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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/23/2008 1:15:41 PM
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coinpurse
Posts: 98
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Has anyone made any progress this week or last week?
I have been taking the dishes/cups from my bedroom and walking them to the kitchen sink ASAP. Yes, Im almost embarassed to admit that I leave dishes in the bedroom (my desk is in my room).
So, whats your progress thus far? :) Please share!
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/23/2008 2:33:54 PM
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humbleinspirit
Posts: 18074
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The only progress that I have made is looking at my dishes in the kitchen sink and thinkiing "I can realistically clean these."
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/23/2008 3:05:56 PM
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Sadey
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I'm trying to put things away even if I have to hike across the house.
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/23/2008 4:38:07 PM
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agapetos
Posts: 5394
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I live in a 2-up-2-down (with the exception of the stairs and understairs cupboard) and I have a couple of small baskets that I use to take stuff up/down stairs. Means that I don't have to take something up/downstairs every 5 minutes but can take a few things at a time.
I've let dishes pile up before. It can be overwhelming, but doing just 1 bowl can be really motivational to do more ~ either dishes or something else. I sometimes probably waste time by 'organising' dirty dishes ~ so I wash all the plates or all the mugs or whatever.
I had a sleepless period a while back and alternated between doing dishes and watching stuff that I'd videoed (so things that were only about 1 hour long. Put dirty dishes in to soak, make sure drainer is clear and clean, wash dishes, watch video, put dirty dishes in to soak, put clean ones away, wash more dishes, watch video!
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/23/2008 8:36:41 PM
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creationtalk
Posts: 697
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I've made some progress. The cabinets I ordered for the dining room remodel arrived, I got them in place...and finally had a place to put the mixer, two crockpots, the waffle iron, popcorn popper, and juicer. Not only that, they didn't take as much space as I expected, so I was also able to put away some of the canned foods even though I don't yet have the pantry built.
Have also got my office back in use with newly painted walls and tile floors. Still don't have the desktop computer operational and haven't finished the bookshelf--still need to drill the holes for the shelf supports...but I'm still making progress a little at a time (at least in these two places...I think the rest of the house is getting worse.
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/24/2008 6:38:41 PM
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agapetos
Posts: 5394
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From: This side of the lil duck pond!
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I wonder if I can offer a challenge up to folk?
That they take just 10 minutes from whatever they do with their time to tackle something in their house, instead of ignoring it or thinking about doing it or whatever ~ and they do it at least 3 times a week.
This doesn't mean that if you change your sheets every Saturday and it takes 10 minutes to do it, you don't have to do anything else that day. Nor does it mean that you can do 30 minutes on one day and nothing for the rest of the week.
So for me, tomorrow, because I was cooking this evening and my dishes have piled up, I'm going to clean the sink and draining board and was the dishes.
I know where my cloths, washing-up liquid and tea towels (should I need to use them) are but I'm aware that others may not have them so I'd suggest you could use the first day to make sure you have everything you need for your task to hand.
I know, for instance that I sometime let mail pile up. When I get round to sorting it, I open all the envelopes and have my recycleable box, rubbish box, shredder and organiser file to hand so that I can sit and deal with everything at once, instead of making piles of each and having to deal with those too.
And because my rubbish bin is emptied every Tuesday morning, I go round the house on a Monday evening with a big bag and make sure that all the easy pick up rubbish and bin contents are in it ~ I also check the fridge at the same time for out-of-date stuff too. So I always have a supply of big rubbish bags in the house.
I know the last two things are things that I already do regularly so they wouldn't count towards the 10 minutes, I've put them in as examples though of what could be done.
So, anyone up for a challenge? Only 10 minutes. And sitting staring doesn't get things to clean themselves! 
_____________________________
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not using them in fruit salads!
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/27/2008 10:39:25 AM
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coinpurse
Posts: 98
Joined: 5/10/2008
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Agapetos,
Im up for the challenge!!!!!
10 minutes 3X a week. I'm starting today.
How long does this challenge go for...Can it go for at least a few weeks until we form a habit, hopefully:)
quote:
ORIGINAL: agapetos
I wonder if I can offer a challenge up to folk?
That they take just 10 minutes from whatever they do with their time to tackle something in their house, instead of ignoring it or thinking about doing it or whatever ~ and they do it at least 3 times a week.
This doesn't mean that if you change your sheets every Saturday and it takes 10 minutes to do it, you don't have to do anything else that day. Nor does it mean that you can do 30 minutes on one day and nothing for the rest of the week.
So for me, tomorrow, because I was cooking this evening and my dishes have piled up, I'm going to clean the sink and draining board and was the dishes.
I know where my cloths, washing-up liquid and tea towels (should I need to use them) are but I'm aware that others may not have them so I'd suggest you could use the first day to make sure you have everything you need for your task to hand.
I know, for instance that I sometime let mail pile up. When I get round to sorting it, I open all the envelopes and have my recycleable box, rubbish box, shredder and organiser file to hand so that I can sit and deal with everything at once, instead of making piles of each and having to deal with those too.
And because my rubbish bin is emptied every Tuesday morning, I go round the house on a Monday evening with a big bag and make sure that all the easy pick up rubbish and bin contents are in it ~ I also check the fridge at the same time for out-of-date stuff too. So I always have a supply of big rubbish bags in the house.
I know the last two things are things that I already do regularly so they wouldn't count towards the 10 minutes, I've put them in as examples though of what could be done.
So, anyone up for a challenge? Only 10 minutes. And sitting staring doesn't get things to clean themselves!
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/27/2008 10:47:42 AM
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coinpurse
Posts: 98
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I don't like washing dishes at all...
The worst chore ever. Id much rather clean the toilet.
quote:
ORIGINAL: humbleinspirit
The only progress that I have made is looking at my dishes in the kitchen sink and thinkiing "I can realistically clean these."
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/28/2008 11:37:49 PM
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sisrev
Posts: 886
Joined: 8/7/2006
From: The South, ya'll
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Right now I'm in a somewhat unusual housing arrangement. We are living in a furnished apartment, 600 miles from home, with only a limited amount of our personal items with us. We also have housekeeper who comes in every two weeks--she changes the bedding, cleans both bathrooms, wipes everything down, mops the floors and vacuums the carpets. We ususally dust & vacuum on the off weeks, but there is a tendancy to let some things go until the night before the cleaning lady is supposed to come--then we run around picking up clothes & shoes & books, etc, to get things out of the way so she can actually clean.
What I'm trying to do is establish regular daily routines--I'm bad to just let things do, then get overwhelmed by all I have to do. It's not so bad right now because I'm not actually at home, but I'm hoping that by getting my regular routine down while I'm already in a steamlined environment, once I get home I can tackle the "other" stuff--like cleaning out closets, decluttering, and actually cleaning out my "junk" room so I can really use it!
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/29/2008 7:56:01 PM
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agapetos
Posts: 5394
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quote:
but there is a tendancy to let some things go until the night before the cleaning lady is supposed to come This is part of the reason I don't have a cleaning lady! If I did, I'd be doing everything the night before she came!
_____________________________
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not using them in fruit salads!
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/29/2008 10:40:29 PM
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creationtalk
Posts: 697
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quote:
quote:
Another help is setting a time limit, as you suggested, of 10-15 minutes. It gives you a small, do-able task instead of a seemingly overwhelming one when you look at the whole mess!
This is exactly why I find it so hard to do anything! I look at everything and think immediately 'I can't do anything!' And so don't. And that really doesn't work!
Several years ago a friend was a "cleany." her house was good sized (my small MH would fit in her livingroom...with room to spare). I asked her to help me learn to clean my MH better...she couldn't tell me how to clean, she just did it. She could have her whole house spotless in 20 minutes...and at the end of the same 20 minutes, I'd still be looking at the mess trying to figure out where to start.
One problem that I have...if I manage to get one room of the house cleaned, I will tend to stay in that room and pretend the rest of the house doesn't exist...I also need to clean the kitchen first.
I will try to take the challenge...but only if I have all the work related to teaching finished...that said, I need to get off the computer and go grade homework so I can spend tomorrow finishing lecture notes and working the next two sets of homework...while putting all the lawn furniture in the old horsetrailer in prep for a hurricane, getting the double doors all covered with plywood, etc.
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/31/2008 11:08:21 AM
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creationtalk
Posts: 697
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I've found a cleaning motivation:
Hurricane bearing down...suddenly all those things that "I'll decide later" become unnecessary and go...also had to clean some just to accommodate possible hurricane guests.
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/31/2008 6:24:45 PM
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agapetos
Posts: 5394
Joined: 4/11/2005
From: This side of the lil duck pond!
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I'm praying that that accommodation isn't necessary.
_____________________________
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not using them in fruit salads!
My blog
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 8/31/2008 10:39:29 PM
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sisrev
Posts: 886
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From: The South, ya'll
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quote:
Hurricane bearing down...suddenly all those things that "I'll decide later" become unnecessary and go...also had to clean some just to accommodate possible hurricane guests.
We are currently living in an apartment in Georgia, with just some of our clothes and a few personal items. Everything else is in our house in Louisiana. I keep thinking of all of the things I wish I had with me in Georgia, just in case. I feel helpless, just waiting to see where it and whether home ends up the "good side" or the "bad side". I'm more worried about family that is still there than my house, of course, but it's a funny feeling knowing that almost all of my worldly possessions are there and there is not one thing I can do about it.
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/2/2008 7:39:31 PM
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sisrev
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Well, my area dodged the bullet this time--unfortunately, we have family who live in areas that weren't so fortunate. I am so thankful that my mom & dad came out unscathed, as well as our house and all of our "stuff". Some of the family they have heard from, some they hane't gotten through to yet, but so far all of the news is good.
Kind of makes everything get into perspective, doesn't it?
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/2/2008 7:46:43 PM
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agapetos
Posts: 5394
Joined: 4/11/2005
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quote:
Kind of makes everything get into perspective, doesn't it? Yeah. Sounds like things weren't near as bad as they could have been.
Makes me think that as I've been blessed with a home, I should take care of it better. There are some who've lost everything for some reason or another who'd give a lot to have the little that I have.
_____________________________
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not using them in fruit salads!
My blog
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/5/2008 11:37:08 PM
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creationtalk
Posts: 697
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quote:
ORIGINAL: sisrev
Well, my area dodged the bullet this time--unfortunately, we have family who live in areas that weren't so fortunate. I am so thankful that my mom & dad came out unscathed, as well as our house and all of our "stuff". Some of the family they have heard from, some they hane't gotten through to yet, but so far all of the news is good.
Kind of makes everything get into perspective, doesn't it?
Glad you made out OK. I'm watching Ike pretty close...I guess that I may get another burst of nervous "cleaning energy" in another week or so if this thing comes into the gulf...
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/6/2008 1:22:08 PM
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Grace-N-Mercy
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quote:
ORIGINAL: agapetos
I wonder if I can offer a challenge up to folk?
That they take just 10 minutes from whatever they do with their time to tackle something in their house, instead of ignoring it or thinking about doing it or whatever ~ and they do it at least 3 times a week.
This doesn't mean that if you change your sheets every Saturday and it takes 10 minutes to do it, you don't have to do anything else that day. Nor does it mean that you can do 30 minutes on one day and nothing for the rest of the week.
So for me, tomorrow, because I was cooking this evening and my dishes have piled up, I'm going to clean the sink and draining board and was the dishes.
I know where my cloths, washing-up liquid and tea towels (should I need to use them) are but I'm aware that others may not have them so I'd suggest you could use the first day to make sure you have everything you need for your task to hand.
I know, for instance that I sometime let mail pile up. When I get round to sorting it, I open all the envelopes and have my recycleable box, rubbish box, shredder and organiser file to hand so that I can sit and deal with everything at once, instead of making piles of each and having to deal with those too.
And because my rubbish bin is emptied every Tuesday morning, I go round the house on a Monday evening with a big bag and make sure that all the easy pick up rubbish and bin contents are in it ~ I also check the fridge at the same time for out-of-date stuff too. So I always have a supply of big rubbish bags in the house.
I know the last two things are things that I already do regularly so they wouldn't count towards the 10 minutes, I've put them in as examples though of what could be done.
So, anyone up for a challenge? Only 10 minutes. And sitting staring doesn't get things to clean themselves!
Ooh, I'm up for the challenge! I tend to let things go until they get piled up, then it takes a whole afternoon to de-clutter before I can clean!! I have already started trying to keep things kept up... I would love to have one of those homes like you see on the cover of a magazine, but then I don't want to spend all day cleaning, either.
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/6/2008 4:50:15 PM
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rgod
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What a great thread!!! I wish I had found it earlier. For me, I was depressed for a number of years - but covering it up with work and a bunch of activities. Before I knew it, my house was out of control, and I was feeling overwhelmed. It got so bad that I was sleeping on my couch and not on my bed (it had too much stuff). Well, I went to get help with my depression and it turned out that besides dealing with emotional stuff, that I had to learn how not to overwhelm myself. That is something I have to constantly struggle with - most of the time I can recognize the signs and pull back (like today!)
When I got the depression under control, it was like a light bulb switched on ... I suddenly wanted to have guests and visitors over and I wanted a clean apartment. So, I tried cleaning it up all by myself. But I'd feel so overwhelmed and frustrated and even more depressed. My dishes were always dirty, my trash was almost never emptied, the workmen, when they came to my apartment would make faces at one another - that is how bad it was. I never really had bugs (amazing, I know), but close to the end, I started to see a couple of them. I knew I needed help then. I prayed and God sent a friend of mine who had just started a decluttering ministry. I negotiated a reduced rate and got to work. She shared the following tips with me:
1. Work on one room at a time, one section at a time.
2. Have a plan before you start - for example, maybe you'll clean out one shelf in the closet this evening.
3. Throw away things as you clean. Get the trash bags OUT OF THE HOUSE.
4. Get see through bins and label them.
5. Start with storage places first (like the closet or a cabinet). When you clear those, then you'll have room to put things away.
6. Visually, as you clean, try to make the place look a lot more organized by getting things that match. For example - hangars that are all the same, bins that are all the same - or in the bathroom - get baskets that look the same to put your stuff in.
7. For huge jobs, do a rough sort first. For example if your room is filled with paper, clothes, etc - the first thing that you can do is put all of the papers in one area and clothes in another. Then later you can go through the piles.
8. Whenever possible, try to do more than one thing at a time. For example if you aren't cleaning on a particular night, you can still relax and clean by popping in a movie while you are going through a box of paper. Or go through your junk mail as you watch the news.
With her helping me, I started to feel better. We'd work together sometimes - cleaning and sorting. Before she left, she would give me an assignment and I'd just focus on that. Then she'd check when she came back. That accountability helped. I remember the day that my closet was cleaned. Then my bathroom. My living room. I wanted to cry because it had been so many years.
I think for me, being organized it will always be a challenge. I still struggle with paper clutter - and in fact, after I log off from here, I'm going to go through two boxes of paper while I watch movies (one box per movie) so I don't get overwhelmed. I also have some trash that needs to go. I don't struggle anymore with dishes because I generally wash them as soon as I take them to the kitchen. I don't use the dishwasher anymore. Before I lived with roommates - I used the little plastic bags that you get from Walmart for my trash - not the big hefty bags - that way I could take trash out every day and never had to worry about trash sitting around for days.
I try to straighten my apartment a couple of days out of the week - whenever I notice that it is getting messy. Now I'm trying to develop the habit of washing out the tub and sink at least once a day. But the other day, I noticed that my closet really messy again as is under my bed. Bags and boxes that I'd brought and stored a year ago are still there. My original plan was to go through the boxes - maybe one or two a week. But I haven't done it. Clutter is coming back. So, I've got to apply these principles again. It is really difficult, but I don't want to go back to what I had before.
< Message edited by rgod -- 9/6/2008 5:02:50 PM >
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/11/2008 10:47:31 AM
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agapemami
Posts: 147
Joined: 1/24/2006
From: somewhere over the rainbow
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All of you are an inspiration. Rgod, Amen for help!
Yes, Im also slipping. RGod, I understand about the bed:( and under it.
I failed in trying to do the bed everyday. When I dont make the bed, everything ends up thrown on it and yes, I have slept on it with piles of clothes and even some books and who knows what else.
If I accomplish anything, it will have to be making my bed. When its made, I dont throw things on it, I fold and and put away.
10 minutes a day, 3X a week! Im trying!
Thank you for sharing.
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/11/2008 1:37:36 PM
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agapetos
Posts: 5394
Joined: 4/11/2005
From: This side of the lil duck pond!
Status: online
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I hurt my knee the other day and so haven't been able to do much. Hurts to walk and stand a lot and bending my knee much is very painful. Sigh.
_____________________________
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not using them in fruit salads!
My blog
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RE: struggling with being messy??? - 9/11/2008 3:12:41 PM
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sisrev
Posts: 886
Joined: 8/7/2006
From: The South, ya'll
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quote:
ORIGINAL: agapetos
I hurt my knee the other day and so haven't been able to do much. Hurts to walk and stand a lot and bending my knee much is very painful. Sigh.
Doesn't it seem like these kinds of things always happen at a bad time? Although, anytime would be a bad time for something like this!
Wishing you a speedy recovery!
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) but I am going to say that the first room I'm tackling is my kitchen. 
