The pools open for early-morning swimming late here, because schools run until mid-June and until they dismiss for the year, lifeguards are in short supply. They finally did this week, and I finally showed up this morning, Thursday. My beloved 80-year-old coach Tim was sitting as lifeguard, and didn’t change a bit in the year-plus since I saw him last.
“I got fat, then I got thinner, now I’m going the other way again,” he said. Story of all our lives. The morning was lovely and the pool, crystalline, but the workout was kinda subdued. I haven’t been in the water since January, but it all came back. Tim called out a few position tweaks, and I did 45 easy minutes. It was good to be back. If it’s not raining when I wake up, I’ll do it again tomorrow. I love to swim.
(Nov. 7, the day the cable networks called the election for Biden, was a Saturday, and it was warm and sunny here, unseasonably so. A friend and I played a couple rounds of miniature golf, then dropped by the Schvitz for some reason, I forget why. It was closed, but some people were out on the patio, and we drank some beers. A woman told me, “You have an amazing body,” and I goggled in amazement. “It’s your shoulders.” I thought: Can this day get any better? I don’t think so! Swimming, it does good things.)
Anyway, June is drawing to a close, and so far, it’s been a pretty good summer. It’s going to be hot and rainy soon, but that’s fine. I read the new Laura Lippman book, “Dream Girl,” in three days, and it is fantastic. I highly recommend it. It’s a little bit “Misery,” the first Stephen King book that knocked me over, and a lot of bits and pieces of other books and movies, and just a lot of fun to read. You might consider picking it up.
A few other things to read:
Stephen Rodrick’s obit for John McAfee is excellent, and the tone is just right.
Look on these photos, ye mighty, and despair.
Those are bad news stories, but hey, let’s not go out on a note of misery: Rudy’s lost his law license for a while! Things are looking up.
Have a great weekend, all.
Dexter Friend said on June 25, 2021 at 1:31 am
I just sat and watched Action Kid’s Fort Wayne video. He’s a YouTuber from New York City and is in Fort Wayne for some reason, undisclosed. He’s a young man of 33 and his videos hooked me a year ago. The New York Post just wrote a story about his videos, he said…I am going to search for it. https://nypost.com/2021/06/21/youtube-streamers-make-money-walking-around-nyc/
Such a simple plan, walk or scooter around places with soft commentary, using maps and live stream comments to guide him. Hell, I can’t walk miles and miles anymore …I like watching him do the walking for me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz60Dx4uWnE
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Suzanne said on June 25, 2021 at 6:28 am
Both those links shed light on where we are as a country. It’s not a good place.
The second link is explained best by one of the comments: “The fact that all these people are protesting something they don’t understand that’s not being taught at any level their kids will be attending anytime in the near future just shows how easy it is for them to be suckered.”
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alex said on June 25, 2021 at 6:48 am
I’d compare people exercised about wokeness, cancel culture and critical race theory to cats chasing light beams, except that cats are smarter than these people. And those who seduce cats with lights don’t do so with cruel intent.
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on June 25, 2021 at 7:46 am
The graphic design on their posters, though; I’m suspicious when I see such high quality work on the print material but such grim agitation and hostility from the group carrying them. Makes me very curious as to who is pushing this protest, and why.
I’m also thinking I need to send flowers to my college biology prof, who taught me enough in 1981 to still have a good basic understanding of things like mRNA. Reading around internet comments and posts from theoretically intelligent people, I’m just thinking they never quite got the whole nucleic acid and base pair thing clear in their heads. Dr. Al Chiscon, salute! Hail, Purdue.
Oh, to Deborah regarding yesterday’s thread: Sinema broke a foot bone running a marathon. She’s on a walking version of one of those knee-scooters, a sort of temporary peg-leg.
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Connie said on June 25, 2021 at 10:21 am
Umm, Jeff. Your last word is one of those words that is no longer acceptable.
In other news, we are buying my husband’s childhood home in a suburb of Flint. Never/not on Flint water.
So major downsizing going on. Two card catalogs. One Horn of America sewing table with hydraulic lift. A beatup MCM credenza that made a great entertainment center for years. A gorgeous 1890s Grand Rapids spooncarved cherry bedroom set.
July is estate sale and final clearing with possession following. Whew. See anything you want?
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Julie Robinson said on June 25, 2021 at 11:07 am
Nope, Connie, too much clearing out going on here! You should get a great price for the card catalogs, though, they still seem to be super trendy.
Yesterday featured an interchange with my mother in which I offered to throw away four items sitting on the sofa: foam eye shadow applicators, disintegrating within the package, blusher that appeared to be from the 70’s, with a mottled mirror (she doesn’t wear makeup and never has), off-brand nail polish remover of the same vintage (she doesn’t wear nail polish and never has), and opened and yellowed cotton balls. No, you can’t do that, I have to look at them and make a decision, says she. What decision has to be made? It’s trash. Cue tears.
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Sherri said on June 25, 2021 at 11:21 am
I was chatting the other evening with my friend who has been nominated to the Federal bench. She’s had her confirmation hearing, and just finished all the written followup questions. She had 169 questions for the Judiciary committee, 59 from Chuck Grassley. Among the questions submitted by Grassley: Is climate change real?
The predicted high for Monday in Seattle is now 110 degrees, which would smash the all time record of 103 set in 2009. To date, Seattle has only reached triple digits three times in recorded history, but is predicted to do so both Sunday and Monday.
The answer to your question, Senator, is yes, you fucking moron.
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Deborah said on June 25, 2021 at 11:28 am
Oh Julie, I feel for you, that would drive me bonkers. I’m a throw away person, I have very little patience for things hanging around that never get used, taking up precious space. LB gives things away on a Buy Nothing site and I can barely stand keeping the items around for a day or two until the lucky receiver picks them up.
Sinema used that term herself, Connie, she’s not very sensitive apparently. And the marathon she was running in took place in a dark tunnel. Strange.
We are celebrating 9 years having a presence in Santa Fe, we’re going out for lunch at a place that hasn’t been open since the before times, that has the best huevos rancheros in town. We’ve only had our cabin in Abiquiu for about 4 years, the land there we bought in 2000.
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Heather said on June 25, 2021 at 11:38 am
The pools in Chicago open today, but not the one nearest me, unfortunately, as they still haven’t fixed damage from a fire last year. Luckily there’s another outdoor one not too far away. I don’t really do lap swim there as it gets too crowded, but I do like to take a break in the afternoons and cool off. Too bad the weather in Chicago is rainy and yucky today.
Last summer when the beaches and pools were closed I got in the habit of swimming in the lake after the lifeguards left at 7. Those sunset swims were really relaxing and I’m planning on continuing the tradition.
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Mark P said on June 25, 2021 at 12:12 pm
The Justice Department is suing the state of Georgia over its voter suppression law.
Deborah, we’ve gotta go to that restaurant if we ever make it back to Santa Fe. We had a custom of huevos rancheros every Wednesday for years, but the Mexican restaurant we went to changed all their staff during the pandemic, and it’s not the same any more.
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David C said on June 25, 2021 at 4:04 pm
Derek Chauvin got 22.5 years. It’s in line with what the legal experts were expecting. It still seems inadequate. Still it’s high for what cops get. Back when I lived in Grand Rapids, a GR cop murdered his estranged wife, a judge, and got a longer sentence for shooting at and missing another officer who was responding than he did for killing his wife.
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Deborah said on June 25, 2021 at 4:35 pm
We ended up going to a different place for our celebration. The wait would have been too long at the preferred place, they don’t take reservations. We went to another place we’ve been before where we could get reservations. Food was good but not as good as my favorite place. Oh well.
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LAMary said on June 25, 2021 at 4:57 pm
Thank you all for the good wishes for the new job. It’s with Kaiser Permanente, a non profit technically. Pay is the same as the week and a half shit job I just had but I bet the orientation will be better and the bitchy trip the manager was on will not be present. Worst thing I’ve heard about Kaiser is some tendency to be bureaucratic. I think I can live with that.
Today is the 31st birthday of my firstborn. He’s grown up to be a very good man, I think. Both of the sons are solid. Hard workers, respectful of women, responsible guys. I’m a very proud mom. We’re celebrating the birthday tomorrow. The birthday boy is going to a New Orleans restaurant with his girlfriend tonight to feast on soft shell crab sandwiches and other specialties of the Crescent City. Tomorrow it’s dinner on the deck here with salmon on the grill, corn on the cob with miso butter, kale salad and cake with berries and cream. I bought him a good wok and wok tools and a used copy of Jose Andres vegetable cookbook for his birthday. He knows there’s a wok in his future because I already gave him a square of chain mail like the one I use to clean my wok. He sent me a photo of his girlfriend’s cat wearing the chain mail on his head looking like a character in Monty Python and the Holy Grail if it was filmed using cats instead of English guys.
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LAMary said on June 25, 2021 at 6:29 pm
When I managed a little gourmet ship in NY C I had some serious shoulders. We sold a lot of cheese that came in big wheels. I had to cut them at least in half to put them in the display fridges. A wheel of gruyere weighs about 20 pounds and is very dense. A wheel of parmesan weighs about ninety pounds and is also very dense. I used a knife about 30 inches long with handles at both ends. I would put the parm on the butcher block counter, position the knife, and push. My feet would come off the floor. I had to do this four or five times a week on parmesan, pecorino, manchego. I was ripping the shoulder seams on my jackets.Gourmet work is not for sissies.
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David C said on June 25, 2021 at 6:44 pm
What do you think of LSD’s new name, Deborah. Jean Baptiste point du Sable Lake Shore Drive is quite a mouthful. JBPDSLSD isn’t much better.
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Julie Robinson said on June 25, 2021 at 7:03 pm
Lake Shore Drive will forever be Lake Shore Drive, just like the Sears Tower will forever be the Sears Tower.
Today Mom wouldn’t let us touch anything and was crying hysterically. After half an hour of trying to reason with her, I told her I loved her but she was making me crazy. We came home to finish things here. She’s been like this before but no doctors would ever prescribe her anything. Do you think the kitty sedatives would work on her?
We just came home from our farewell party here at the senior apartments. It started at 5 and got over at 6:30, no cliché there, right? I’m sad to leave but excited to go.
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LAMary said on June 25, 2021 at 7:14 pm
That’s a gourmet shop. Not a gourmet ship. I shouldn’t attempt to comment using my phone.
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alex said on June 25, 2021 at 7:50 pm
Whether Chauvin gets 22.5 or one-tenth of that isn’t going to matter much if they’re placing him with the general prison population. Remember, Jeffrey Dahmer only served about a year of his life sentence.
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David C said on June 25, 2021 at 8:13 pm
I didn’t know until just now that the Willis of the Sears Tower has nothing to do with it other than they have the naming rights like Comiskey Park being Guaranteed Rate Field. Sears Tower is owned by Blackstone Group. They’re the jerks who are buying and bidding up the price of houses to try to turn a nation of homeowners into a nation of renters. The naming rights thing is crazy. Once Walter Chrysler sold the Chrysler Building nobody thought of calling it anything but the Chrysler Building. I know everyone, especially in Chicago, call it Sears Tower. When something is iconic like that they should leave the name alone.
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Deborah said on June 25, 2021 at 9:00 pm
I haven’t thought much about the name change of LSD because we’re in NM, I’ll be here until July 31, then back in Chicago for a couple of weeks, then back in NM again for 2 or 3 weeks. My only concern is if we have to change our official address because right now it’s LSD, but we’re on the inner drive, don’t know if that changes too. Also they’ve had a couple of votes on it and I think there’s one more before it’s official. I just think about my credit cards, voting doc, drivers license, passport etc, that I’ll have to change if the name change does in fact go through, don’t know how quickly that will have to be done. The new name is a mouthful of a name too. As has been said here up thread, I still call it Sears Tower, everyone does.
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Deborah said on June 25, 2021 at 9:06 pm
LAMary, your sons sound like gems, good for you for bringing them up right. Even though I’m not really hungry now after the large lunch we had out, your special birthday meal sounds scrumptious.
Nancy, did you see that Zach K is selling Beaver Brook? Sorry to hear that. It’s a beautiful place.
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alex said on June 25, 2021 at 9:07 pm
How are they gonna fit it on a driver’s license anyway? Lake Shore bumbakeshore fo fanna fanna fo fakeshore Lake Shore
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Deborah said on June 25, 2021 at 9:32 pm
Here’s an article about my fave restaurant in Santa Fe, the just reopened but we didn’t go to today https://www.santafenewmexican.com/pasatiempo/restaurants/eating-is-the-major-sport-of-having-a-body-cafe-pasquals-katharine-kagel/article_8cac8b24-c96a-11eb-8714-2fd934525cd5.html Some of the wait staff has worked there for decades, and one guy is an extra at the SF opera and sometimes he breaks out into song. They have a community table in the place and I’ve sat there with the actress Marsha Mason (a former neighbor in Abiquiu) and Peter Fonda. The food is really good, but its tiny so the wait is often long.
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jcburns said on June 25, 2021 at 10:25 pm
We finally figured out the trick to eating at Cafe Paschal’s is to not go there when everyone else wants to. Seriously! Monday at 10 am is pretty good!
(This works well here in Atlanta too.)
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Dexter Friend said on June 26, 2021 at 2:33 am
This is odd; I haven’t heard the tall building called the Sears Tower in years. I am totally accustomed to hearing it referred to as Willis Tower.
When I trekked to Chicago regularly, starting in the 1960s, LSD was always called The Outer Drive. Parts were called The Inner Drive as well.
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ROGirl said on June 26, 2021 at 7:27 am
My street is named for the guy who led the Battle of the Little Bighorn. When I bought my house I wasn’t exactly thrilled to be living on Custer Avenue, but it would be a pain to have to change all of my personal information if the name becomes an issue (there was a petition to remove a statue of Custer in Monroe). OTOH, I wouldn’t mind if it were changed to Custard Avenue. When I have to give my address over the phone, a lot of people think it’s Custard, and I have to correct them and spell it out.
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Marjorie Taylor said on June 26, 2021 at 9:17 am
Dexter Friend thank you for the site on NYC and Ft. Wayne walking tours. Very interesting for
us that also can’t do the walking anymore.
Enjoy your comments also on Nancy.
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Julie Robinson said on June 26, 2021 at 9:53 am
Johnson County in Iowa managed to rename itself without changing its name. Instead of being named for the enslaver Richard Mentor Johnson, they are now named for Lulu Merle Johnson, a Black graduate of the University of Iowa who became a history professor. No signs or letterhead need be changed.
Hold up a few good thoughts for me today, if you would. I’m telling Mother if she doesn’t let us pack her crap it will be left behind for the apartment owners to throw out. I’m done enabling.
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Deborah said on June 26, 2021 at 11:16 am
Good luck Julie.
I read this morning that they’re probably changing the name to DuSable Lake Shore Drive, so at least that’s easier.
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susan said on June 26, 2021 at 1:22 pm
King County, Warshington (includes Seattle) was named after William Rufus DeVane King in 1852. He was Franklin Pierce’s veep. King lived in Alabama, on a slave-labor cotton plantation. He was also a strong supporter of the Fugitive Slave Act. Makes sense to name a nascent county in a nascent state in the Northwest after this slaver….Nope.
Finally, in 2005, King County was officially named after Martin Luther King, Jr. I guess that makes more sense. Didn’t have to change the stationary or road signs, at any rate.
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Sherri said on June 26, 2021 at 3:12 pm
I got up early this morning hoping to get the last bit of cooling before the heat got bad, but stepped outside and felt like I was back in TN. It was *humid*. Not the humid that other people here sometimes complain about, and I stop and consider, oh, I guess it is a little more humid than usual. The humid I remember, the humid where the air is too thick to breathe and it’s practically condensing on your skin while you’re just standing there.
It’s midday now, the temp is 94, the dew point is 69, and the heat index is 101. And this is supposed to be the coolest of the next few days.
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on June 26, 2021 at 3:49 pm
Julie, my prayers go your direction, and we can pray for each other. Am in Indy this weekend on elder care, with yesterday’s doctor appointment going well, but back at the house I’m definitely seeing much sign that this 92 year old is declining. Unfortunately one indication is how often he brings up that he’s doing fine, which he very angrily brings up in the form of questions which he insists on hearing answers to. His daughter is spending as much time in a different room here as possible; he’s less combative with me than her, and I’m also much less hesitant about . . . lying to him. “Sure, Buck, we took care of that. Not a problem, Buck, I’ll just move those in the shed. Yes, I used vinegar to clean the toilets.” We can only use the sink disposal when he’s asleep upstairs, we can’t run the dishwasher at all, and soap is expensive and doesn’t clean anything anyhow. So I clean around where he’s at, with a bin of supplies we carry back and forth in the trunk. The good thing is that he can’t move faster than I can break down my gear and move around a corner. But we’re going to hit a crisis point here sooner than I thought six months ago. The pacemaker is good, but the cognition is what’s coming unwired.
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susan said on June 26, 2021 at 4:30 pm
This excessive heat phase is really frightening. I live on the dry side of the Cascades, and we are always hotter than the west side. Most residences here have some form of air-conditioning. But really…117° next Tuesday??? How does one prepare for that? 111 tomorrow. 114 Monday. Tuesday… Then it cools down on Wednesday to 112°. With cooling off for the next 10 days, down to 101 a week from this Monday. Triple digits (as they say) every day. Forecasts. Forecasts are really only accurate for two days out. So it could be 120° on Tuesday. Right?
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Deborah said on June 26, 2021 at 5:14 pm
How does a human withstand temps that high, especially in places where AC isn’t that common. In Phoenix I suppose everyone has it, except low income people, and I assume places like Phoenix are set up for cooling shelters etc. But Washington state at 117? That’s crazy.
Our temps have cooled down and the next 4 or 5 days are showing rain, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed.
Today is pride day in Santa Fe, quite a lively group at the plaza on a beautiful, sunny, slightly breezy day.
We had a royally contentious zoom meeting with our condo association this morning. As I’ve said before, we have one clinker owner and she is a mess. There will be a lawsuit, no doubt. She thinks she can intimidate the rest of us, she doesn’t yet get that we can afford to take her on. Hoping she sells but that’s going to take a concerted effort on our part.
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susan said on June 26, 2021 at 5:15 pm
Oh, and it’s 104° right now (2:00PM), but it’s dry! 18% humidity, dew point 51°.
It’s still ƒü¢₭!ñç hot. And this ain’t nuthin’, yet.
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Dave said on June 26, 2021 at 6:14 pm
Julie, I feel for you and from my own experiences, I know how difficult it can be. Jeff, the same thing goes for you. Soap doesn’t get anything clean? Can’t run the dishwasher? I imagine your wife is beside herself.
I shudder to think that all the fine folks here might someday turn into our parents, giving our children such a difficult time over ridiculous issues. Yet, I couldn’t have imagined my own parents turning into those people.
As for all those folks broiling in the Pacific Northwest, it just rained here in our part of Tampa Bay and cooled right down to 72° F. Some days, I can’t believe we’ve decided to leave but we have our reasons.
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Sherri said on June 26, 2021 at 6:29 pm
Seattle is the least air-conditioned area in the country. Fewer than half of homes have air conditioning of any kind. Wildfire smoke pushed me into installing it a few years back, but it’s working overtime with the heat now.
I know of a couple of local restaurants that have closed because of the heat. My outdoor thermometer is at 99 right now, and sunset is still six hours away.
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Julie Robinson said on June 26, 2021 at 7:32 pm
Jefftmmo, my prayers are going right back in your direction. I did the tough love talk, telling her how much we loved her and that we couldn’t continue the way we were. Her responses were that it would have been easier to die (I’m not listening to that one, I said), and she has nothing to look forward to (hello? the cultural activities of a whole new town?). When I told her again how much we loved her and how her grandchildren were running all over the city to get her furniture and her favorite foods, she said she couldn’t love herself. Okay, then it’s time for therapy, I said (I’ve been trying to get her there for the last 40+ years).
I told her I was embarrassed that she hadn’t shown up for the party last night, as one of the guests of honor, and she said she didn’t feel welcome. The dear souls out here are some of the nicest and sweetest people I’ve ever met, and to feel welcome all you have to do is smile and say hi; they’ll take it from there.
I’m very sad for her that she won’t allow herself joy.
Like Mrs. Jeff and her dad, she hung up on me and hasn’t communicated for the rest of the day, but allowed D to go over and haul boxes. He said she had actually packed up about 10 boxes.
To be continued, I guess.
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beb said on June 26, 2021 at 7:34 pm
For all the foodies out there I thought this column would be interesting.
https://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2021/06/eating-in-the-southern-great-plains-or-whatever
The author has been on a expedition to visit graves of all sorts of famous Americans. And this is what he ate along the way. The comments are worth reading, too.
JUlie, I’ve seen more episodes of Hoarders than I ever wanted to, and in every case the hoarders are just like our mother. They can’t let anything go, no matter hoe old or expired they may be. The show works with trained psychologists and it’s still hard to get them to change.
According to the Grosse Pointe meteorlogical station GP got 6.5 inches of rain overnight. No wonder I was feeling like a drowned rat last night. And rain is forecast for every day this week. I regret not getting AC when we had to replace the furnace s couple years ago.
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Julie Robinson said on June 26, 2021 at 8:47 pm
Beb, I’ve no need to watch Hoarders. I’ve been through his with both my mom and sister and I’ve learned it’s almost impossible to make any positive changes. I cleaned up my sister’s whole place three different times, and within months it was completely junked up again. I’ve done a lot of reading, gave her articles to read and we discussed them, with techniques and ideas. Nothing worked with her, and nothing will work with my mom. The only thing is, now she will only have one room and we won’t let her clutter touch the rest of the house.
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alex said on June 26, 2021 at 9:12 pm
Here’s a WaPo piece that could just as easily describe our Proprietress and says what she’s been saying for years about the newspaper biz…
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/mary-schmich-chicago-tribune-columnists/2021/06/25/0770ef66-d501-11eb-9f29-e9e6c9e843c6_story.html
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on June 26, 2021 at 11:50 pm
I’ve started watching Hoarders eps twice, and shut down within five minutes. Can’t do it.
Spent a big chunk of this evening trying to evade getting into an argument over ant traps. Short version: he wants the solid bait kind, and the liquid kind, he wants to “empty” every couple of days, and I can’t find any kind but the liquid sort. (Which I suspect is because they don’t make the solid bait variety, because they don’t work as well.) He’s got roach motels confused with ant bait stations, and I can’t explain it sufficiently to make him stop trying to shake dead ants out of the liquid ones, which clearly don’t work because they don’t “trap” ants into them.
Fun part: when we’re here, I get the mail, and trash all the scam-meister envelopes before they get to him. But so many get through thanks to a well-meaning neighbor who probably sends five times as much cash to these vile idiots as my father-in-law does, and who brings in his mail when we aren’t here. A fridge covered with Wounded Warrior and Paralyzed Vets and American Legion magnets . . . oy. At least he’s never donated to a GOP related politician.
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Sherri said on June 26, 2021 at 11:54 pm
The official high in Seattle today (at the airport) was 102, only the fourth time Seattle has hit triple digits, with the next two days expected to be hotter.
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Dexter Friend said on June 27, 2021 at 1:48 am
I was glad Action Kid (Ken Chin) came to Fort Wayne as he started his tour walking up Broadway and gave us a look at the GE building project, what a massive undertaking. Then he walked past a former notorious spot, which was a photo-studio in name, and in actuality one of Fort Wayne’s many whorehouse massage parlors. Now it’s a legitimate business it appears. I think I noticed the old Broadway Joe’s Bar building, anyway, if that was it, it appears to not have been a bar for ages. One of my old hangouts, Broadway Joe’s, tons of young people went there. Then he walked past The Brass Rail, an old-as-hell bar I maybe was in a half-dozen times back 40-some years ago. The second filming day he walked all over town and ended up ready to enter the famous Fort Wayne Coney Island. I noticed a sign, a hot dog is still just $1.65.
The Promenade Park area is nice, but the St. Mary’s River was just pure brown muddy… nasty.
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ROGirl said on June 27, 2021 at 8:36 am
I reached a point where I had to stop trying to get my father to deal with anything in his house. The history was painful for me and it just became too upsetting. I knew that it would have to be dealt with after he died, which happened after a major operation. He never left the hospital, but if he had lived he probably wouldn’t have been able to go back to the house.
It was just my brother and me (my parents had been divorced many years, my father didn’t remarry), I was the executor, the house was going to be sold. I think one estate sale guy took a look around and wasn’t interested. We both took a few items we wanted and hired someone to bring a dumpster in and haul it all away. Maybe he put some things aside to sell, but I didn’t want them.
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nancy said on June 27, 2021 at 9:26 am
This hoarder discussion is interesting. A friend of mine is dealing with this with a family member, who is both a hoarder and has a near-lifelong eating disorder. His therapist tells him eating disorders are among the most stubborn mental illnesses to treat, and from what I know just anecdotally, hoarding is, too. I guess they’re both enormous control issues, among other things.
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Suzanne said on June 27, 2021 at 9:36 am
This book explains a lot about hoarding
https://www.amazon.com/Stuff-Compulsive-Hoarding-Meaning-Things/dp/0547422555
My husband is a bit of a hoarder, unintentionally sort of. He simply doesn’t seem to think about throwing stuff out. I found a pair of his old snow boots that were stiff as a board and asked why they were still in the house. He had no answer. I handed them to him to put in the garbage and the notion seemed to sort of surprise him. “Just throw them in the garbage?” Like it had never occurred to him.
His mom told me once that when he was a kid, when asked to clean up his room, he generally shoved any clutter in the closet rather than dispose of it.
I get bogged down getting rid of things over where will I take them, somebody might want this, so-an-so gave this to me and I have good memories of them, etc, etc. Anything that is still usable, I want to not simply throw out.
After my dad passed away, we discovered that he was a bit of a hoarder of containers of all sorts: boxes, plastic tubs that had once held something else, styrofoam cartons. My mom apparently was clueless but then, her cupboard is full of more Cool Whip and margarine tubs than anyone would ever need. But when I suggested pitching them, it didn’t go well…
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David C said on June 27, 2021 at 9:42 am
I never watched Hoarders but I watched a show on HGTV called Neat that was probably along the same lines. The host organized peoples stuff and talked them into getting rid of most of it. It all looked neat and tidy and the people looked fixed at the end of the half hour. I bet though that if they went back after a few months they’d have the same behaviors. You don’t fix psychologically damaged people in a half hour TV show. Like Nancy said, they’re stubborn things to treat.
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Julie Robinson said on June 27, 2021 at 9:56 am
One study I read of hoarders who were motivated to change and voluntarily went to therapy had a success rate of under 40%. So, there’s that.
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Deborah said on June 27, 2021 at 10:13 am
There is a part of the brain that deals with executive function (not exclusively though) it’s where our abilities to plan and organize are located (again not exclusively). I think it’s the prefrontal sub-cortex. I often think people have issues in those brain areas for whatever reasons and can’t cope with planning and organizing tasks to varying degrees. I think LB would be ok with my saying that she has these challenges due to her NF, not in all tasks though, because she’s a very good cook, which I often think takes a high degree of planning and organization. It’s interesting.
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