My aunt is a hoarder!

United States
April 5, 2010 6:17pm CST
This weekend, my aunt had to have someone come into her house, clean out her utility room because her dog found a snake in there. Today, I finally got a chance to see it. The room is spacious. She could convert it into another guest room if she wanted to. Before, I could only take three steps inside before I collided into a wall of junk. Frankly, I was scared to go in there because things were towering overhead in every direction. It was a fire hazard. Now it is cleared out and organized. Even my aunt is shocked about how much extra space she has now. I thought that this was the beginning of a good thing. Maybe she would realize that keeping stuff mountain up is only asking for dangerous critters (i.e. snakes) to come in and hide out in your house. I thought wrong. My aunt wanted her old lamp back in the room. Not because it worked or she uses it for anything, but because it's hers. She vehemently told us that she doesn't throw anything away. I know that once she gets that lamp in, she'll want some more of her old things and before we know it, it'll be just like it was before. I know she is not a serious hoarder, but the potential is there. Her bedroom- the smallest room in the house- is filled up with two dressers, three tables, a large broken chair, a queen bed and a television. Only one person can move in that space comfortably. I wish she would throw away the things that don't work or give away things that she doesn't use anymore. But as she always tells us, she doesn't throw anything away. Do you know a hoarder? Are you a hoarder? Do you ever find yourself unable to throw anything away, not because of sentimental reasons but because its yours?
3 people like this
7 responses
• Indonesia
6 Apr 10
Having aunt was a pleasure. But if he exaggerated to us. yes I did not want him.
1 person likes this
• Malaysia
5 Apr 10
i think basically, we tend to hoard. but there other people who are not hoarders at all. their houses are spacious and neat. they have a store room that keeps items like travelling bags, plates and dishes used for festive occassions and other items for specific purposes like decorative items like for chinese new years decoration and the likes. in their rooms, clothings and wardrobes are neat and not overflowing, not bursting at the seams. they spring clean their rooms and throw our items not in use for 1 year or so. some use the 6 months bench marks.then i know of people who do spring cleaning of books and magazines. old books and magazines are donated to schools and libraries. or they bring to hospitals and donate for patients reading while waiting for doctors to attend to them. i also know of people who hoard even plastic bags and paper bags. they keep wrapping papers for years because they think they may use or simply the wrapping papers are nice.some keep bottles of various sizes, especially empty perfume bottles. some keep old plates and treat them like antique pieces. i have met one person whose house has so many antique clocks and watches.its like an antique clock shop. there are so many varied reasons for hoarding. personally i clean out my belongings once a year or even less and i give away the items to relatives, friends ( if they want or need them) , charities and the church. they have better use of them instead of stagnating in my home. i encourage my family members to do so. to me, if i dont 'throw out', there is no place for new items to come in as i dont want to crowd my rooms in my home. i want to feel the 'breeze', the vibrant and the sunlight coming through the doors and windows into my home and to have good circulation of freash air in every nooks and corners of my house. in a way, in the long run, i tend to buy items that i neede instead of what i want.i feel good as i dont buy on impulses and start keeping them. i am glad i can discipline myself in this area. this is my way of not hoarding and doing away with hoarding in my home.
1 person likes this
@cream97 (29087)
• United States
26 Jun 10
Hi, vjenkins86. I know that my father-in-law reminds me of an hoarder. He used to have an old stove that he sat his microwave oven on. The stove did not even work at all. He even had an old wooden cooking stove that he used too. I wished that he would just throw this old thing out into the garbage. He could have bought another new one instead. He just chose to hang onto the old wooden stove that he had for many years. I was tired of seeing and smelling the old wooden stove. I think that your aunt should throw out anything that she is not using. When she cleans out all of her junk, she will find that she has so much space left. I don't want a snake getting into my personal things at all. I would rather just clean my mess up than to have all of this going on. It is best to let go of all of the unnecessary clutter.
• United States
6 Apr 10
I am not a hoarder. I tend to toss anything I haven't used in a year or so. I hate clutter. My Grandma is a hoarder and saves everything. I think she is afraid of going without and stock piles the stuff. she has been though some rough times in her life. Over the last couple months she has finally started to throw some useless things away. We went though her bathroom and she had bottles of lotion from 30 years ago and we still had to talk her into tossing it lol. It funny but not. good luck!
@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
6 Apr 10
My great-grandfather never threw anything away. Many of things that he kept were broken and very old, but he wanted to keep everything. In his attic there were lots of old magazines from the 40's and when I was a child I loved to read those magazines, because they were so different from the magazines that you can buy today. In his attic he also had some of my uncle's old things, and sometimes my grandmother let me read his old comics, I loved that, too. Next to my great-grandfather's house there was a stable and some workworkshops and he had lots of very old tools that didn't work anymore. He was definately a hoarder. When I was a child I also wanted to keep everything, and when my parents wanted to tease me they told that I was like my great-grandfather. Now I am an adult and I have become the opposite type of person. I hate clutter, and I only want to keep the things that are really important to me and the things that I know I am going to use again. The rest of my things I give away to friends or to charity.
@HelloMickey (1655)
• Hong Kong
7 Apr 10
Hello vjenkins86 My cousin's uncle is a hoarder and he likes to keep stuff around his house. I think he doesn't want to waste anything, he was poor when he was small, so he tends to keep things and don't want to waste.
@lelin1123 (15595)
• Puerto Rico
6 Apr 10
In 2001 I spent weeks cleaning out my parents home because they were moving out of State. This house had a basement plus two floors and an attic. It was filled with nothing but junk. Why you ask because my mom can't throw anything away. She had magazines from the 1970's this was in 2001. Can you imagine. So what I learned from this experience was never to keep things unnecessarily. So each month I get rid of papers and magazines and keep things in my house in order. I don't like clutter at all. As for my mom I know she has gotten better in her new home but I think its because she has less space to clutter.