My Minimal Hoarding Life - Overwhelmed With Life

I have to say that life is slightly overwhelming this month. I have so much to prepare for. Being the only one to do things here and there I am getting my ass kicked.

Seems God has gave me so many titles this month, maybe this whole year. I am the woman of the house. I am the cook. I am the doctor. I am the nurse. I am the laundry mat. I am the farmer/gardener. I am the maid. I am the chauffeur. I am the receptionist. I am the dog walker/ animal caregiver. I am the muscle and the mouth.... etc.

But the one thing I am not getting enough of is time. I cannot sit in a waiting room for hours and hours and accomplish anything at home. With that being said I am really struggling to get my home in order and keep the vegetable garden going and other everyday things that has to be done.

On the days I do not have to be sitting in the waiting rooms I am mowing grass and planting veggies. 

I need a routine but its impossible to make one. However, I have been relaxing a couple hours in the morning while I do laundry by writing online. I catch a small window to wash up the dirty dishes after cooking most all the meals, every few minutes I can use I can make a huge difference.

The closet was one of my monthly goals to get finished, I did get out a couple tubs of important papers and got those together and discarded many receipts that are not needed, but while its sunny outside I need to get the mowing done so if need be I can let it go for two weeks so I tend to put the closet off, maybe till a rainy day.

I know God only gives us what we can handle, but I am sure its up to me on how to get it done. 

Right now I am overwhelmed with work, so I should write a list and check off what is needed to be done first and what can wait.

How is your minimal life?

By Andria Perry

Photo by Andria Perry

Minimalism And Me - Not Using That Just Dump It

 Photo: The basement ceiling

I have been at it again, working at the old home place. For me its easy to just put old junk into a trash can and roll it to the curb, the problem is taking the time to get it done.

The past few days I have taken a couple of hours out of each to get things done that does not include my normal routine, why? I just feel the need to get this done before Winter. I know I know, its just Spring but time if flying past so fast that it`ll be winter in nearly a blink of an eye.

I went through a box of books, I could not keep not one single book simply because they smell like a musty basement and it looks like silverfish has been having a party. Trash can.

I also found three phones, all with wire attached receivers, with hold, 4 hold lines on each phone.Its been 20 years?! Trash can.

Old picture frames that were going to frame our oh so famous art, that we make. Trash can.

Now did I find anything I will keep? Yes. Six milk glass dessert dishes and canning jars. One two gallon old time pickle jugs. Will I use this stuff? Yes.

I am at the point I need boxes to separate what is trash, donate and sell. I am proud to say I am down to one room, well... one half room.

This week I also have mowed the yard and I piled up all the fallen tree limbs and cut down vines, raked up all the piled up old leaves on the side porch. I had help cutting down small trees, I did all of the drag and stacking.

I am proud of all the work that is being accomplished at this house. I had mentioned to Tony that instead of renting it out, I may just move my sister into the house, she needs more space and she already knows all the neighbors. We will just have to get more things done before I ask her if she wants to move there or not.

How has your week been so far?

More About How this started read : Minimalism Monday And More 

By Andria Perry

Photo By Andria Perry.

Minimalism Monday And More

At the homestead, my personal space : May 8,2017

Everyday I manage to wash a load of laundry because I am a full time caregiver and sheets get changed more and more bath towels and wash clothes/ hand towels gets used. Plus I am OCD about clean dish towels and dish washing clothes.

I have not made it to the master bedroom closet/ my closet but I made that a goal for May, so here is keeping my fingers crossed!

I did a big clean up on Saturday, I went out and cleaned off the deck. I had pitting soil and pots everywhere, I have baby plants that I was hardening off so I got the bench back for the houseplants when I moved those. I rearranged the tree`s and large plants. I washed off the glass table top and the chairs and opened the umbrella. I have a nice flow of chi now coming onto the deck and into the house.

I am now cooking outside as well.

I swept daily and vacuumed once last week. The dusting has been weekly as well.

I have been putting some things away for storage that is not needed out, not ready to get rid of it but its going slowly but surely.

How was your passed week of cleaning?

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I grew up seeing hoarders and how their homes looked and smelled, however, I never knew what to call it. When I had grown up I heard the label " hoarder" found out that was exactly what those people were doing.

I was raised minimal but did not know it, so the lifestyle followed me till I met someone who had hoarding tendencies and we began to share a home.

I am not sure if people know this or not, when someone is at the edge of being a full hoarder people seem to "give" to them and its never really anything worth getting and should have been sent to the county dump, but the person takes the stuff only to realize later its just trash and it will never be fixed or a new one if cheaper than fixing the junk.

Well...... 

Guess who is stuck cleaning out the junk that was collected up by the hoarder, me! But I will say that I am at fault too because I allowed it to stay there and pile up. 

But its not trash as in food containers and stuff like that, its dry rotted 8-track tapes, old tools that were already broken, dried up paint in gallon buckets, torn up radios etc..... just trash!

A basement that was filled with it, all moldy or mildewed. 

I have been working on this place more in the last year than ever, I have the top of the house cleared of this type of junk/trash and all that is left is a few good pieces of furniture.

I did clear a couple rooms down in the basement a couple months ago and began working on that again this past week. It is amazing how much stuff can get in a place after 23 years.

I noticed that someone kicked in a door in the back of the house to the basement, but they did not do me the favor of taking anything :)

While doing the trash removal I am also getting a few repairs done so that I can rent this place out, as it sits its not making any money but I am still paying property tax.

I still have a long way to go till it can be rented but slow is better than nothing at all.

What do you have in your basement? Or that closet that is not opened often?

By Andria Perry

Photo By Andria Perry

The 2017 Resolutions - Monthly Check In- How Are You Managing?

I almost forgot to do a monthly check in! I think checking in is very important because it keeps me grounded with that I desire to accomplish this year. 

Lets take a look at what I tried and what I did not do anything on for the month of April, remember I am reflecting on last month.

This year I also picked a word for my year, what I wish to accomplish. My word for the year is : Satisfaction. I picked this word because I want to feel satisfied with everything I do in the year 2017.

My 2017 resolutions are :

1 - Buy Solar Panels and the accessories - Get off the grid.

Last month I ordered the solar power motion detector lights, I did get them but I have yet to charge and install them. :(

Life is so uncertain this month so I do not want to buy a system or lease one just yet. If things go bad I may move into a smaller home, but the goal will remain for solar power. 

I will say 50 -50 accomplishment / failed

2- Write more- Finish the book and write another. Blog more for money.

I have been writing and its still for pennies but I am looking at thing like this.... the more I write the better I get, the more I let go and write what I feel and not hold back the netter a book will be, writing is not just telling a story but you have to describe the moment, the air the smell .. what you hear and what is happening all around.

But I am making money online and that is always a good thing.

I will say 50 -50 accomplishment / failed

3 - Lose 25 pounds and get back on a vegetarian diet.

I am stuck, I did gain one pound back and I am standing still at that weight. 

As far as eating less meat I am, I am so sick of food I hate to cook, I used to love to make meals now its a burden, kind of makes me want to buy those horrible t.v. dinners.

So I will grade this resolution 50 -50 accomplishment / failed.

4 - Learn to ask people for help.

I always add a resolution that will be the hardest to accomplish and this one is it, do I expect to fail? Yes and No. 

People are complicated. Its not like when I was a kid and someone had a problem and the friends would gather and tackle it to help someone. Nowadays you have to pay, one way or another. 

I have had volunteers and later they came back to rob me, they just used that opportunity to get inside and spot things to come back and steal.

So no I have not asked anyone for help.

100% fail.

That is how my life is shaping up, my resolutions /Goals for the year 2017. How about yours? 

Miss Last Month? What Happened in March - April check in 

By Andria Perry

Photo By Andria Perry

Minimalism Monday - One Hour And Forty Minutes

Last Friday I took a day to do nothing so I did nothing but cook dinner, I  interacted online and I read more on the novel.

Saturday I decided to put a time limit on cleaning so not to burn myself out, one hour and forty minutes is what it took, so that was all I used of my time. Now you may wonder what I can do in one hour and forty minutes? Lets see......

I put a load of laundry on to wash.

I picked my bedroom first: 

I removed the dirty bed sheets and replaced them with clean sheets and made the bed up, tossed the pillows on top.

Next, I put away a few clothes in the closet.

I dusted the night stands, dresser and armoire.  

I cleaned the bathroom mirror and dusted the table and wiped down the vanity top. Removed old magazines.

Next was the living room :

I took all Tony`s dirty dishes to the kitchen and wiped down the coffee table.

Kitchen :

I washed up all the dirty dished from Friday night and Saturday, dried and put them away. I scrubbed the kitchen sink. Bagged up the trash to take out. I washed off the outside of a case of home canned kraut jars, they smelled like kraut, sat them on a towel to dry.

Hall : 

I wiped dusted the hall table and the pictures on the walls. Vacuumed.

The spare bedroom / stockpile room :

I vacuumed the carpet and dusted the night stands, dresser and the shelf.

The office :

 I vacuumed the carpet.

Other :

I removed the sheets from Tony`s bed.

I took the clean clothes from the washer and put them into the dryer.

I put the kraut back in the box and replaced it in the stockpile room.

That is one hour and forty minutes!

By Andria Perry

Photo By Andria Perry