Spiritual Pack Rat Problems

There was this one 'friend' who thought she was doing everyone else a favour when she downsized by scattering her possessions far and wide to 'look after' while she found a new place.

Well it took her years and she she still hasn't found anywhere. and so those people still have all her stuff that she hasn't come back for. ^^
I just gave back everything she gave me to look after and said I can't be responsible for YOUR stuff. books, rugs, plants etc. The rest I just donated to op shops. I am not really interested in reading her books or her old archives. (I can get any book from the library)
The plants are now planted in the garden, if she really wants them back she can take cuttings.

I don't have any videos or dvds and hardly any cds.

Church has a carboot sale EVERY Saturday. it takes place in the carpark and everyone sells all their stuff. So you can make some $$ as well.
 
I have made many trips to the transfer station after mum accepted someone else's junk and we found we had nowhere to put it lol.
I just call out garage 'mum's op shop'
Can't park my car in there.
She might see the light eventually but I don't know, she'll get angry if I dare touch her stuff or mistakenly give it away, thinking it's junk, but its actually a wedding gift that she never used. She even gets angry if I give away my OWN stuff. I might put it in the bin, and she'll fish it out.
 
hmmmmm.

I remember a former member of our church asked an elderly member to allow her to leave her clothes and stuff at her house. Then she went overseas and when she came back she never recouped her belongings and the elderly member was stuck with it.

That was not cool.

I was asked to gather some of the guys and take everything to the dump. But I didn't feel right about that so I asked both members to work it out as grown up adults.

So as adults they ended up getting upset with me. 🤨 Go figure.
 
Lanolin said:
I'm not taking them though. Who said I was taking them? They just drop it at my doorstep, or leave it in my car. They don't even give me a chance to say no. I don't say anything but they just put it there. Or mum takes it..cos she can't say no.
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Ok, odd, but I get it. My wife runs a club at her school. It is a marine science club. Once a quarter, the club has a garage sale, which is ALWAYS held at our house. For month, people stop by and drop off "stuff" that will eventually be either sold at the garage sale or (if not sold) donated. This happens once a quarter and starts at 6am. I usually hide, but it is hard to do with so many people coming in to use the bathroom or kitchen.

While on the subject of garages, we have never been able to use the garage for cars. It is the largest "room" in the house, and we don't even remember some of the stuff there. A couple of months ago, I found a yellow blanket with a bunch of rocks in it. It took me a while, but I then recalled that it was my oldest son's blanket and those were rocks we collected one day sometime around 1987.

garage1.JPG garage 2.JPG
 
Yea Americans seem to have problems, there's tv shows about it called Storage wars. I think people even bid on their stuff without even knowing whats inside.

But NZ have problems too, one time an elderly church member was asking for some help cleaning her house. Went to her house it was packed full of stuff. She was a hoarder. I could not literally get in the door. The landlord was going to evict her.

If you have to move house often that might motivate you to not have so much stuff. Everything of mine can fit in my room, the only extras I have is a bicycle and a car.

If you an archaeologists and digging for what life was like in the past, well, most signs of life are found in old rubbish heaps (called tells or middens). Someone from the future trying to find out what life is like in the 21st century would need to look no further than opening a garage door buried amongst the rubble of the wasteland after civilisation has moved on.
 
rtm3039 said:
Ok, odd, but I get it. My wife runs a club at her school. It is a marine science club. Once a quarter, the club has a garage sale, which is ALWAYS held at our house. For month, people stop by and drop off "stuff" that will eventually be either sold at the garage sale or (if not sold) donated. This happens once a quarter and starts at 6am. I usually hide, but it is hard to do with so many people coming in to use the bathroom or kitchen.

While on the subject of garages, we have never been able to use the garage for cars. It is the largest "room" in the house, and we don't even remember some of the stuff there. A couple of months ago, I found a yellow blanket with a bunch of rocks in it. It took me a while, but I then recalled that it was my oldest son's blanket and those were rocks we collected one day sometime around 1987.

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I’m pretty sure there’s a flux capacitor under that lot somehwere
 
thenami said:
It is a very painful, daunting. and difficult task to complete cleaning out the homes of the deceased.
More churches should provide sermons on minimalism using scripture to motivate parishioners.
Few seem to concern themselves with what they choose to leave behind.

It really is a problem in American society. All my personals fit in my bedroom, minus some art supplies.
Everything else I own is being used daily/weekly/monthly.
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Not that sure what you mean by "personals."

Your comments do have be thinking about why we collect so much stuff. Everything we have has meaning; however, most are not used very often (if ever). I believe that these items represent a memory and that is why people have an issue letting go.

rtm
 
rtm3039 said:
Not that sure what you mean by "personals."

Your comments do have be thinking about why we collect so much stuff. Everything we have has meaning; however, most are not used very often (if ever). I believe that these items represent a memory and that is why people have an issue letting go.

rtm
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I would agree at ppl saving things from the past for the sake of memories.

My Mom was a pack rat.....lol some of the broken things she saved from when we were children...........well @ 56 she got her desire and went to be with the Lord. All her other children except myself and the brother that just passed had that gene. The grands have it also.......lol.

But it is really hard and brings about the tough question " Why, did you save this ?", when you are the one who has to clean it out.
 
I filled a 30 cubic yard dumpster a few months ago from the house I now live in (which was my previous father-in-law's home), and it still isn't enough. I need another one to get this place to where it's livable. It's always easier to throw other people's stuff away. :D
 
Musicmaster said:
I filled a 30 cubic yard dumpster a few months ago from the house I now live in (which was my previous father-in-law's home), and it still isn't enough. I need another one to get this place to where it's livable. It's always easier to throw other people's stuff away. :D
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Hello Musicmaster,
That's a pretty big dumpster. I remember calling a recycling company that came out and charged me for a 1 yard dumpster. It seemed a good size for recycling paperwork and cd software.

rtm3039 said:
Ok, odd, but I get it. My wife runs a club at her school. It is a marine science club. Once a quarter, the club has a garage sale, which is ALWAYS held at our house. For month, people stop by and drop off "stuff" that will eventually be either sold at the garage sale or (if not sold) donated. This happens once a quarter and starts at 6am. I usually hide, but it is hard to do with so many people coming in to use the bathroom or kitchen.

While on the subject of garages, we have never been able to use the garage for cars. It is the largest "room" in the house, and we don't even remember some of the stuff there. A couple of months ago, I found a yellow blanket with a bunch of rocks in it. It took me a while, but I then recalled that it was my oldest son's blanket and those were rocks we collected one day sometime around 1987.

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After Ray showed us photos of all his stuff, I don't feel so bad now. I don't have that much stuff but I still have to get to work and get this thing done. 😎
 
bobinfaith said:
Hello Musicmaster,
That's a pretty big dumpster. I remember calling a recycling company that came out and charged me for a 1 yard dumpster. It seemed a good size for recycling paperwork and cd software.



After Ray showed us photos of all his stuff, I don't feel so bad now. I don't have that much stuff but I still have to get to work and get this thing done. 😎
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It's actually not that unorganized. The plastic containers along the wall are actually holiday decorations. The wife has each holiday in one or more plastic containers. Along the left wall is mostly house supplies (paper towels, TP, dog good, plastic trash bags and our hurricane stuff (generator, camping gear, and @ 20 gallons of fuel). Along the wall that would be behind me are all my tools, a second refrigerator, and a freezer with about 10 gallons of frozen water. The center is the actual mess. Most of what is there is destined for the next garage sale.
 
rtm3039 said:
It's actually not that unorganized. The plastic containers along the wall are actually holiday decorations. The wife has each holiday in one or more plastic containers. Along the left wall is mostly house supplies (paper towels, TP, dog good, plastic trash bags and our hurricane stuff (generator, camping gear, and @ 20 gallons of fuel). Along the wall that would be behind me are all my tools, a second refrigerator, and a freezer with about 10 gallons of frozen water. The center is the actual mess. Most of what is there is destined for the next garage sale.
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I could comment but I have 'no room' to speak. lol
 
rtm3039 said:
Ok, odd, but I get it. My wife runs a club at her school. It is a marine science club. Once a quarter, the club has a garage sale, which is ALWAYS held at our house. For month, people stop by and drop off "stuff" that will eventually be either sold at the garage sale or (if not sold) donated. This happens once a quarter and starts at 6am. I usually hide, but it is hard to do with so many people coming in to use the bathroom or kitchen.

While on the subject of garages, we have never been able to use the garage for cars. It is the largest "room" in the house, and we don't even remember some of the stuff there. A couple of months ago, I found a yellow blanket with a bunch of rocks in it. It took me a while, but I then recalled that it was my oldest son's blanket and those were rocks we collected one day sometime around 1987.

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😂😂😂😂😂 I cringe at the site in those pics.......shivers me timbers!
 
crossnote said:
Also food and vet bills are kept at a minimum, no messes, no barking when you're gone...but they will cry out if you don't (Lu 19:40).
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Well I do have colourful rocks and gems that I keep in a pretty dish in my room, but they are not pets...!
I also have pretty shells on display.

Papers and cards and letters/diaries that I store away and don't look at are in boxes under my bed. I once shredded all my outdated library reading papers I wasn't going to read anymore. I think maybe I'll do the same for the money management course. Textbooks aren't any use if they are not being used.

The only thing is the paper shredder I had got jammed (kids loved the turning hand one so much they broke it) and the electric one I took to school disappeared. If I ever find it I'll have it back, the shredded paper is good for worms/compost/mulch.
 
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