Chaos Reigns

We’ve been in the process of renovating our house over the last three years. My husband and I made the HUGE mistake of buying materials for several major projects up front, making decisions on the spot that should have been deferred and made one project at a time. We ended up with a house and garage filled with materials — cabinetry, paint, flooring, tile. We still have not finished painting the interior walls. Our framed artwork and photos lean up against walls or lay in piles on tabletops or in boxes. We have painted most of the downstairs when the interior painting was put on hold so that my husband could install hardwood floors. Then we renovated our bathrooms. Our dry-rotted exterior siding has been replaced. Last Sunday we primed the exterior paint. We also must eventually re-landscape the backyard. Our dogs enjoy the raised open beds too much. Too much fun to dig, bury, and redig. We’ve decided to eventually cede the backyard to our dogs.

Sound overwhelming and chaotic? It is. You should have seen our house when the living room was for months FULL of boxes of oak flooring. Our dining room table sharing space with bathroom cabinetry. Then, my husband decided to buy a HUGE weight set through Craigslist. Forgive me, I’m venting. The weight set is 8 ft long by 7 ft high by 7 ft wide. It is absolutely ridiculous. My husband and son are NOT serious body builders. My husband was a runner. My son is into downhill mountain bike riding. They are both lean and long-legged. My son insists on working on his bikes in the house. So, I’m embarrassed to have anyone over. EVER. I don’t see the point in cleaning because I feel so overwhelmed and buried by the chaos.


Comments

31 responses to “Help My World is Chaos”

  1. […] saw some organizing I had to do – files in the wrong folder. Got to keep my data organized if not my home or my mind. At least this is something I can control or that I want to exert some control […]

  2. […] house is a mess. Clutter surrounds us on every horizontal surface. I’m not the best house-keeper in the […]

  3. Thank you, totsymae. Nice to know I’m in good, creative company. Love your illustrations. Look forward to checking out more of your work.

  4. Years ago I gave up trying to control the chaos in my life.

  5. Sounds a little like my basement, only you’ve got a whole lot more going on. Stuff will take over the house, for sure.

  6. Whoa! I can’t function in chaos. I can’t relax, feel insecure, muddled. End up having a meltdown, crying, throwing tantrums. I take my hat off to you. You seem to be coping remarkably well

  7. I wonder if engineers are designed a certain way? My husband, too, is an engineer. Great ideas. Thanks.

  8. Unfortunately, I get overwhelmed by my own messiness. Years ago I was tidiier, but over the years I’ve become more overwhelmed by the prospect of cleaning and my home has become messier. When my son was young, I used baskets to hold his toys. We had baskets surrounding the perimeter of our living room filled with Nerf guns and Legos.

  9. Yes, we are going through the same thing. We have hired help to get some of the projects done, too. Now we are in the final phases (painting). Can’t wait until we are done. The house will still be somewhat messy, but not quite as chaotic.

  10. It has something to do with being a visual thinker.

  11. Hahaha! Kitt! I’m glad you’ve got my back. 😉 I meant everything is literally boxed up, so I had nothing to physically throw at him. Like a coffee cup. I was just throwing some humor in there. I do that when I get “episodal” and yes I do speak crapanese and I do make up words. 🙂

  12. Don’t want to box it all up, Lisa. Better to talk about your feelings. Your husband loves you. I’m sure he’d listen. If not, I’ll lecture him on his blog about it. 🙂

  13. Oh, Kitt, I would be forever leaving the house to obtain some sanity. I feel for you. I have ADD on top of bp. I live alone, so it’s easier to control. I have to put everything in place at night before I got to bed so I wake up to an uncluttered home every morning. I discovered my answer was LOTS of labeled baskets.
    Oh, gosh, so glad you felt safe enough to vent here. Sometimes, you’ve just gotta get those emotions out of your body. Pounding on the keyboard is a good way to do that.
    Love to you. <3

  14. Yeah. You probably handled it totally better than I would have… I’ve only had one serious meltdown and since everything is boxed up I had nothing to throw. ;)LOL

  15. I can completely relate. When I was married, it would take us years to finish a house project with the rest of the house torn up. Plus, my husband was a collector (not quite a border). Luckily, he had a shop where he was willing to keep all his stuff. Eventually, we had to hire the work done so it would get done.

  16. Oh I get really mad when Jack cleans up my stuff, too, and feel the same way. When it’s messy I know where most things are — when he cleans it I don’t.

  17. Peace and light kitti,

    Grief happens has an idea l was about to suggest. It worked for me largely too. When l was married to an engineer, imagine all his tools etc even under our bed. I once did a post on how l became a professional cleaner. It was triggered by nuts like that. I dreaded going back home from work unless to wade thru and sleep. One day, l got fet up, trashed out lots, re painted and sectioned Masters bedroom and of course the kitchen, as my spaces. I put some little table in there and soon my boys and l ate in there, and watched TV in my or their room. X could still junk living room. There has to be some compromise, meetings, and all.
    All the best my friend

  18. Honestly, though it stresses me out, I, too, am part of the problem. I simply get overwhelmed at the tasks at hand.

  19. I completely relate to this. I’m sorry. It is so hard. I need an uncluttered space, but I get so frustrated because I’m not the main person making the house messy. Your husband sounds like my husband. Again, I am sorry. One thing that has worked for me, or at least has made the situation more tolerable is to carve out one area that is “mine” and I make sure that it is to my liking. For me this is the master bedroom/bath area. My husband still forgets and leaves stuff out but he and I had a long talk about my needs in this regard. He’s very quick to pick up stuff in this room when I remind him, and he’s managed to keep all his projects in other areas. I still get frustrated, but this has made it so much better. Something about knowing that I can retreat to a clean area makes a huge difference in my mood.

  20. If I tidy up my son or husband’s things, they get upset because they see their stuff and cannot find their stuff.

  21. Yes. When my husband installed hardwood floors, we had to box up everything and move the boxes and furniture out of the rooms. Moving stuff, boxing and unboxing, trying to decide where to put everything, can be totally overwhelming.

  22. I don’t live by myself. Other people add to the clutter. I often don’t know what to do with the ongoing incoming clutter such as mail. Try to do as much as possible online, but clutter still makes its way inside our home. Drives me nuts.

  23. My chaos is with toys, but I often feel the same way. Why clean them all up when he’s just going to dump them out as soon as I do? I’d rather just kick them to the side or step over them.

    The dishes, on the other hand, I’m still struggling with.

  24. We’re moving right now so I’m a bit overwhelmed myself. It is very frustrating. I can’t imagine it being too long or I would be a train wreck. It makes you tired too.

  25. Oh yea I hate clutter (it messes with my OCD). If I could start from scratch, I would have my house in a Japanese style, very minimalistic and subtle. Either that or get into a self-sufficient tiny house.

    Good luck!

  26. It agitates me, too, but I’m too overwhelmed to do anything about it, and my men like to “see” everything. if I put something away, I’ve hidden it, and unfortunately, I have a poor memory.

  27. Nice to meet you, too, Laura Jo. Not sure if my household will ever be in order. Oh, well.

  28. I’m always shooting for a minimalist approach. My mind is cluttered enough. House clutter agitates me when I am manic. It is not pretty.

  29. Chaos is hard! I appreciate our ‘lived in’ house, but when it’s difficult to carry out the basic functions do everyday life, it loses it’s charm. Sometimes I want to have a huge yard sale and become a minimalist.

  30. laurajo115 Avatar

    And doesn’t that chaos hurt your brain? I know it does mine in my house. But add dog fur, too! Wait, you have dogs, too…
    Thanks for sharing my stuff today. It’s very nice to meet you!
    Laura Jo

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