Perfectparanoia:
“…Getting a cleaning lady has changed our life! We are forced to tidy up the house the night before she comes. It means that once a week, the whole house is tidy and clean at the same time!”
I’ve given thought to this.
Rapacia
Broomstick:
There always IS an upside. 
Rapacia
Broomstick:
Thank YOU. You’re all inspiring me. And God knows I need it.
Rapacia
Come on over to http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/PayrollSHEs/info and check it out. 
Broomstick:
Many thanks for the welcome.
I’m so in love with many of the usernames on this page!
Rapacia
Nava:
Thank you - thou art awesome!
Rapacia
Y’all.
My mother is here staying with me for a few days and my level of clutter is humiliating. She adores me and would never give me a bad time about it - even though she’s a terrific housekeeper herself and was unable to pass this on to me - but it’s still SO embarrassing.
Today I played hookie from work and stayed home with her. We went shopping and - when we got home, I:
Moved my bed completely away from the wall.
Dusted the ceiling, walls and baseboards.
Vacuumed thoroughly.
Cleaned the bed frame.
Brushed the boxspring and mattress - it wasn’t filthy, but it probably needed it.
Stored underneath and on top of the canopy ONLY what needed to go there - did a lot of weeding out.
Moved the bed back into place, opened the windows, turned on fans and have the whole bedchamber getting a fresh air infusion. Again - there’s no actual filth or odor in the room, it just seemed like a great idea.
Now I’m laundering my bedding.
I think I feel better…
Rapacia
So. I’ve laundered bedding - all white (my mom likes that) - and made the bed. It’s SO inviting. I’m not quite feeling UNdepressed, but I feel just a bit better - there’s now a measurable section of one room of my flat that is not only not a shitstorm, but is actually QUITE WONDERFULLY CLEAN AND ORGANIZED.
I cannot remember who recommended the website Unfuck Your Habitat, but it’s partially responsible for my small victory. I did the 20/10: twenty minutes spent “unfucking” an area of one’s habitat, then taking a ten-minute break.
This helps.
I’ve actually done something today.
Yar!
Rapacia
If you have an iOS device (iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad), you can get an “UnFilth Your Habitat” app (with the warning that the actual app uses the real word). It has options for things like a “Random Unfucking Challenge”, a “My To-Unfuck List”, challenges for different rooms, a 20/10 timer (unfuck for 20 minutes, rest for 10), and achievements.
Ferret Herder, my darling:
I do not have such a device. Technologically, I am still in the cave. Plus, I can’t afford the data package.
Rapacia
Wonder if something similar exists for Android? I do own a Touch, but rarely use it for much any more, since my phone covers all the bases nicely.
Dunno if UFYH has one for Android, but I see there’s a FlyLady one. FlyLady has similar tactics that may help.
I know. Thing is, she can get a tad annoying. I was hoping for someone less syrupy-patronizing.
A tad annoying? After looking at her website I ran down the hallway and hid under a pile of clutter.
Yeah, sorry. 
I’m only familiar with iOS apps so I went with the obvious. I also have one called Home Routines as well, which is “FlyLady-compatible” but without all the extra… syrup. Also iOS-only, it seems.
I like the principles at Unf* Your Habitat. I found it over a year ago and even then they were threatening to develop an android app.
I like the bones of what FlyLady says, too, but do get overwhelmed by the “flyWashing” and the “God Breezes”(and I say that as someone who attends church twice a week). The most meaningful to me is “It took more than a weekend for your house to get wrecked. It will take you more than a weekend to fix it.”
I’ve posted more than once that the biggest obstacle to me living in an uncluttered environment is papers. Piles and piles of papers. The internet has helped me stop clipping recipes, but I have boxes and boxes of old bills and bank statements. Whenever I try and find a definitive answer to how long I need to keep what I end up with three different sources that all seem equally reputable saying three different things.
There are days I feel like just tossing it all. In over twenty years of living alone I’ve never needed to produce a five year old electric bills. What’s really the worst that could happen?
I feel like a person in my situation; no mortgage, no investments ought to be able to keep everything contained in one four drawer file cabinet - but mine’s full and I don’t know what I can pull out of it. One drawer is full of papers relating to my (first) divorce and custody proceedings from over thirteen years ago. Everyone I’ve asked says to keep ALL of it forever.
Any advice?
I may not be welcome in this thread since I don’t have any clutter, but I grew up in a house where nothing was ever really cleaned or thrown away so I come by my habits after a lot of hard work.
Here’s my advice-pitch it all.
If the check you wrote for the electric bill from last month has cleared, toss out the paper bill. Seriously, you will never ever need it. Same goes for any bills older than 30 days. Once they have posted your payment you don’t need a paper copy.
Toss out the recipe clippings, they are ALL available online now if you want to cook something.
Shred your old bank statements, you will never need to know your checking account balance from 2003, never.
Divorce/custody stuff - keep until the kids are over 18 and custody is no longer an issue.
What’s in the other three drawers?
Seriously, I only keep any documents related to my tax returns. And even those, after 7 years, they are gone. I think in this day and age, you shouldn’t need more than 1 filing cabinet drawer for paperwork unless you own a small business.
What really bugs me is the rigidity about things like where one folds laundry. About the only place I HAVE for that is the sofa or bed, both of which are taboo to her. She also refuses to acknowledge that different circumstances from hers exist (after all, people who work outside the home and have long commutes should still be able to keep up with a work-from-home or FT homemaker, right?), and considers it “whining” to think other household members should be pitching in or to admit one has some limiting factor such as time issues. I haven’t gotten so annoyed as to add her book to the “donate” box, but haven’t re-read it in quite a while and quickly unsubbed from her e-mails.
Didn’t much care for Sandra Felton, either. Grade-school teacher and talks to her audience at about that level, and I really dislike being patronized. I find the Sidetracked Sisters much easier to relate to.
I really think years-old utility bills can go :D. I’d also think custody paperwork for children who are now over 18 (if that applies to yours) can go, since custody is no longer a live issue. I’d check with an attorney on that and the divorce stuff, though. My unprofessional opinion (IANAL and all that) is that all that really would need to be kept is the final decree and any custody stuff relating to any child who is still a minor.
I am soooo close to completing Day 4 of the Kitchn Cure. My cabinets have been emptied, wiped down (inside and out), and re-arranged. Extraneous lids to the few plastic containers I still have were tossed. The 4 year old flour was tossed and the container cleaned. The two containers of sugar were combined into the smaller container. I have a pile of ingredients that have either expired in the last few weeks or will expire by the end of the year that I will use as part of the week’s menu.
Still remaining are my counter tops and my floor. I need to hurry up and get started on those sinceI need to leave the house in 2 hours and won’t be back until too late to finish these.