Thursday, May 12, 2011

Hoarders


I thought about putting a sample of some of the fiction that I've been working on up, but I'm not ready to do that yet. So instead, I'll write about Hoarders. Ever watch this show? It's basically about people across America (there are probably hoarders in other parts of the world as well, but this show focuses on American hoarders) that have stacks and stacks of just STUFF in their houses. By the time that they are on the show, they are overwhelmed by their possessions, many living in almost (or sometimes completely) squalid conditions.

A theme seems to be ownership of many animals, although some of the hoarders have no pets at all. The primary characteristic is the inability to throw away even the most trivial of items, such as gum wrappers or animal fur (!).

It's actually a pretty sad story, although some seem very content with their situation. I think that we probably all know someone like this: holding on to items that are ragged and useless, or just struggling under a mountain of possessions.

I admit, I like stuff, but watching this show makes me want to clean and purge! I recently went through my closet and got rid of some stuff that I had been holding on to needlessly, as well as selling off or donating books and movies that  I will never read nor watch again. I love the library!

What do you think? Have you ever watched Hoarders?

2 comments:

Sarah said...

Yes, I have watched many an episode of hoarders. It is such an odd thing to me. I am more of an anti hoarder, constantly getting rid of stuff and careful not to take in useless crap (this can be a challenge with kids). But yeah, I love the show. The worst case they profiled was the toothless old lady who was hoarding animals. DId you see this one? She had a bunch of chickens all crammed into a crates which were too small. There was animal feces all throughout her home. It was very disgusting and sad. Then her family came along to squabble like hill billies. They were a nasty bunch.

Wandering Appalachian said...

No, but it sounds like I need to. Wow! I love it, but it kind of scares me.