Over the holiday weekend I caught a few episodes of “Clean House” on Style Network. I have a love/hate relationship with Niecy Nash. Her voice irritates the hell out of me, but she has the perfect good-humored yet firm attitude for dealing with the homeowners.
I assume that if you’re reading this and other design/style blogs, you are a relatively organized person. Hey, we can all be disorganized at times (and in various parts of our house), but let’s just say that I’m assuming you don’t live in a pigsty like the people on this show.
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I can’t imagine living like this, but do know people who lived in very similar circumstances – my neighbors when I was growing up. It’s a wonder my parents let me go over to their house so often, for fear that my little self would get lost under all the clutter. At least we spent most of our time outdoors.
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I’m caught between thinking “WTF is wrong with you people?” and feeling immensely sad for them. The people who wind up on this show are not simply messy – while not confirmed, it would seem to me that at least some of them suffer from a form of compulsive hoarding.
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Life is busy and sometimes overwhelming, and most of us can’t afford a cleaning company/person to come in and help. In fact, my bathroom is in desperate need of a good scrubbing, but at least no-one sees it but me and the cat (the Mr. uses another bathroom). I also have way too many papers on my kitchen island that are in need of filing.
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I wonder what the “Clean House” families homes look like one year later? Have they kept it up or gone back to their messy ways? For those with a hoarding disorder, only therapy and time can help. But perhaps what some of the other families needed was a little reality check and systems for staying organized.
Taking that initial step to get organized can be extremely intimidating, which I think is why the homes of otherwise clean and mentally healthy people can end up in dire straits. Start small – with one room or even one corner of a room. One small success will motivate you to keep going.
Do you have a pile of something or a room or closet that you just can’t bring yourself to deal with? Do share. It will make me feel better about all that filing I have to do.
I was just stopping by to thank you for visiting my blog, but this post got my attention! I am in the middle of sorting through my kids’ artwork as we speak. I feel guilty if I throw it away; I feel smothered if it covers every inch of our countertops
Emily, my mom kept practically every piece of artwork and homework assignment. She bundled them into boxes or bags labeled by school year and tucked them away in the attic or basement, out of view. I don’t know what she was saving them for! Eventually I convinced her to keep only her favorite (or my favorite) items.
Wow, those transformations are amazing, but I am wondering the same thing as you – how long do they last? My house is by no means perfect, but I can’t imagine living like this. Let’s see, the list of things I need to clean/organize: my bath and hair products and make-up. I just need to bite the bullet and toss old or half used bottles away. I also need to go through my closet and donate clothes. I have a lot that don’t fit or are out of style.
UNREAL! I cannot imagine living like that.. I mean my room has clothes all over but nothing to that extreme lol.
woah, those before rooms are unreal, its just like a huge pile of trash
I would love to see a few “Where are they now?” episodes of Clean House. I think you’re so right that many of the participants on the show have to have some psychological issues to be so amazingly messy (and often dirty!). Many of the rooms featured are more like storage sheds than bedrooms or living rooms (often times you can’t see any bed or sofa to sit on!). So I highly suspect that once the cameras stop rolling and everyone has left, many of these folks revert back to their old habits. After all, there’s been no fundamental psychological shift that would have resolved the underlying issues causing that level of messiness.
What a great post, Laura. The before and afters are just mind-boggling!
My large storage area in my basement can get pretty messy-nothing like these rooms though. It would be interesting to see if the families can keep up after the crew goes home. Sadly, I think you are right and that there may be some psychological issues at play in some of these homes.
love the post Laura!
i have a friend who photographs his kids’ artwork, and scans in hand written school work and tests…..then he keeps the digital copy, and tosses the space-taking original.
Kristen, that’s a great idea! Some online photo companies like Snapfish allow you to create collage posters using various photos. Then all the artwork from the year could be digitally merged into one poster and framed. Would look cool in a mudroom or hallway. Hmmm…I will have to file these ideas away for when Junior is old enough!