Piles as a way of life? Or just poor organization?

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Like Boutique's suggestion for having (reuseable) visual cues to get things accomplished on daily basis. I use a dry-erase whiteboard, an engagement calendar, and numerous temporary lists for reminding self of shopping lists, appts. & household tasks. Haven't gotten control of massive amount of paper I generate, though. Many articles don't fit neatly into a category (defying my desire to have folder/binder for each subject area)-too many of the topics in which I'm interested are interdisciplinary.

Old threads relating to stacking papers, hoarding, tidying, and the like-
"What do you do with/about your collections ?":
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... sc&start=0
(My post):
This is a massive problem for me-get my packrat behavior both from environment & genetics of my family. Parents-total "bookpeople", piles and stacks surround and fill each room.
I have too much stuff & not enough space. I face choice of trash item, meaning wasted in a polluting dump. Choice of recycle item sounds great but hard to do. What can be re-used how by whom & how to connect all the details is more than I can manage, other than the easy obvious paper & plastic. Choice to keep item means my apt. becomes more crowded & impossible-to-navigate. So I feel guilty & dissatisfied no matter what option I select.
My possessions are a menace, wish it were easier to get at & use what I have. I'm a cluttered crisis, though with plenty of space I've been able to clean/tidy up much better-when I had a very large apt. Get attached to some things, hurts to get rid of them. Other things, I might need in future but if I've thrown out already then I've got to buy new one. That bothers me way too much. Drives me crazy how appliances are cheaper to buy new than to repair, increasing trend.
"Being organized and needing to make schedules":
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... highlight=
"Pack-ratting":
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... highlight=
"Neat or Cluttered ?":
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... 58&start=0

This is why I think my girlfriend has AS, there are piles of papers all over the apartment and over time they just get bigger. Once in a while something important cannot be found so we have a mad search for three or four hours. There are of course other symptoms in her behavior but this doesn't look good when we have visitors.

Ed Almos

I had a TERRIBLE case of piles.

But, a bit of ointment, and it cleared
up.

haha when I read piles I immediately thought haemorroids!

Sorry. My household piles are clothes, books mixed in with photos, copsmetics, old newspapers, magazines, I am so disorganised.

I find my OCD makes my piles worst!, everything has to be clean before it goes back in its respective place, so I have piles of stuff waiting to be prepared for putting away properly, often this stuff is so dirty, (mechanical interests) that the task gets put off for another day, (yeah, another day in another year).

Being undecided if Iam an Aspie, when I saw the film Mozart and the Whale and I saw his flat, then I was pretty convinced, and then when his girlfriend tied up for him, ARRRGGGG, thats my worst nightmare come true, nobody must come in my house in case they upset the equilibrium of the piles for then my whole lifes work would be ruined in an instant.

UGH! I am the "pile queen"....

only, I wasn't clear about the piles until just this very moment.

My partner is very, very uhm..... smart, organized and well, he makes lists and sees things in a completely different light than I!! !! !

He has been a huge help in this area, as he will go out and buy binders/organizers for my papers.

Or write lists of things I need to do, to keep me on top of the things I hate to see around the house, etc.

I have papers, books, pamphlets, appointments, calls, business details, research I have printed, recipes, letters written to schools, dr's, etc, correspondence to and from other places, documents, etc. The list is endless really. Only my office space is closest to my kitchen, so everything is spilling onto my island, on top of the microwave, fridge, cupboards!! !

Indeed I have a problem!

But that combined with the known FACT that my daughter is a hoarder and we have 3 children (9 year old AS, 10 mos old and 5 week old foster child), my home looks like a tornado hit!

If there is nothing else I hate more, it would be dishes...so those also pile!

and then there is the neverending stream of laundry that gets done, but is piled in laundry baskets, stacks in the 2nd washroom (that we cannot even use it is so stacked with crap) and on top of shelves and dressers. *sigh*

So, that said, this is usually something that completely stresses me out, but I have the worst time controlling...

I have "cracked off" more recently about: having a neverending stream of guests would probably do the trick, as I would NEVER ever let anyone into the home when it looks like this!! !

Only, this is likely another reason I am only interested in company on my own terms & HATE, HATE, HATE unexpected visitors!

im a equal oppurtunity mess maker. i dont make piles, the mess is everywhere
the only thing that i have thats in a neat pile is my rocks and sportscards

I just knew this was coming.... didn't know who'd be first though!

Calandale... YOU WIN!

I ashamedly admit then when I first saw this title, I thought it was referring to haemorroids, which surely did confuse me!

Anyway, I tend to make piles of books mostly, and at my old place, I piled up my paperwork in size order with the largest at bottom. I have my daily things I take out with me also in a neat little pile. It is just something I have always done I think.

Okay, so you WIN too!

Fresco also.




I spent a little time this morning to clean up the top of a bookcase so I would have a specific spot to pile my school books and stuff.

This led to taking the tray I have been keeping this year's receipts (as in EVERY receipt, so I could figure out where my money goes... which I wasn't successful with last year, but I still have THOSE receipts... ), putting all those into a large shopping bag, putting different papers into the tray which seems like a better idea for the moment, tossing a pile of catalogs, magazines and newspapers into the recycle bin, re-stacking the magazines I didn't want to get rid of yet, and doing a load of laundry (to add to the pile of clean laundry from last week).

Since then, I've been here typing and eating peanutbutter & crackers washed down with fresh Apple Cider.

My home is so bad that I cannot have family come visit unless we clean for several weeks. I not only have oceans of piles of stuff, I have everything strewn about anywhere and everywhere. I really wish my home were clean though. I don't like living this way. Although, if it was PERFECT like I've seen some people's homes, that would drive me MORE crazy.

I hoard which I guess is OCD. And I don't clean often enough because of my health (Fibromyalgia, etc.)

My wife and I stayed in this immaculate bed & breakfast when we first moved up to Fairbanks.
We spent one night!

This place was a home to the owners with enough space and rooms to have a b&b.
The biggest problem was that EVERYTHING was PERFECT!
Too orderly,
Too neat,
Too lacey

I almost couldn't sleep on the bed because of how neat it was. I wasn't the only one uncomfortable, my wife was also, but I think I was probably worse.

We wound up at another 'b&b' run by a couple who mined for gold. We stayed out on their claim in the cookshack they used out on remote locations.
The whole place was so disheveled and in a perpetual state of construction, but it was so much more comfortable.

piles of clean clothes not put away. The anxiety of going through the plies and boxes of things I can't bear to decide what to do with! It's worse than cartoons where a toon is avoiding a dentist for a root canal! the piles don't hurt, so I procrastinate.
I do know what is in most boxes and can even rule out a box with only a glance when searching for something in particular! OI!

Personally I dont get why people have to have everything neat in closets and drawers, I dont see anything wrong with just putting things where ever, as long as you can find it again.

I agree, that's why I am changing how I live my life.
Since I'm single again, I can organize my home the way that suits me best.

Still, there some piles I find that get in my way.
Those I will attack with vigor!

Everything else can just chill....