"HOARDERS"

Automatic Washer - The world's coolest Washing Machines, Dryers and Dishwashers

Help Support :

Can it be recycled?

The enormity of 2,000 feet of worthless oodge recycled one car load at a time in an old car that's one gasp from cash for clunkers, by one person limited with arthritis and physically bankrupted from home healthcare in a relationship filled with unresolved oodge is not my idea of social responsibility to save a planet for the more enlightened. My hope for Sandy is that being left financially bereft is not requiring a move as well. One can only hope the hoarding meant something of value was saved. The nightmare is knowing if there is anything of value it will require sifting through each box, sack, pile and crumble of history his partner accumulated. Peter’s sister was the worst hoarder I'd ever seen. We ordered a construction dumpster and had it removed twice. Anything with a family memory was catalogued and saved. Financial records were found and filed. Anything of value was gifted or donated and the dump fees and hours of work were beyond calculation. If I heard one more time, "I hope you didn't throw all that away. You know there are charities that take those items. I am sure there were items the family wanted. Most of that could have been recycled. I know you and you just threw it all away." Then the charities who cherry picked, took this but not that, told you to come back next Thursdaywith a car so full a shoe horn you could not have added a gnat's jacket to the load. I suppose the expectation was for us to come and unload the car and return with the vain hope we'd be judged worthy? Please, don't offer suggestions unless they come with a check, a truck to carry away a load, prepaid sessions with a grief counselor, a debt councilor or a good psychiatrist? Sandy edits a magazine for mid century collectables and respectful sensibilities for reusing and recycling. Lets all be a friend who listens, even if we don't always agree, sit helpful conjecture.
 
Kelly:

Something told me you'd understand.

No, the stuff in the basement and garage areas was absolutely nothing of value. And yes, a move is in my future. Three weeks, in fact.

I may live.
 
I hope to hell one of those boxes is FULL of cash.

Sandy:

Any time you and a guest need to get away, you have a place to stay in the NYC area. (I'm three blocks outside of NYC).

Hell, you've been so good to me and the Gadget I'd even feed you, even If I have to get recipes from Kelly in WA. :-)
 
There is Hope

Sandy, you are an amazing man, a loving partner and a tireless caregiver. Thankfully the midcentury model you claimed as yours is being recycled in a place with no pain, giant lungs and fresh air in a practice where payments are made in full. Sidebar: Three men died and went to heaven. St Peter asked the first what he did. "I was a pediatrician. I healed small children and treated the most delicate of patients." "That's wonderful, come right in St Peter intoned. The second man approached and he was asked what he did on earth. "I was an educator. I taught the ignorant, set minds free and created the basis on which further learning was realized." "Oh, that’s wonderful, come right in" St Peter intoned. The third gentlemen stepped forward and St Peter asked what he did. "I was the CEO of a managed Health Care Provider. I was able to ascertain the medical needs and coverage for insured patients." "My that's wonderful," St Peter said in awe. "Come right in. You can stay three days and then go to hell!"
Sandy, do you have any idea how many of us have been underappreciated and underutilized in our previous relationships. No collectable in the universe can match the worth of a seasoned man, who knows how to love, is trustworthy and steadfast. All that combined with a keen mind, a rapier wit, the hands of a master and a soul that knows how to dream and hope. You my friend are worth a 1,000 life insurance policies to so many our age who are ready for the real deal, May you become the object of someone's desire whose arms and heart will surround you for the rest of your life in an embrace of commitment and freedom born in trust.
 
And yes, a move is in my future. Three weeks, in fact.

In the light of everything Sandy - this is great news! Hope you settled on something that has everything you are looking for. I wish you the best -

Ben
 
Often persons who "hoard" are trying to make up for some sort of feeling of not having in the past. Persons who grew up "poor" and or with little or no posessions often as adults purchase things in such quantities to be above what could be considered surplus to requirements. Others have some notion of selling things on one day, others keep things because "you never know when it might be needed". Many times persons who have lived through major upheavals such as wars, famine or such will hoard items such as food because they don't wish to be without ever again.

Other persons simply cannot bring themselves to throw away anything they have paid money for out of thrift. Sill more persons go out and bring things home, again out of the idea to sell it on or it may prove useful someday.

Either way the up shot of all this is that sooner or later the stuff has to and should go. Disorder and mess attract vermin, along with posing other health and saftey risks. In our area it is not uncommon for either landlords and or family members to obtain a court order to "clean out" a home or apartment that simply has too much "junk" and is deemed a health risk.

 
All of the above

I have become a hoader recently, and every issue that you listed is important to me. I am a materialist; I am also the most sentimental person in my family and I attach great significance to objets. Two weeks ago as I was cleaning out my Mother's apartment in NYC, I got attached to her shopping cart, because it worked so well and was so much help to me in moving things to the truck. I live, however, in a suburban community where shopping carts are of no use and I had to force myself to leave it behind. It is easier when you can give things away to specific people that I know; less easy is to give to faceless charities and worst is disposal. It is a real affliction. George Carlin was right; it's just STUFF but every single one of those reasons is enough to keep what should be garbage. Heaven help me.
 
No matter how much we cling to the past and jam our lives up with things to block the entry of change, change will come, and so will the future.

The only stuff I should have though about storing was videos, with sound, of relatives who are now deceased. Sometimes you just want to hear their voices again.

I try to light a candle for my dearly departed relatives here and there and always send them light, love, and blessings when I think of it.

More than anything I remember how little stuff the older reatives chose to have, because it was not important to them. Showing their love and spending time with family and surviving in this new country were their top prioirtes. Things don't bring happiness. But the memory of their love lives forever.
 
Surprise Surprise Laundress is right

The medical community has attributed hoarder's syndrome to a detachment from the nuclear family during adolescence. Poverty, war, depression can certainly divert the attention of the parents and caregivers. It is not solely attributable to lack of money or material security. Saying, "my parents lived through the depressions isn't valid when hoarding is applied to our generation. Understanding that memories reside in the heart and soul and never in sticks, stones and masonry is an invaluable acceptance... I am an anti hoarder for fear I would become messy, which I equate with poverty of lack of quality rearing, both of which I am and was. As long as I have a breath and can move I
Refuse to let the sun set on dirty dishes or rise to an unmade bed. I have learned through the years letting go of material items easily meant they returned as well. It was the foolish clinging and conceiving to keep something that was a thing are the items harder to find again. I truly love to give away things that make the receiver glad.
My promise to myself is: "If you own it, use it or display it. If 6 months have passed and I haven't used it its time to go."

The items I regret parting with? Sunbeam Chrome Model 10. Frigidaire Gemini refrigerator with bottom freezer, foot pedal to open the freezer and motorized unit that opened the door with a press of the button, just like Samantha's. Frigidaire 30 inch Custom Imperial Twin with chromed Fair oven on top and self cleaning oven on the bottom and built in exhaust. 1964 Frigidaire Coppertone matching Custom Imperial washer and dryer, Kitchenaid model G and K-4B. GE 30 inch range with microwave/self cleaning oven combination. Magnavox home theatre in an antiqued green armoire by Thomasville cabinetry with pecan accents. Henredon Living room grouping, Persian Portal (met my wife, an interior designer sourcing more pieces of the grouping) The Beverly Hill Billy house in Merritt Woods, Battle Creek Michigan, Lawn Boy 2 cycle self propelled lawn mower, 1965 Lincoln Continental with suicide doors, my hearing.

mixfinder++8-10-2009-23-39-40.jpg
 
My nutty sister is a hoarder of food of all things.
Her house is always clean and neat as a pin. Her kitchen pantry is a total mess. Hundreds of cans of food. When they remodeled her Lake Forest, IL home several years ago she had a huge pantry installed. When she buys string beans in a can she won't buy just one can, she'll buy 25 of them. Why? Oh, it was on sale.

In her kitchen she has a SubZero refrigerator. It is packed so tight with food you can't take one thing out with lots of other items falling out with it. Most everything is out of code date.

Last time we were there, I asked if she had any sour cream for my baked potato. She gave me a container of sour cream that was a month and a half past it's exp. date. She said "Oh, it's still good". I passed on it.

Then in the basement she has two deep freezes and another large GE double door refrigerator that is as packed as the SubZero upstairs is.

I finally told her and her husband that this is dangerous to keep old food around like that. But she claims they never get sick. I think one of these days they are going to poison themselves with this behavior. Her husband doesn't see anything wrong with this behavior.
 
Can it be recycled?

If this was directed at my comment let me explain, not that it really matters.

I was commenting on the following statement made in the original post:

"Old magazines, junk mail, grocery coupons clipped in 1997 and never redeemed - tons upon tons upon tons of it. It is costing thousands of dollars to have this stuff hauled away, just at a time when I needed my savings most."

My suggestion to recycle was so that there was no expense to get rid of all the paper. To avoid having to PAY to get rid of lots of worthless paper, recycle it instead. Depending on the area you live in, they may have a program to pick it up so that it does not have to be transported car load by car load.

That is all.
 
It wasn't about you, its about Sandy

Imagine 2,000 square feet of paper, office records from a medical practice, storage units and then decide how much you can physically and emotionally dissect when you're being evicted and still trying to work full time. It is all about Sandy, not a trunk load of paper you might be able to beg someone to come and get after 40 phone inquiries. The bigger offer would have been monies in triple digits and trucks with dual axles.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top