Oh ladies.

Let's get back to this. Hey, I even have a smartphone now! ... not that I should probably post pics of my hovel on the Internet. Day 1 (again.) So far today, I've tossed over 30 magazines and a lot more trash. And when I say "tossed," I mean "recycled." I also threw away my old camera with the broken lens and mashed egg yolk crammed inside (long, icky story.) Who is with me?

My new "job"

Whether you know or you don't, I lost my job 2 weeks ago. My mom has "hired" me to help her throw things away. When I say "hired," I mean "gave me something to do so I don't feel as guilty about taking money from my parents."

Anyway, my parents live in an enormous, once-beautiful house that is overrun by stuff and disrepair. I spent Saturday and part of Sunday over there working on my first project, the bedroom that once belonged to my brother. (He's tried out 3 of the 4 bedrooms in the 12 1/2 years we've lived there.) A few summers ago, my sister was home doing a veterinary internship ... and it was the CAT'S room.

Floor coated in (unused, thank God) kitty litter. Toys and books dating back to the early 90s, and we moved into that house in 1997. Clothes and shoes that wouldn't fit anyone in the house. Years' worth of Boy Scout manuals, low-scoring school papers, crayons, colored pencils, and glue. After 10+ hours, the floor is clean and about 1/2 the closet is tackled.

I got into a big fight with my dad when he came in to see what I was doing (he is the worst hoarder I've ever met.) We got into a screaming fight over my throwing away the broken, kitty-litter-covered, empty VHS cover for Toy Story. "WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU THROWING THAT AWAY? WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO WHEN WE FIND THE MOVIE AND THERE'S NO COVER FOR IT?!!?"

He is pathological and not supportive of my mom's desire to clean. Don't be like my dad!

An administrative plea ...

I have been going into your old posts and adding your name as a tag (see at the bottom where it says "labels for this post"?) I've only done the first 2 pages or so. Please, when you post from now on, tag your entry with your name at the very bottom here. This way, our readers can click your name and read about all your projects, and you can go back and see the progression, too! It's just a nice way to sort stuff and make even our blog more organized.

Gaaaah!

I promise you with all my heart and all my clutter that I have not forgotten about this project. I have just been a little ... distracted. Wakes, new babies, charity events, and losing my job have all taken priority in the last week. Give me 4 more days (traveling to Iowa for my BIL's wedding tomorrow), and I'm back and better than ever.

Day 1

Tossed:

2 leprechauns made by the boys
5 papers from Double Blessings that I don't need but thought I did
6 painted Easter eggs the boys did at school

will add pix later. So far today, I tossed Bailey's dog bed. He knows how to unzip it (????) and he tears all the foam out. He's getting a blanket in his crate from now on instead. At least I can wash that.

Welcome to Our 10 Things!

If you threw away 10 things every day (or recycled them, or donated them, etc.), how big of a difference could this make in your home? We're on a mission to find out.