Monday, April 26, 2010

Another OCD? Oh no!

I watch that show "Hoarders" on A&E where they focus on people who stock pile tons (literally) of crap in their homes to the point that they can't even walk around. It really trips me out because I am the total opposite so I can't relate at all.
I started to wonder if there was a word for this so I enlisted Google to find out. As it turns out, i'm a "Minimalist" but ohhhh, it doesn't end there lol.

As a Minimalist, I apparently lead a simple life without the need or desire for lots of stuff. Is that so bad? Works for me.

I have enough summer clothes for 10 days, same with my winter clothes. I have one pair each of boots, sandals and sneakers. The only pictures I have are stored online. I have 2 plates, saucers, bowls and glasses, one coffee cup and a mug for work ... same with the silverware. I have 1 sheet, 2 pillow cases, a blanket and a comforter. I like my walls bare and I don't have any knick-nacks barring the 2 frogs on my desk. I keep 1 pencil and 2 pens. No pets to feed. One landline phone with voicemail so no answering machine needed. I get my books from the library so I don't have buy them only to have them collect dust. Same with DVD's. My music is all online or in my iPod, no CD's to store. ! lipstick and an eyebrow pencil. 3 towels and a bath sponge.

However lol ... some say in minimalist forums that is is a form of OCD. Rubbish! I could agree if I couldn't wait to get home to find things to throw away, or spent excessively just to end up getting rid of it. But that's not the case. I just don't waste money on things I don't need or know I will never use regularly. I wear clothes for 2 seasons then they're out of my closet because they're probably worn out by then. Why have books, knick-knacks, appliances that only collect dust? Why collect entire sets of towels when you only use the bath one? Same with dishes and sheet sets.

I dunno. People can call it what they want but it sure makes my life easier. If it's an OCD then so be it but at least I have the time to sit here and blog rather than cleaning/organizing/dusting my house lol.

Midnight chain of thought ...

Ever wonder what goes on in someones head when they're alone? Here are my thoughts in a 15 minute span .....


I hate sleeping, i'll just wake up bitter as usual ..... another boring tomorrow I bet ..... Oh yeah, my book is in at the library. I'll need to walk there tomorrow ..... how in the hec can I get a car? ..... my frog is so cute ..... I have the worst handwriting of any female I have ever seen. How does one write girly? ..... I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow so I can look for a new job ..... that poptart was gross ..... I hate food period so screw it ..... if my knee's didn't hurt standing up, i'd go to the bathroom right now ..... wonder how long I can wait ..... hoarders are so selfish ..... is there nothing on TV? ..... I need friends or something ..... why am I always mad? ..... today when I got mad at Vickey I actually saw the color red. Weird ..... I dislike 95 % of the people I work with ..... I really hate liars, scammers, no-it-alls and bullshitters ..... omg I forgot to pay on my law-away ..... I wish I could paint this apt. ..... I would love to re-decorate and make it bright and happy in here ..... I need to get my lay-away out so I can have my capri's ..... I hate my legs ..... I have got to quit soda, but what else is there? ..... maybe if I read i'll stop thinking ..... i'm going to bed when this show is over ..... gotta check facebook .....

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Family devotion

First thing at work today, I helped 2 couples, 50-ish or so who came in together to get one of the men in their group a pair of boots. I could see right off that there was something amiss with the actual boot buyer, Danny. For one, he had this look on his face that seemed like he was thinking hard, very hard, at no particular time and for no real reason. He walked with guarded steps, kind of slow at at moments seemed lost, and appeared very embarrassed for some reason.
His wife had a cast on her foot and hopped around lively looking at other things, not really into hanging around with Danny while he picked out a pair of boots.

The other couple was very attentive to Danny however, and with helping him find a boot that fit him well. I learned after a bit, that they were Danny's brother and sister-in-law and from the way Danny acted, he must of had some slight brain damage as they talked to him like one would to a foreigner; trying to help him understand.

Danny liked 2 pairs of boots. He must of tried them on 3-4 times each. The first pair were too snug but his favorites. The second pair fit better but the color wasn't the best.
I studied Danny for the first 30 minutes while helping him. Figuring out as we went along how to best communicate with him so we both could understand each other fully. I secretly concluded to myself that Danny and his wife must have been in a car accident or something like that. She obviously ended up with a broken foot and he, ended up with a head injury.

But after another 30 minutes and finally helping Danny choose which pair he wanted, his brother tells him "Well good deal Danny, now take off the socks that this young lady gave you, put your short ones back on and slip on your regular shoes".
Well Danny looked dumbfounded and it was then that I realized that the tasks given to him were just too many for him to remember or carry out.
Once again he looked embarrassed so I stepped in. I helped him through each step. First taking off the try-on socks, then replacing his own, then getting his shoes back on.

When all was said and done, they all walked away but the brother came back to me. He said "Thank you for your help. My brother has Dementia and you were the most patient I have ever seen anyone with him. You have no idea what your help meant to me". He then explained what Danny was going through ... at times he could remember things from when he was 16 years old, but the next minute, not even remember how to cross his legs.
Dementia. I couldn't quite figure it out, thought it had something to do with his brain, but never guessed Dementia. That explained the "thinking" look on his face. Danny is only 48 years old!

But I then realized I had seen this man before so I asked him "weren't you in here a year ago with another brother who had terminal brain cancer and had a patch over his eye?" he said "Yes I was! That was you who helped him pick out the suit he was to be buried in and even altered it so it would fit, wasn't it! I can not believe you remember him!".
I then told him that it wasn't his dying brother that I remembered so much as it was HIM, and the fact that it must have taken a lot of love and devotion to help him pick out his own brother's burial suit that day. That even knowing that soon he would lose his brother and feeling that pain, he was still there for him as he was this time with Danny. "You are such a good brother ... you are very special. How could I forget you?" I told him.

He informed me that this is how family is supposed to be and then added "but for a stranger to go out of her way to help a man with dementia, even taking off and putting on his socks for him while his own wife browsed the clothing racks, and altering a dying man's suit ... that's even more special of a person. I will always remember you too.

Family. This is a concept I have never known. I grew up with 2 brothers. One, 8 years older than me and off living his life with a family of his own by the time I was 11. The other a year younger than me.
If I were as sick as this man's brothers, would they be here for me? No. My oldest brother that I spoke of hasn't talked to me in 15 years. Ever since he moved away and got married to who use to be my best friend. My younger brother has only ever thought of himself and how he could scam people. I hadn't talked to him for 15 years also when he suddenly popped up on Myspace and at this point in his life, is supposedly trying to get off drugs after losing his wife and kids ... twice. He has yet to talked to me since that first email last year.
I would have given anything and have tried several times to be as close to my brother's as the man I told the story about. maybe that's why I cared so much for for his brother's.

So what's left one would ask? I have 4 kids! maybe they'll be there for me when I get stricken by illness. I brought them up with morals, kept them close, gave them my love. But ask (at least my girls) for help of even the simplest kind and they scatter like roaches at the sight of a can of Raid. If I were to get Alzheimer's they'd probably let me roam the interstate in my underwear without a second thought.

As of today, I feel doomed. If something happens to me I guess i'll just shrivel up and croak here in my cave feeling sorry for myself. Why couldn't I be blessed with a family? No parents to call and tell you how you're screwing up. No siblings with fond memories or crazy stories that bond families together. Nothing. I feel so terribly cheated. Me, myself and I.

Take care of your brother's and sister's. Be there for them. Call them, go over and bug them. Be glad you have them and hope and oh yes pray that they'll be there for you when you're like Danny.