It’s all a treasure
Sep 14th 2009
Rachel GibsonOn Writing!
Is anyone else watching Hoarders on A&E? I admit that I am completely addicted to it. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a sixty minute show about people who can’t part with anything. Their houses and lives are over run with stuff that they just can’t throw out. Ninety-percent of it is garbage. Most of them are facing eviction, jail time, and loss of children and/or spouses. And yet, they can’t toss out a dirty sponge or a refrigerator full of rotten food or a broken vacuum cleaner.
It’s crazy and sad and fascinating to watch. When I was growing up, I lived a few houses away from Mrs. Carter. She was a hoarder, and her car was filled from floor to ceiling with old newspapers and magazine.There was only a small free space in the driver’s seat for her to drive. When we saw that old white car barreling up the street, we’d run for our lives.
Do you know any hoarders? What is your current t.v. addiction?
41 Comments »
41 Responses to “It’s all a treasure”
Kim on 15 Sep 2009 at 2:52 am #
I’ve never heard of the program, but then I get only basic cable (don’t watch much TV).
Hoarding is a mental illness. I find it bizarre that anyone would even want to be on a program like this, regardless of the paycheque they might get. Are they not getting any professional help? Very sad.
I don’t think I have any TV addictions. The only thing I watch are news, weather, nature/animal programs and the like. I know, boring. I prefer to spend my free time reading.
B on 15 Sep 2009 at 3:52 am #
Tv addiction?? CASTLE. My friend recommended it to me the other day and it’s the best show I’ve seen in a long, long, long time. I’m totally, completely, obsessively, madly, deeply in love with it. And with Richard Castle. <3
Judy F on 15 Sep 2009 at 3:52 am #
I have seen ads for that show on TV. They had a local woman on the messiest house in America and you could barely walk through any rooms. If they couldn’t find something they bought more. It was so sad to watch.
I am currently hooked on watching NCIS on USA. Don’t care if I have seen the show a million times. I still watch.
Been sorta watching Big Brother, now that is a train wreck.
Freshechelle on 15 Sep 2009 at 3:59 am #
My grandpa was a hoarder. He had 3 TVs in his livingroom. When my uncle sold the place, they just bulldozed it complete with years of junk. Gramps is now living in assisted living and at 105 yo, he’s allowed to hoard the little bit of stuff he acquires.
Pesky on 15 Sep 2009 at 4:05 am #
I’ve been watching it. And it’s been inspiration to go through closets and my attic and just throw crap out. My garage (while nothing like these people’s) started getting a thorough clean out. There was the roof rack we were going to use for our cars. (even though we both have one built on top of our cars), the sleds we will never use again (we kept the toboggan, we have used this in the past 3 years), The bikes we don’t use anymore but didn’t want to part with, (these are going to local church to be offered to members of the community without lower back problems) and after that just stuff that had been there so long we just never threw it out because we were “going to refurbish it”.
I don’t feel an attachment to these things, they just seemed to fit into a corner nicely and never came out.
We have a woman down the road from us that regularly gets visits from the local authorities and told that she needs to clean out her house. I know the group locally that goes to do it. The woman has dogs too and this causes another issue entirely. Sadly I also have a friend whose father has brought her up to “not waste anything”. We can get her and her hubby once a year to do
Pesky on 15 Sep 2009 at 4:10 am #
a thorough clean out with the help of their friends when they get overwhelmed. However, we cart out a dumpster full of stuff every year, and every year we hear the same thing about how she doesn’t know how it got that way. Her house is clean too, it’s just filled with stuff by the end of the year.
I read a good rule of thumb somewhere and started applying it at my home a while back. If you haven’t touched it in a year, you need to evaluate if it needs to be in a longer term storage area of your house. If you haven’t touched it in 3 years you just need to throw it out. Don’t think about it. Throw it out.
Also, don’t fall into the trap of letting your relatives and friends push their stuff off on you. If they don’t want to throw it out, and give it to you instead, if you don’t want it, tell them no, you have been trying to cut down on the stuff in your house. Family is harder, all I do is tell them the 1 and 3 rule and warn them it could be thrown out by you if it falls into that catagory. Sometimes I think they just hand it to you not as a “memory” but because they don’t want to deal with being the one to get rid of the darn thing.
Pesky on 15 Sep 2009 at 4:14 am #
Current TV addiction? Hmmm…well I have two. 10 Things I Hate About You: It’s cleverly written, doesn’t pretend it needs to be longer than a 1/2 hour, and its got Gregory Peck’s grandson in it, and he’s got “the voice”. Eureka: It just makes me laugh.
Lisa H on 15 Sep 2009 at 4:56 am #
I am addicted to Monk. I am so sad this is the last season.
LoriHandeland on 15 Sep 2009 at 5:18 am #
My mom has stuff all over the place. Most of hers is really nice “stuff.” But I have a feeling the basement is full of inexpensive, not very nice stuff.
She’ll bring bags over here for me. I take a look, then usually move it directly to the Goodwill pile. I think it’s easier for her to give it to me than give it away. She knows I’ll do that because I’m a minimalist. Probably from living 20 years with all the “stuff.”
Every year I get addicted to Supernatural. LOVE that show. Funny and scary and cute guys. Perfect!!
Kathy on 15 Sep 2009 at 5:21 am #
I watched a few episodes and it made me so uncomfortable I had to clean.
my sister thought that reaction was hilarious. She now wants to watch so it will encourage her to organize as well.
I’m not a hoarder, but my apt is tiny and I have 15 yrs worth of clutter in it.
So now I have an organized closet instead of stuff piled on the floor. now it’s all in moveable baskets.lol
I recently got rid of my cable in an effort to save money, but now I won’t get to see the Duggars, which is my favourite show right now.
I only have 3 channels to choose from and luckily many of my favourite US shows are aired on two of them.
searching the net to find an online tv watching site has turned up bupkiss for me as most will only show content if I’m from the States.
Cail on 15 Sep 2009 at 5:48 am #
Lisa H, i LOVE Monk too! I’m so sad it’s the last season. I also adore Psych. Both are such brilliant shows.
Unfortunately, i have no time to watch either. i miss tv.
My neighbor in NYC was a hoarder, and a cat lady. whenever it got really humid, and the wind blew north we’d have to hold our noses when we walked inside the building. even a fire to the top two floors of her building (she owned and lived in a 4 story, 8 unit building alone with a couple dozen cats), didn’t stop her from illegally living in the condemned space with her cats, and her junk. i do NOT miss her.
Heather Webber on 15 Sep 2009 at 6:06 am #
My grandmother was a hoarder. She was also agoraphobic, so she did all her shopping online and via QVC. The thing is, all that stuff made her happy. And although some in the family grumbled, it really wasn’t hurting anyone (she wasn’t one to let the trash and dishes pile up). But it took months to sort everything after she passed.
As for TV, these days I’m addicted to Top Chef. Love, love, love it.
Karen Rose on 15 Sep 2009 at 6:07 am #
Kathy, if it made you want to clean, maybe I should watch it!
I’m currently bingeing on BONES. Love the witty writing. DavidB isn’t so bad either.
Rachel, my husband and I watched this documentary about people who are movie addicts. They live in NYC and go to all these film festivals All The Time. Many are on disability and don’t work a job, but make it to the theaters all over the city for these eclectic films. One of the women had kept the ticket from every movie she’d ever seen. Her apt was packed with stacks of newspapers, magazines, all the trash she couldn’t throw away. Hubby used this documentary in his psychology class to demonstrate obsessive disorders.
Incidentally, this woman had been banned from one theater because she’d attacked the ticket taker. She was new and didn’t know the old woman kept all her tickets. The girl tried to tear the ticket and the woman lunged for her. Very scary, especially as you wouldn’t know it to look at her. You only got the crazy side when you set her off.
Mmmm, another serial killer plot?
Karen Hawkins on 15 Sep 2009 at 6:20 am #
Karen Rose, that’s scary that she was so emotionally attached that she would try to harm another person for something so innocuous. Makes you thinks she might snap and they’ll find her with an AK-47 at Costco, her pockets full of ticket stubs.
I love HGTV decorating shows … Clean House, Design on a Dime, Makeover Ambush. They all make me look at my own home with a more critical eye and yes, even clean more. Can’t beat a fun show that makes your own life a little better.
Now if I could just get the same benefit from watching shows about personal styles!
Oh, and one other show I’ve been watching — Rescue Me. Loooove that show.
Kathy on 15 Sep 2009 at 6:40 am #
BONES! I lurve that show!
I started watching because I followed him from Buffy and Angel, but really got into it.
I’m going through my dvd sets right now of the first 2 seasons and will put the rest on hold from the library to catch up on. I do like to re watch my dvd sets.
TrishD on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:05 am #
My dad’s mom was a hoarder. When she moved out of her house I helped him and his brother clean it out. We found food in her freezer with dates of the late ’60’s early ’70’s. Scary! My dad is a selective hoarder, he won’t get rid of a single National Geographic magazine. They have boxes and bags filled with them and my mom begs him throw them away, or donate them if throwing them away is too difficult for him.
I’m a hoarder of books… all kinds. I probably have over 100+ kids books, my out of date textbooks from college, a collection of Shakespear, a complete collection of Steven King (and even though I don’t read him anymore, I have to buy every book he writes), old books I’ll never read that were my grandmothers (I couldn’t let my dad give them away!), every book I’ve read over the past 5 years and boxes of books at my parent’s house that I packed up 10 years ago when I moved back home. I don’t remember what books are in the boxes but I can’t give them up.
elsiehogarth on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:06 am #
HGTV all the way. I can watch anything and everything on that channel. All day. My favorite is House Hunters International.
I can’t wait for all my regulars shows to start like: CSI Vegas, NY & Miami, Heroes, Law & Order SVU & CI, and 30 Rock. The new shows I like so far this season are: Glee (Jane Lynch is the funniest person on the planet) and the Vampire Diaries has potential.
TrishD on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:16 am #
My TV addictions? NCIS! And I’m soon to add NCIS: Los Angeles. My recent discovery? You can watch entire episodes of NCIS from last season on the CBS web site. It’s a sad, sad world when you don’t even have to leave your house to feed your addiction. The best part? I can feed it while wearing my PJ’s!
KarenC on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:16 am #
I think I’m a semi-hoarder because I keep a lot of weird things on-hand. A section of our garage is marked off for recyclables – a box for glass, another for plastics, etc. Now, that stuff goes away. We don’t have curbside recycling so once/mth we make the trip to the recycling center ourselves, but right next to that stuff is 3 more boxes, my Reuse boxes. They are for collecting 2ltr bottles, Pringles & coffee cans, paper towel tubes — whatever I think I might need for a craft projects for scouts, 4-H, whatever. I do use these items eventually and everything gets washed out before it goes to the basement. (I am terrified of mice. LOL.) But still. If it’s about time for us to make a run to the recycling center, the basement definitely looks JUNKY.
As for TV…I watch 2 shows and 2 shows only: TrueBlood and Survivor. Hopelessly addicted to both shows, but especially Survivor, haven’t missed a single episode. Though that did require a little extra effort on my part when we started regular Thursday night mtgs about 3yrs ago. DD tapes it for us now so as soon as we get home, bwa haha ha.
Margaret on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:19 am #
I haven’t heard of that show, Rachel, but I’m sure going to set it up for DVR. I live in a mobile home. There was a woman next door when I first moved in who was a definite hoarder. She had a car that had been sitting in her drive for about 7-8 years when I moved in. It sat there for so long there were 4 deep ruts in the asphalt when it was finally hauled away. Her car was like the one Rachel describes. Only room for Wanda to drive. She couldn’t even see out the rear view mirror. You always knew it was Wanda if you saw it around town. Tons of fast food bags & wrappers.
Our front doors faced each other but we had pretty good space between us. In the 8 years she was here after I moved in, she never, once, put out the trash. One day, I came home and realized her front door was leaning in. No ajar. Leaning in from the top. I called the office as she wasn’t home. Turned out the door couldn’t fall in flat because there were bags of trash keeping it from doing so. The upshot was that she was evicted. It took days & 5 big dumpsters to empty the place out. We’re talking a 2 BR single wide here. About 900 sq ft. When it was empty, they just bulldozed it and hauled it away.
dbrown3400 on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:26 am #
There was a woman who lived in our building who had VHS tapes she’d recorded stacked in every available space. Now she’s moved across the street to the Sr. citizens housing and, from what I’ve been told, has done the same thing there in a much larger apartment. She records the programs, but when does she have time to watch them?
I’m not much better myself. I’ve bought books as though they were going to stop printing them tomorrow. I own thousands, which I thought I would read upon retirement. No one can read that fast! I also have many collectibles that I believed I would sell. Now, that seems too time consuming unless I want to give up all my TV habits which are listed below.
After baseball, baseball and more baseball, with some football now thrown in for good measure, I’m also one of the Bones addicts. I’m thrilled that the season opener is this Thursday! I like the CSIs and am eager for their new shows as well. I will admit that I always have some program on in the background while I’m reading.
Margaret on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:28 am #
I’m with Elsie on HGTV. I DVR both Home Hunters and HH International. It’s amazing the differences between what Americans look for in a home and what Europeans do. It seems to me that the French and Italians don’t have ovens. At least, not in the shows I’ve seen. Here people want 2 ovens for goodness sakes.
Lately, I’ve become addicted to Yard Crashers. I want to bring that guy home. Or would if I had a yard. It’s fabulous what they can do in 2 days.
I also like Bones. One of the few network shows I watch. Maybe the only one. DWTS when it’s on. Which will be later this month. The Dog Whisperer. Haulin’ House. The History Channel if a show interests me.
I’ve given up on Jon & Kate Plus 8. Too painful to watch these days. I feel so sorry for those kids.
JudyPatooty on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:43 am #
I just watched my first episode of Hoarders this weekend. I had been channel surfing and happened upon it. How sad and frustrating it was! I’m not sure I want to watch any more episodes. It was so depressing. I’ve never known any hoarders personally, but my sister said that her husband’s aunt was a big-time shopping addict/hoarder whose house was stuffed to the gills with more stuff than you can imagine. My sister said it was very hard to go over to her house because it was so depressing and strange.
My TV addictions have been True Blood (I can’t believe I have to wait so many more months for Season 3 to arrive!!), Bones (yaay – the season premiere is next week!), No Reservations (with Anthony Bourdain). Oh, and I started watching Castle at the end of last season and really liked it, so it’s on my schedule for this seaon as well (Mmmm. Nathan Fillion! He should be a Sunday FROS!) And, of course there are my two PBS series that I’ll never tire of – Antiques Roadshow and History Detectives.
Claudia Dain on 15 Sep 2009 at 7:48 am #
Rachel, I saw the ads for Hoarders and knew I couldn’t bear to watch. Those people need help. Why not just live in a dumpster? It would be easier, and cheaper.
My f-i-l is a bit of a hoarder. I throw things away when he isn’t looking. Or he’ll give me something he thinks I might want (ha) and I’ll just quietly throw it out. I’m a purger, not a hoarder.
I love too many shows on TV. That’s my sad addiction.
Kim on 15 Sep 2009 at 8:08 am #
LOL. I could just see poor organized Claudia watching Hoarders. It would send her over the edge. I haven’t seen this yet but I’m thinking about it.
Me-I have the opposite problem. Gil and I get in a mood and we’ll get rid of practically everything. There isn’t too much stuff I’m emotionally tied to.
Currently, I’m watching reruns of 90210. Next Monday and the season premiere of 2 & 1/2 Men can’t come fast enough. I hate that Mia is coming back. Charlie should be with Rose. Dangit.
Rachel Gibson on 15 Sep 2009 at 8:29 am #
Mr.G used to be a bit of a hoarder. He “saved” boxes and coffee cans. He had a storage shed filled with them, and each box was filled with smaller and smaller boxes like stacking toys. I think what saved him from being a full blown hoarder is that I HATE clutter.
Kathy, I can’t watch the Duggars. I just feel really bad for all those children.
Sabrina Jeffries on 15 Sep 2009 at 8:38 am #
I’ve heard about Hoarders, but I don’t think I could stand to watch it. It’s like that house-cleaning show. I can’t bear to watch it. It’s so gross. I’m a bit of a pack rat, but I don’t think I’m a hoarder. I find it hard to get rid of things I might use, especially for crafts (KarenC, I so totally understand what you’re talking about). I do reuse some of it, but probably not nearly as much as I keep, which is crazy, I know, but at least I have a designated part of the house to keep it in.
But I’ve slowly been trying to get rid of stuff. The clutter is driving me crazy!
As for shows, I, like Trish and JudyF, am totally addicted to NCIS. I discovered it in reruns halfway through last year’s season, and just gorged on it. Now I’ve seen all but about 10 episodes, which I’ve got written down in a Word file so I can catch them. That’s probably the only show, though, that I don’t mind watching in reruns even when I’ve seen the episode. I just love that show.
I do want to try out Castle, however. Everyone keeps recommending it to me. When is it on?
Jennifer on 15 Sep 2009 at 8:45 am #
My grandmother/mother were/are hoarders. My grandmother would save used lightbulbs and dirty tissues. But she was a mild hoarder. Tons of clutter and old junk, and 40 year old food in her freezer. My mom, though, was one of those filthy hoarders, with food and nastiness all around her. It got progressively worse. I grew up in a house filled with filth, where walking through required dodging a mine field of things, and trying to cook food involved moving around rotted food and dishes that hadn’t been washed in weeks. Before she had to be put in a home, my mom’s house was floor-to-ceiling boxes, nearly wall-to-wall as well, with paths leading from one room to the next. When she finally moved out, it cost over $3,000 just to remove the biological waste from the house, which didn’t include any of the items that were salvageable. It’s a wonder that my mother even survived, considering that she didn’t have room in her fridge, so she would leave food on the counters — and she would eat it. Turkey that had been left out for days. *shiver* I tried, literally, for YEARS to get her help. It is so difficult to force someone to get help when they don’t think they need it. cont.
Jennifer on 15 Sep 2009 at 8:51 am #
Short of calling the cops and having her cited (she didn’t have the money to pay!), there was really nothing that could be done. Worst of all, my stepfather was a hoarder as well. When he died, his children came to take away some of his things, but it was incredibly difficult to determine what was his and what was hers. He collected big things, too, like cars (and old firetrucks). The 1 acre lot was filled with STUFF. The storage areas were overflowing. Animals would, of course, try to forrage at the house. So my mom would shoot them. Even though it was illegal, she had a baby alligator head in her freezer. It IS a mental illness, as has been mentioned, but your everyday average shrink has little-to-no idea of how to manage it. It really takes someone specializing in OCDs to control the behavior. And if there are other mental illnesses at play, it’s not going to work anyway, because the hoarder will fight it incessantly. Now my mom carries around a bag filled with trash and papers, and THINGS, and she keeps it with her always. At least that’s relatively harmless. The nurses won’t let her get away with more. It’s just incredibly sad all around, especially for loved ones.
Rachel Gibson on 15 Sep 2009 at 9:10 am #
Oh and my other tv addictions are True Blood and Hung. I also like Paranormal State and Ghost Hunters.
Claudia Dain on 15 Sep 2009 at 9:45 am #
Kim, just watching the ads almost sent me over the edge. I think I was whimpering.
nancyg on 15 Sep 2009 at 9:47 am #
I’ve never watched Hoarders, but have seen it advertised. I used to be a pack rat, but am learning to let things go. I’ve been in the process of going through every box, drawer, storage container in the house.
This year my goal is to pare down the holiday decorations…
TV addictions? does Tivo count? Actually, love Bones & Castle, Entourage, The Tudors; Drop Dead Diva (on Lifetime) is my new one. Pretty much anything that starts with a dead body – The Mentalist, Criminal Minds, Law & Order… I used to love Nip/Tuck, but they went too far out there even for me. Sad that The Starter Wife got canceled – love Debra Messing. I just have season passes on my Tivo & turn on shows for background when I’m doing laundry, housework, or cooking (which seems to be ALL the time!). I’ve given up on “live” TV.
Oh, and Jeopardy (when I remember) – I love to scoff at the TV and say to the contestants, “How did you not know that?”
Wow – didn’t think I watched that much television until I started listing… I need to get a life!
Suzanne Enoch on 15 Sep 2009 at 9:48 am #
Rachel, I think we’re TV twins. Hoarders, True Blood, Paranormal State, Ghost Hunters — yep.
Hoarders is so sad, and a fascinating character study. It’s horrifying in a way to see a woman choose a broken waffle maker over a relationship with her daughter.
I, too, watch too much TV. Favorites: Monk, Castle, Supernatural, The Closer, Burn Notice, NCIS, and Bones.
karenmc on 15 Sep 2009 at 11:53 am #
An old woman named Virginia lived at the other end of my block. Her house was full of newspapers, as was her ancient station wagon. She and her dog lived in the car and the local police didn’t bother to ticket her because she had no license or insurance. Feral cats lived in the crawlspace of the house. Virginia refused help from social service agencies and eventually died of cancer.
I love NCIS, and try to catch Property Virgins on HGTV, because Sandra always tells the home seekers the truth (and sometimes they end up not buying anything). Also, I’m eagerly waiting for season two of Ashes to Ashes on BBC America.
2 of 12 steps Ellen on 15 Sep 2009 at 12:57 pm #
OKAY…OKAY!
What’s with all the addiction blogs? Yesterday I came screaming out of the closet with my celebrity gossip addiction and today you want to know about my TV habit??? You asked for it.
I ONLY watch cooking, decorating, renovating and reality. I was front and center when Sheree pulled off Kim’s wig. I will be there next week with popcorn watching Kim’s quadruple “Ds” faint on the sidewalk. I currently know the name of most Top Chefs in the USA and somehow still manage to be frequent McDonalds instead of “The French Laundry.”
I’m completely fascinated with the over use of Botox on both Padma and ALL the housewives. I have learned that it is not easy to say “Pack up your knives…” without moving a single muscle on your face. Try it. Padma is a genius, I say!
Let me guess…Tomorrow’s Blog will be “Raise your hand if you like to drink wine.”
Lisa H on 15 Sep 2009 at 1:47 pm #
My mil is a bit of hoarder. She definitely has some mental issues. My sil tried to help her out by cleaning, but my mil refuses strange things like: removing spider webs. She tells my sil that if the web is gone, the spider will get in her bed and bite her. The other thing, is she refuses to let my sil clean the toilet with anything besides plain water. She believes the chemicals will burn her flesh. There are piles of old stuff everywhere like old phone books, old knick knacks, salt and pepper shakers, mail from 10 years ago she might need someday. It’s really sad. I think she is in the beginning stages of some kind of dementia. She is very sweet but very stubborn and will not change one iota no matter what anyone says to her. Very sad.
Judy F on 15 Sep 2009 at 4:26 pm #
MY dad when he was at home was a moderate hoarder. He had a ton of magazines under the coffee table cause you know there might be an article you might need. He does have I swear every nut and bolt that he ever found down in his work room. Again you never know when you might need it. LOL
Those shows make me cry but I also felt better about my cleaning standards compared to my perfect sister
Tina on 15 Sep 2009 at 6:27 pm #
Bones starts again on Thursday.
Next Monday is Castle.
NCIS is next Tuesday.
evlqn on 15 Sep 2009 at 6:30 pm #
I am not a hoarder but I am a light weight pack rat. My mom is a heavy duty pack rat. I do tend to keep many many books; but that’s not hoarding it is just cherishing the printed word, no really it is!
My favorite shows to watch are NCIS, Castle, and Bones; soon it will be Burn Notice. I love Monk and I am sorry that it is ending. I also love the HGTV shows and a lot of Discovery and History channel shows. ACE of Cakes is a huge guilty pleasure for me too, Duff is so cute.
Patricia Barraclough on 15 Sep 2009 at 9:18 pm #
I guess I’m a hoarder of sorts. I have way too many books, 20+ bookcases full and 30+ boxes full. I work at a library, so I really shouldn’t have so many. We have been renovating a 1998 house for over 15 years and things have remained in boxes. I’m not to the point of being totally overrun, but I need to start parting with things. I do a lot of craft and children’s activities so there are a lot of odds and ends I’d use for that. I need a long time off to work on sorting and getting rid of stuff.
No TV addictions. Have several series favorites that will be starting back up – Bones, NCIS, House – and some new ones I’m curious about. The one show I really look forward to is The Amazing Race. I so want to be on that show.
Terri on 16 Sep 2009 at 6:25 am #
My latest obsession is “How to Look Good Naked”. I never miss this show. I want to feel that sure of myself.
As for hoarders, my ex’s mother was a hoarder. When she had a house fire, we thought that would help since she was starting with a clean slate. Underlying cause wasn’t addressed and it wasn’t long before new house looked the same way.