A House of Clutter

After my mom died December of 1999, dad just piled stuff everywhere.  While my husband and I were visiting him, I was helping him with his Christmas cards and my husband got bored so decided to take a video tour of his rooms.   

Harry's Dining Room

He had two filing cabinets in his dining room (can't really see them in this shot though) and a whole lot of empty boxes on the floor between his table and the window seat from things he bought. 

Kitchen stove piled with junk.

Dad quite using his stove to cook but kept it as a storage area.  He used a microwave for his meals.

There was a poster on the cupboard door dated June 4, 2003 that he kept up.  I'm pretty sure he didn't even attend that meeting but wouldn't let me throw anything away of his.

Harry dated his cereal boxes with date he bought them.

I wonder why he bought this cereal in July if he wasn't going to eat it.  It was December and he didn't even open it yet.

Here we have more clutter, and clutter, and clutter.  All his desks and tables were covered with stuff (junk mostly).  At least he kept a pathway clear to walk.  I bought him this little sign I thought was perfect for him.  He laughed and added it to his desk admitting it was how he felt.

And here we have the master bedroom with no bed!  Dad said it was hard for him to get in and out of bed and his recliner chair was easier and more comfortable for him to sleep in.  He was just a very practical man and was always coming up with ways to make his life easier, even if it was strange.  Here is the video that my husband made with his funny comments:


I hope I don't ever get this bad at letting stuff out to be handy.  I can see how it could happen though when you don't have a lot of space.    Did you ever see anything like this? 

13 Problems My Dad Had and His Solutions

My dad had diabetes and as he grew older, experienced many problems.  He never complained or stewed about things, but always came up with a way to make things easier on himself.  Below is a list of some of the problems my dad had and how he solved them.

Problem: His eyeglasses fell off when he bent over.
Solution: Wear an elastic band that holds them on.

Problem: Arthritis in fingers so he had a hard time pulling up zippers.
Solution: Attached a paper clip to the zipper to make it easier to hold.

Problem: He kept dropping things because lacked feeling in his finger tips and was hard to bend over due to stiffness.
Solution: He got a grabber gadget and hung it on his walker so he always had it with him if he needed it.

Problem: Hard to climb stairs with groceries after shopping.
Solution: Built a ramp on the back of the house and used a cart.

Problem: Legs weak so hard to get up off the toilet.
Solution: My mom had this same problem so he built a wooden contraption that fit around the toilet that had arms so he could push himself up.

Problem: He'd forget to pay bills sometimes.
Solution: He got a box with slats in it for 31 numbered spaces and put the bills in the numbered slat of the date he wanted to pay it.  (The hitch was that he still had to remember to look at it and to actually put the bills in it.)

Problem: It was difficult getting off the bed.
Solution: He removed the bed and replaced it with a recliner to sleep in!

Problem: Had a whole lot of tools that he wanted easy to grab.
Solution: He attached magnetic strips to the wall and many of his metal tools hung on those.  (Guys coming in the basement were very impressed with his wall of tools.)

Problem: It was too time-consuming to get dressed in morning and undressed at night.
Solution: He slept in his clothes.

Problem: He couldn't always remember if he took his pills or not (had so many).
Solution: He laid the pills out for the week in the little pill holders. Had 4, one for breakfast pills, lunch pills, dinner pills, and bedtime pills.

Problem: Hard to hear on the telephone.
Solution: Purchased a Miracle Phone--worked somewhat.

Problem: His hearing got so bad that his hearing aid didn't help; said it picked up Morse code.
Solution: He quit using them and had people write their message big so he could read it.

Problem: It was hard to tie shoes.
Solution: He got shoes that used velcro instead of laces.

My Biggest “What If” Worry

My dad’s biggest worry was what would happen to his cats if they outlived him. Part of the reason my dad didn’t take his cats for regular vet care was that he was actually hoping they wouldn’t outlive him. I reassured him that I would take care of them for him, and did for three months; but then when I decided to sell his house, I had to get the cats out.

At the time, we already had two cats--Moe (14 years old) and Spunky Doodle (3 years old). His two male cats were not neutered but the female must have been spayed; however, the males had HIV and the female had parasites. They all had their claws whereas; my two both had their front paws declawed. I looked for someone to take them but couldn’t find anyone and ended up having to have them put down. It was heartbreaking for me and I felt I let my dad down. I just didn’t have any choice. I didn’t know about the cat sanctuaries around.

Now, my biggest fear is for the welfare of our pets if something happened to both Gerard and me. We don’t have children. Who would even know something happened to us and that they were in there all alone?

What’s your biggest worry?

I am donating .50 per legitimate comment this month to Samaritan's Purse for famine relief to starving people in Africa.

Harry Didn't Think His Life Was Boring--What About You?

According to this Blogthings quiz, my dad had a boring life; however, it wasn't boring to him. Even though every day was pretty much the same and he generally stayed home, he was very happy and content and often said he never got bored. Because he did everything slowly, he never seemed to get done everything he hoped to do in a day.

Harry always had several projects in the works such as cutting the grass, fixing something, indexing his magazines, reading the newspaper, cleaning the litter boxes, feeding his cats, reading his mail and paying his bills. On rare occasions he would even straighten up something or clean something!

You Live a Boring Life

You aren't necessarily a boring person, but you've fallen into living a pretty boring life. Somehow you've gotten yourself stuck in a rut, and life just isn't that interesting anymore. You need to start acting and stop thinking so much. Just go for it, and don't let yourself come up with excuses. The only way to make life less boring is to start living it. Let go of your hang ups. Go out and have an adventure!

Is Your Life Boring?