few dollars went with them.
Posted by: Rock Marine | Mar 18, 2008 7:58:15 AM
I'm a compulsive collector. But I'm happily married to a wife who cheerfully throws away everything I stash in the cellar, garage, shed, attic, under the bed, in the bottom bureau drawer. Are we lucky, or what.
Posted by: Jack | Mar 18, 2008 7:59:58 AM
Hoarders' residences have a serious problem in addition to the clutter itself. Clutter inhibits cleaning, so the room, house, whatever, stinks horrendously. Disgusting.
Posted by: Sheila | Mar 18, 2008 8:03:22 AM
Mister's a hoarder, I'm not. However, I don't just randomly toss stuff that belongs to him. I have a plan that works for us: I'll suggest he hang out in bed all day relaxing, and then drag everything I want sorted into the bedroom. I'll wade through it and he'll hear, "What about this?" until I'm satisfied we've ditched enough.
He won't sort by himself, so I sort-of strongarm him. But he's satisfied that his "best stuff" hasn't been tossed out, and I'm happy.
Posted by: Soo | Mar 18, 2008 8:13:45 AM
TAG, I don't want to pollute the atmosphere any more than I need to. I'm not some ignorant land-whale joe-jobber. But, it is the thought that counts.
Posted by: Sean, Torrington CT | Mar 18, 2008 8:44:29 AM
Sean, if Craigslist is popular in your area, you can post an ad in the "Free" category saying you have free moving boxes. They'll be taken in a day or two. You can even leave them outside your place somewhere if you don't want to deal directly with anyone.
Posted by: JC | Mar 18, 2008 8:51:02 AM
I love the idea that I'm "saving the earth" by recycling, except that in my area, recycling=cost discount. That's where you go through the hassle of sorting your trash, removing the labels, rinsing, etc, then the special recycling truck picks it up every other week and the landfill weighs the recycled materials before dropping it all into the landfill while issuing the town council a discount on the price of trash pick up. Lame.
California is a crazy place, but Monterrey County was hardcore about recycling. They'd accept just about everything (except paper milk cartons and the wrappers from Kraft slices). They operated a thrift store of usable stuff that would get thrown out in the trash. You can even buy mulch made out of recycled wood furniture, in several designer colours, even blue. It was pretty awesome.
Posted by: Soo | Mar 18, 2008 8:55:46 AM
You can also check out freecycle.org, except they require an email where they send out daily updates on stuff people are giving away or are looking for. If you're in a huge area, the inbox can get full very quickly.
Everything must be free and not on any recall list. Also, I think they don't allow stuff like rocket-propelled grenades or howitzers, but everyone has their limits.
Posted by: Soo | Mar 18, 2008 9:34:31 AM
TAG---- If you buried a loved one in a suit or dress how do you get it back?
Just askin'.
Posted by: mydogFoster | Mar 18, 2008 9:47:22 AM
Geeze, Soo...now how am I going to get rid of all of those rocket-propelled grenades and howitzers in my mom's garage? Dang it.
Posted by: jilldini | Mar 18, 2008 9:53:37 AM
Artillery shell cache causes stir
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08078/865985-56.stm
Posted by: jilldini | Mar 18, 2008 9:55:43 AM
I thought this was gonna be about the NY gov, Idiot Spitzball.
He hoard around.
As for the actual stuff, I'd better keep quiet before someone checks out all my crap.lol
Posted by: A.V. | Mar 18, 2008 11:33:52 AM
I wouldn't be surprised if there's a craigslist category for artillery, jilldini, just not on freecycle. My guess is they're elitist about what junk can be advertised.
Posted by: Soo | Mar 18, 2008 11:42:23 AM
