9 posts tagged “ocd & me”

Yesterday I ended up taking the pooch on an Incredibly Long Walk. We walked into Cottam, down the Belle River Road to the 'secret' park. I swear to God that most of the residents of Cottam have no idea that this place even exists! It is hidden between two very small subdivisions, (like 25 houses in the one, and 100 houses in the other...). I've been there dozens of times and have seen people there maybe twice. Crazy. I think that we walked almost 7 kms, as we also strolled around the field that is next to the secret park. Very nice, but a little chilly!

So, about change... my 18 hole golf league, whereby I am the Very Important Co-Captain, (although I do very little, as it is run by a Very Organized Captain) starts on Friday... so when am I going to clean the house? Oh, I know, Thursdays! I realized this at about 8pm last night, and therefore had to go grocery shopping on a Wednesday! Crazy! I hope my OCD-ish ways can handle it!

Tonight I golf with TOK (weather permitting) then off to SuprT's although one of her kids has a health issue of which I'm unsure... so that may get scratched...

Saturday should be uber fun as it is the home opener tournament at Sutton Creek, and somehow I've managed to be on the team with the owners of the club and president. It's not what you think.. these people are so far from stuffy and self important it's unbelievable. It will be the funnest foursome ever! (Can you tell I've been with my 13 year old niece lately?)

So, more about change... I'm thinking here from BMW's blog now... I guess when some people are unhappy (whether they realize it or not) they attempt (however accurate or genuine) to manifest qualities within themselves that they admire in others... when making other people aware of these new found virtues, (after 8 glasses of wine...) incredibly enough, it comes off with quite the opposite of the desired effect... they look like hypocrites, show-offs, braggarts, followers, phonies, and completely insincere... it's quite sad really, especially when children have to endure the wrath of the parent's newly formed morality... ugh... some people!   

- The golf course is open. Billy has a tee time, but it's foggy and frosty, plus he's on call...

- My back is getting better! I can stand on one foot, (handy for putting socks on etc.) and can straighten up without wincing!

- The painting is done! Done, done, done! The guy did a great job, and we love the new colour!

- The house is in total disarray... I didn't clean at all yesterday as the painter was here all day and I'm physically unable to do so. The upstairs is still naked, the lights need to be put in the basement ceiling, the bar reassembled, etc...

- You know you have a good friend, when they offer to go to a funeral with you. A funeral. That should be the test of a friendship right there.... I'm a lucky girl!

- Tonight? Steak, husband, hot tub, movie, perhaps a little of putting the house back together... life's good

 

So I've been thinking about stuff and things. We have a lot of things, certainly not as much as some people, but we have enough.

Here's a list of things that we have too much of, or things that we have, but don't use often enough to warrant a place in our house...

- Pens. I bet we have over 50 pens. I gave a bunch to my sister in law (teacher) but what can you do? I can't throw out perfectly good pens? Let me know if you need any...

- Odd kitchen appliances and gadgets. My mother in law watches and orders from infomercials. Yes she does! So we have a weird sandwich maker, the Ultimate Chopper/Blender/Change the oil in your car... we also have things that we  use rarely, such as onion blossom maker (never been used... but I might use it one day...) a garlic press (I always chop my own...) corn on the cob holders. (pretty flimsy) well you get the point... I'll have to purge again once I feel the need to re-organize the kitchen.

- CD's. We have a box that we've hardly cracked since we moved here in late 2004 full of CD's. One day I might put them all on the computer then burn a disc or two (if I ever get an MP3 player, yes I'd download them...) but this is really low on my list of things to do, as I pretty much listen to only talk or sports, or news radio... hmm...

- Plants. I just realized that we have a lot of plants, actually we've had the same number for years now (except the Adults Only Huge Phallic Shaped Cacti) but they have all grown so much. No more plants here thanks... Oh, oh, I found a picture of the cactus from about a year ago.. it's larger now, oh yeah, I have a lot of pictures too....

 

- DVD's and video games. We rarely watch DVD's. We hardly play video games (especially PS2) and although we don't need to get rid of any, we really don't need any more.

- Barware. We are bordering on too much. We have a ton of glasses, shot glasses, coasters, whatever you name we have it.

- Billy's coats and jackets. Good Lord the man has kept every piece of outerwear he has worn since puberty! I bet we have close to 20. He refuses to part with any! Thank God for SpaceBags! 

- Magazines. We have way too many magazines. I can't just toss them in the recycle, because I think someone might be able to use them. If you need gardening magazines or EGM or OPM let me know!

Well that's about it. Not too much I can or am willing to do about our excess stuff....

Lately I've been thinking about stuff. No, really, I mean things, junk, collectibles, shit-knacks, ie:stuff!

I recently heard a Suze Orman interview, where she gives her best advice as, 'Don't buy unless you need it!'. Not 'unless you can afford it'.... unless you need it.... hmmm.

I was discussing this with a friend of mine who brought up the excellent idea of levels of need. Here's the conversation...

Me: 'I would really like a closet organizer, but I don't need one, everything I need to fit in there does. Things are just kind of piled in there and stacked on one another."

SBC: "You might not need the organizer in the way one needs food and shelter, but would it improve your quality of life?"

Me: Hm!

After some thought, I decided that yes it would improve my quality of life, as the slight unorganization of it all would no longer bug me, (as un-organization does...) however, I really don't need it, so I'm not going to buy it...

Another one of Suze's signature ideas is 'enough is enough' or when is 'enough - enough?'. The woman is a multi-multi- millionaire, and she ownes one pair of earrings. One. Pair . Of Earrings. She states that she could own more of course, but the one pair she has she likes so that is good enough for her... how cool is that? She says that the average person buys things they don't need to impress people they don't know, and to what end? Very true!

I think I'm going to ponder these ideas this week-end...

 

Today I sort of cleaned the house. I didn't put any great effort into it, as I know that we will be making a mess, and cleaning up a bit before the SuperBowl festivities on Sunday. So while I was halfheartedly cleaning I snapped a few pictures and now will do a photo essay of sorts.

Our House...

After the recent 'Mouse Adventure, (worthy of its own post, really) Billy suggested that we should pull out the oven and sweep underneath... this is what I found...

This is our largest plant. I'm pretty sure that it won't grow any taller... Please note the shiny, recently painted French door...

Here is the recently painted bathroom. Please note the Insane Asylum Green colour, now perhaps known as Brittany Spears Spearmint, or my favorite, Sanitarium Sage.

This is the AeroGarden that MomG gave me for Christmas, and so far so good, can't wait for the basil! The thing is possessed and the light comes on at all God forsaken hours of the night!

Here is soon to be meatloaf, (to be frozen, actually...)

This is the view from our front door, isn't this exciting?

Halia became bored with my cleaning. She cosied herself up on our bed. This is our new bedroom colour, and we're going to do the entire house with it. It's actually much darker than it appears...

This is the old guy that lives across the road who obsessively shovels his driveway. (He once used his snowblower on ours, that was nice...) These are the people that constantly have cars coming and going all day long. If he wasn't a really well known Conservative political dude, I'd swear they were running a crack house.

Oh the hawk. I got over my extreme hate for the hawk, (or whatever it is) and have now accepted it as a cheesey part of our fireplace mantle. It still may go missing one day...

This is my favorite picture of Billy and I. I think it was our Hawaiian (maybe Caribbean) cruise. Also my favorite shot glasses from Kiks in the background...

I love this picture. It's about 3 feet by 3 feet! It's a map of Europe, but it is Sideways! I just love it! 

This is our keyboard, this is why I can't type. World of Warcraft has obliterated the letters on our keyboard for the most part...

This is the new growth on our tree. Too funny. It looks like our tree is wearing a beanie with a propeller on it!

This was a Christmas gift from BMW, which we immediately broke at the base, but Billy had stainless steel added to it, and now it is awesome! Pretty much the only bar accessory that we didn't already own. The bar towel I found on the 7th hole at Sutton Creek. I love Strongbow!

It's this facinating?

Is it a phonebooth? No! We think it was a cabinet minister's locker from provincial parliament. My sister found it, and I love it! It has a box of old CD's in it and a yet to be installed weather station. Yes, a weather station...

Arg! Computer cords! These drive me crazy! I do my best to ignore them. It's proof that I'm not full blown OCD, or this would send me over the edge! At least they're not dusty... right?

This is the innards of our bar fridge. Please note the 10 different kinds of beer, 7 different coolers, the very old 'hellava good dip', and enough mixers for a real bar...

Huge Pointsettia Plant. Still kickin'!

Here is a dust bunny colony I discovered under the table downstairs. They tend to dwell here. There is also several unidentified chunks of something. So annoying! 

Here is 'Head Gear for Nerds'. Billy looks so cool with them on!  

This concludes this photo tour. I'm sure you now realize that I need another hobby (I'm saving my books for SD trip...). Thanks for making it to the end. If you would like to recommend another tour, please do so in the comment section.

Thank you and good day.

Just a few quick notes of interest...

1) My sister-in-law is now recovering from her thyroid surgery. All went well, and she is now without thyroid.

2) I am tagging along with TOL on little trip to San Diego. She is going for work related schooling, I am going for something to do. Should be oodles of fun as long as I can keep my OCD-ed-ness under control. It's fun hanging out with someone with the same name as yourself. Most people can't forget that... Have to email friend in SD for fun advice and etc.

3) Had a great night out in Detroit on Saturday, and we successfully celebrated 2 friends' birthdays. If someone could email me pics, I would post them... (hint)

4) Completed painting the ceiling, sills, doors and trim in both bathrooms. I will do the wall paint on Wednesday if life goes acoording to plan.

5) Long awaited, slightly overdue eye doctor's appointment tomorrow. Have to borrow TOL's expert fashion-ista advice regarding new specs. (How can one be expected to choose new eyewear When One Requires Glasses To See? It's a conundrum... or some literary thing...)

6) Anxiously awaiting SuperBowl (no, I'm not officially licensed to use that word, but I'm sure nobody will notice). We're having a select few over for chow, booze games oh, and to watch football.... and I hope to make it to BMW's... especially since I'm fairly certain that the Mayor of CrazyTown won't be there... one can only hope...

And now for the weather...

 

 

I'm right here.

I've been a little busy, meaning that my days of late have held some small purpose for me. This week, I painted our bedroom. Unless you've undertaken such a feat, you may not fully understand and appreciate the enormity of the project, especially when you are a tad OCD... so I'll elaborate....

DAY 1

- Removed everything except 2 dressers, the bed and the bedside table, including eveything from the closet, and light fixtures

- Vacuumed and swiffer dusted the ceiling

- Painted the ceiling

DAY 2

- Vacuumed and swiffer dusted the walls and baseboards, putty-ed cracks and marks in the wall

- Taped the carpet, and all the shelving in the closet, the window, and doors. I tried to tape the French Doors, and gave up after one of 60 window panels

- Painted the trim, and French Doors

- Removed the tape 

Day 3

- Sanded the putty-ed areas, then had to re-vacuum and swiffer dust said areas. Opps, will remember that one...

- Taped the ceiling and the baseboards, (not easy in case you don't know....)

- Painted the walls including the entire closet 2 coats.

- Removed tape, (with Billy's help)

Later Day 3

- Scraped the paint off the window panels from the French Doors. It takes 1 hour to do one door...

- Moved back furniture, (with Billy's help)

- Hung pictures, and moved most items back into the bedroom

Day 4

- Moved the clothes back into the closet

- Organized mine and Billy's clothes according to most frequently worn.

- Went to Hardware store to purchase more painter's tape and supplies for the next painting adventure, and additional shelving for the closet

- Put together a shelving unit for out shoes, (okay 8 are mine, 1 pair is Billy's...)

- Put together a 7 foot high tower for hats

Day 5

- Billy cuts out the bottam bit of the tower so it can be flush against the wall

- I a) attach the thing to the wall in 4 places, b) attach a rod c) admire my handiwork, d) consider a possible future in closet organization (this by the way used, 2 screw drivers, a drill, a hammer, a little saw thing, the name escapes me right now, and a measuring tape.

- I declare to myself that I have skills.

- Use ceiling paint and trim paint to correct the few mistakes I made, (I'm good, Billy says that I'm too hard on myself, I bite my tongue re: OCD)

________________

I have done more this week as well, and I'll elaborate, for your reading pleasure, later... (that was sarcasm btw) 

 

 

Today I woke up again feeling lousy with a cold. I tried my best to ignore it all day, and despite feeling crap-tacular, I was able to accomplish the following things:

- Excel spreadsheet of 2007 house bills (including 2005 and 2006 totals)

- Completed my taxes. I must say that the income portion didn't take to long to add up... This is the longest I've procrastinated in years to get my taxes done. Yes, I know what you're thinking...

- Made macaroni and cheese. You know it has to be good when the recipe (X4) calls for 2 pounds of pasta and 3 pounds of cheese... oh, and 2 litres of milk. I can hear my arteries clogging, but hey, it's winter, it's comfort food, it's good, and I'm giving most of it away.

- Finished reading my 3rd book of the year.

- Made Billy's favorite dinner, (no small feat, it takes nearly an hour....)

Now I'm going to veg on the couch for the rest of the night. I feel like I did quite a bit today, and can allow myself to relax for a couple of hours guilt free.

I often go on benders in my life. Like when I ate nothing but perogies for lunch for about a month. Or when I would read the Grudge Report 6 times a day.

Currently I am not on a reading bender, which is unusual. I haven't read an entire book since I went to Tennessee in the beginning of November, which is a big first for me. I think it is because I started reading a really crappy bio of Queen Victoria, and I haven't finished it yet, and I started a Johnathan Kellerman novel, where the chapters are 30 pages long, so I'm a bit turned off...

I am not on a working out, or golfing (obviously) bender.

I guess I'm kind of in cleaning mode. I don't know why. Perhaps its because at the end of the day I feel like I've accomplished something... Perhaps not...

It was 71*F in Crossville Tennessee yesterday. Must be nice.

I'm in a mellow mood today and totally hate skanky bitches, plus I had a bad dream about Billy last night, and however completely not real - it never helps a bad mood.

My Christmas cards are done. 92 Christmas cards. Whew! Thank God I'm friendly with the woman at the Cottam post office, (yes Cottam has a post office, AND its own postal code, - N0R 1B0) as she helps me stamp the cards every year... self adhesive, but still...

I'm going to the grocery store, (on a Wednesday, I know it's crazy!), over to Colasanti's. (I want to check out the store they have in there that sells sports paraphernalia, hoping to find a nice Brown's shirt that I can guide someone to, to buy me for Christmas.

I cleaned the house a bit, (again, crazy!) only because I thought a friend might be coming over, as it turns out she is stuck at home waiting for the phone guy to come and give her a dial tone... not good when you have an alarm system... so I think I'll pop by and visit her.

This afternoon's plan is to organize the wrapping paper container, (it's full of scraps and craps) and Maybe, Maybe, wrap some presents... we'll see. The mess it makes sends me around the bend...

Sunday's football was the best week I've ever had, Ever, and probably never to be repeated. I had 15 out of 16 games correct, (and the one I missed was an overtime loss, and that team was leading the entire game... thanks Titans...) AND amazingly, remarkably I guessed the correct Monday night point total (being 48... two weeks ago I was 55 points off the correct point total...) so I won the pool, barely, as the guy behind me also had 15 games right, and a point total of 49. Crazy!

So that's it, I hope to be in a better mood later... grrr...