anyone remember Fibber McGee?

back in the good old days of radio -- and no, i'm not 102, tho i feel like it after a stint of bulb planting -- there was a character called Fibber McGee who had a closet so crammed with his stuff that everything would fall out whenever the door was opened.  you know the sort of thing, we all have one.  or two.  or more.

1946 and CatskillDeb have opened the discussion in another folder, and i thought it worthy of relocation so as not to utterly hijack that thread (Fall Pictures).  so here it is, folks, Clutterers Anonymous.  hi, my name is roxanna, and i am a clutterer.  admitting it is the first step, they say.  feel free to join this select group.

there are supposedly four bedrooms in my house.  the mistake made here by the builder is that all four have doors.  doors which can be closed, thereby enabling the clutterer to excell in the Fibber McGee School of cramming stuff into any given space until completely full, backing one's way out carefully and closing said door.  two of my so-called bedrooms have entered this Twilight Zone.  and the third is not far behind.  and then there is the basement.  the attic.  the garage.  and two garden sheds (there, i kept the theme of gardening intact for the sake of the forum).

is there a 12-step program for clutterers??  a saint one can pray to?? 

one bedroom needs to be accessible for the occasional guest, which means clearing off the bed and widening the pathways.  where to put it all??  ah, there's a teeny area, let's dump it here.  fill a trash bag or three.  donate to charity.  DO NOT dither over whether the item might possibly be of use sometime in the next 12 years.  you do not need it.  repeat that mantra.  be strong.  get it out of the house.  let stuff go. 

unfortunately, i come from a long line of pack-rats.  clutter is in my genes.  i am hardwired for it, and it is a constant battle.  if there is a horizontal surface, i shall pile it high.  if i could attach stuff to the ceiling (another horizontal surface, you understand, simply not very convenient), i would have done so by now.  go vertical, methinks.  why not!

lest any of you think it's time to call the Anti-Clutter Brigade, please believe me when i tell you that i am not (yet) a cadidate for that new reality show "The Hoarders".  at least, i don't think i am.  but then, what do i know?  i shall not allow cameras into my house, just to be on the safe side...

at least i did not work the library book sale this year and am not tripping over 20 boxes of gleanings for my winter reading, as has been my wont in past years.  le sigh.

Edited 10/20/2009 8:20 am ET by roxanna