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?

Vanity Sizing

So in an act of spring cleaning, I decided to clean out my closet. I’m tired of fighting through clothes that I don’t wear to get to the ones that I do wear. My closet space is unfortunately limited, and I’m tired of keeping things that could be useful to someone else.

So I tried on all of the “maybes” in my closet, vowing to donate anything that didn’t fit. I was astounded at the variance in sizes. One pair of slacks that I bought and never wore stated that they were in my size (and from a retailer that I usually shop with), and were far, far too big. I guess that’s why I never wore them, despite the fact that they were cute and professional. Next, I tried on a skirt in the same size, that was so bloody tight that I felt pain in my abdomen after I finally wrestled it off!

I know that vanity sizing is the big thing now, and yeah, of course it feels good to be in a smaller size. It makes it very impractical though in this fast-paced world. I have to try on every pair of pants to make sure that the size is accurate (and I’m beginning to ponder the term “accurate” in regards to women’s clothing these days). My husband says that men’s sizes are going the same way, and that he’s gone down in size, without losing weight or inches from his waistline.

For shopping online, it’s quite a bit of work, especially since jeans are now designed to sit not at the waist, but more at the hips, and it is difficult to determine just where a certain company defines as the hip.

What are your thoughts? I didn’t mean for this to sound like a rant, just an observation.

Book Recommendations

So what do you do when your local library is never open? I really hate to purchase books, unless I really love them. I simply do not have the room to store them. Does anyone know of any great paperback exchanges, or other ways to obtain books?

Pretty Vacant

Job-hunting is the worst. How many times can one be rejected before she starts to feel that everything she touches turns to dust (or some other lower matter)? I'm trying to beat these recession blues with exercise and a positive attitude, but I keep slipping. I'm getting no movement on my books, no acknowledgments or call-backs on the resumes that I send out (and I've sent probably 1000 at this point), and now it seems that socially people have regressed into a high school mode.

I'll probably take this down -- I worry too much about what I put on the internet -- because people will read it and think something -- and I really worry far too much about people liking me and thinking less of me, etc.

Augh

Not to sound like Garfield, but I really hate Mondays.

groan and double groan

I think that I killed my car. It wanted to meet a tree.No, I was not drunk. Just a lousy driver.

Le sigh.