The Countdown and the Clean Up Begins.....
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The Countdown and the Clean Up Begins.....
Next week I have an appointment to sign my divorce settlement, that means I only have a few weeks left, as a married woman, to blame my alcoholic husband for all the woes in my life. Better get to it....
1) The Big Woe is all this stuff he's left me with. The detritus of a 23 year marriage. It's all shoved into the corners of this tiny little townhouse I moved into. Spilling out of boxes. Every time I try and tackle it I get side tracked (His fault! His fault!), and one box ends up taking me 3 weeks. Needless to say, I've been here a year and haven't made much progress.
2) I have chronic migraines (I'm seeing the neurologist again this afternoon). I've had a headache now almost every day for two months. The only thing that makes it better is mindless gossip and really mindless reality tv. (Most definitely his fault.)
3) Getting anything done in this humid Georgia weather is a near impossibility. (I don't know how he did it, but he's to blame for that as well.)
I quite literally stared at a box for 10 minutes, pushed at it with my foot, then came down here to write this post. Uuuugh!
You know, in all honestly, what I miss most about that man was his ability to throw stuff away. He was great at motivating me to get rid of things. Now I run the serious risk of becoming a little pack rat. But that's ok, I'll just blame the horde on him.
1) The Big Woe is all this stuff he's left me with. The detritus of a 23 year marriage. It's all shoved into the corners of this tiny little townhouse I moved into. Spilling out of boxes. Every time I try and tackle it I get side tracked (His fault! His fault!), and one box ends up taking me 3 weeks. Needless to say, I've been here a year and haven't made much progress.
2) I have chronic migraines (I'm seeing the neurologist again this afternoon). I've had a headache now almost every day for two months. The only thing that makes it better is mindless gossip and really mindless reality tv. (Most definitely his fault.)
3) Getting anything done in this humid Georgia weather is a near impossibility. (I don't know how he did it, but he's to blame for that as well.)
I quite literally stared at a box for 10 minutes, pushed at it with my foot, then came down here to write this post. Uuuugh!
You know, in all honestly, what I miss most about that man was his ability to throw stuff away. He was great at motivating me to get rid of things. Now I run the serious risk of becoming a little pack rat. But that's ok, I'll just blame the horde on him.
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Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: South Jersey
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SK, I hired a professional organizer to come in and help me sort through the mess in my house. If you do a search on my "un-effing" efforts (taken from an app I downloaded called Unf*ck My Habitat--google it-) ou can read about it.
I was also feeling overwhelmed by the STUFF but made huge progress, getting rid of most of the unwanted stuff within a month or two. She helped me decide what to keep, what to donate, and what to toss. I put all the stuff too crappy to donate into a huge pile in the basement and had 1800-got-junk come take it away.
Yes, it cost me money. It was well worth it. The organizer was awesome, and it was sort of like having a friend there helping. She didn't push to get rid of anything I wanted to hang onto, but she helped me decide and helped me figure out a place to put everything that was left. The only thing in my house that's still sort of a mess is my paperwork. I had to stop before we got too far with that, but at least they are in bins and out of my way.
I was also feeling overwhelmed by the STUFF but made huge progress, getting rid of most of the unwanted stuff within a month or two. She helped me decide what to keep, what to donate, and what to toss. I put all the stuff too crappy to donate into a huge pile in the basement and had 1800-got-junk come take it away.
Yes, it cost me money. It was well worth it. The organizer was awesome, and it was sort of like having a friend there helping. She didn't push to get rid of anything I wanted to hang onto, but she helped me decide and helped me figure out a place to put everything that was left. The only thing in my house that's still sort of a mess is my paperwork. I had to stop before we got too far with that, but at least they are in bins and out of my way.
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Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: USA
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Originally Posted by SeriousKarma 
I only have a few weeks left, as a married woman, to blame my alcoholic husband for all the woes in my life. Better get to it....
I try and tackle it I get side tracked (His fault! His fault!), and one box ends up taking me 3 weeks. The only thing that makes it better is mindless gossip and really mindless reality tv. (Most definitely his fault.)
Getting anything done in this humid Georgia weather is a near impossibility. (I don't know how he did it, but he's to blame for that as well.)
Now I run the serious risk of becoming a little pack rat. But that's ok, I'll just blame the horde on him.
I try and tackle it I get side tracked (His fault! His fault!), and one box ends up taking me 3 weeks. The only thing that makes it better is mindless gossip and really mindless reality tv. (Most definitely his fault.)
Getting anything done in this humid Georgia weather is a near impossibility. (I don't know how he did it, but he's to blame for that as well.)
Now I run the serious risk of becoming a little pack rat. But that's ok, I'll just blame the horde on him.
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Join Date: Mar 2014
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You know, Lexie, many years ago, when I was single, I had a very good friend clean out a storage closet for me while I read magazines and sipped tea. She's one of those hyper-organized people that I'm always amazed allow me to be their friend. I gave her full permission to throw things away if she wanted to.
It was faaaaaaantastic. Unfortunately, she lives in California, but if I can get a few dollars saved up I might do what you suggested. Unfortunately, paperwork is probably my biggest problem. It doesn't take up that much space, but it's so time consuming to go through.
It was faaaaaaantastic. Unfortunately, she lives in California, but if I can get a few dollars saved up I might do what you suggested. Unfortunately, paperwork is probably my biggest problem. It doesn't take up that much space, but it's so time consuming to go through.
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Originally Posted by redatlanta
SK - Didn't know you were a Ga Peach like me!
Not so crazy about the town I'm in though. If you don't mind maybe someday I'll private message you, and get your opinion on some other parts of the state.
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Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: South Jersey
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Let me know if you need a lead for an organizer in your area--mine networks with others around the country. They have a professional organization and a code of ethics, etc. The first organizer I worked with didn't work out. She was bothered by the smell of smoke in my house (I do e-cigarettes now and so that's no longer an issue but it certainly was at the time--I didn't blame her). She was very professional about it and referred me to the lady I worked with later. When I feel up to tackling the paperwork again I will probably call her back.
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Join Date: May 2014
Location: Far above my co-dependent rock bottom.
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Try TCM (acupuncture and herbs) for your migraines.
I suffered debilitating sinusitis for 3 years, one acupuncture tretment cured it.
(but the acupucturist was really good, studied 4 years in China!)
I suffered debilitating sinusitis for 3 years, one acupuncture tretment cured it.
(but the acupucturist was really good, studied 4 years in China!)
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I just got back from the neurologist. They're going to try a different medication to see if it helps. Hopefully if I can get the migraines under control I can get on top of the organizing issues. Fingers crossed. But if not I'll keep all of your other suggestions in mind.
They've really been quite debilitating. They're not severe, but they're constant and exhausting, and absolutely everything triggers them. I saw some ugly 1970's style wallpaper the other day. Yep, it triggered a migraine. Makes me wonder how I ever got through that decade.
The doctor told me something else that I found very interesting. I was telling her that I can't seem to get anything done. On the weekends, and on days when I'm not scheduled to go to work, the migraines always seem worse. I'm so exhausted on my days off that all I do is nap. She said that disrupting ones sleep patterns, by sleeping too late or over napping, can actually trigger the migraine. Dang! Talk about a vicious circle.
They've really been quite debilitating. They're not severe, but they're constant and exhausting, and absolutely everything triggers them. I saw some ugly 1970's style wallpaper the other day. Yep, it triggered a migraine. Makes me wonder how I ever got through that decade.
The doctor told me something else that I found very interesting. I was telling her that I can't seem to get anything done. On the weekends, and on days when I'm not scheduled to go to work, the migraines always seem worse. I'm so exhausted on my days off that all I do is nap. She said that disrupting ones sleep patterns, by sleeping too late or over napping, can actually trigger the migraine. Dang! Talk about a vicious circle.
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Oof. I have suffered migraines for years. They are very predictable, not very severe, but last 5 to 7 days at a time. I've learned to manage them as best I can because otherwise my entire life would collapse every month. Excedrin Migraine manages my pain but does nothing for secondary symptoms like light/sound sensitivity, brain fog, nausea. Staying hydrated helps me, as does stretching, regular exercise, and going to bed/getting up at the same times everyday (yes, I get up at 6 am on the weekends, too). Also I don't drink alcohol very often, but NEVER when migraine is near. Hang in there, my friend. Hope the new medication makes a difference.
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I've only had migraines when I had menigitis and they were so intense that I couldn't function at all. I feel for anyone that suffers from migraines on any kind of regular basis.
As for the clutter, it's definitely his fault! I have lots of stuff that I need to discard and am reading Marie Kondo's The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up. She says that you need to hold everything in your home in your hands and if doesn't bring you joy, then you throw it away. Pick up those boxes. Do they bring you joy? No? Then toss 'em! That's the watered down version, although I do highly recommend her book, it's a quick read at less than 200 pages.
As for the clutter, it's definitely his fault! I have lots of stuff that I need to discard and am reading Marie Kondo's The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up. She says that you need to hold everything in your home in your hands and if doesn't bring you joy, then you throw it away. Pick up those boxes. Do they bring you joy? No? Then toss 'em! That's the watered down version, although I do highly recommend her book, it's a quick read at less than 200 pages.
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Thanks Stung. I took a quick look at the reviews for the book and it looks very interesting. I'm going to see if the library has it.
We were moving about every 3-4 years with the Army. That was great. It was like a forced time to de-clutter. What I need to do now is give everything here a big de-cluttering once over again, and then organize what's left. The organizing part is as tricky for me as the decluttering. Hopefully this new treatment from the neurologist will work and the migraines won't hold me back.
We were moving about every 3-4 years with the Army. That was great. It was like a forced time to de-clutter. What I need to do now is give everything here a big de-cluttering once over again, and then organize what's left. The organizing part is as tricky for me as the decluttering. Hopefully this new treatment from the neurologist will work and the migraines won't hold me back.
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