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#i am the box hoarder
violetren · 5 months
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Growing up ma and I never had much money. More than some for sure; enough that I was always fed and warm and could even buy books every couple of weeks as I went through them, but always one late paycheck or missed bill away from being at risk of going without all those things.
And it's easy not to notice what kind of effect that has had until I have to clean out excess stuff so that I can properly clean my house.
There are cupboards and drawers and even a few side tables that I haven't had cause to touch or open or look at in months, sometimes even years, nothing in or on them is of vital importance to my daily life and even in those odd times of needing a super specific thing either that thing exists somewhere I use regularly, or I buy it. I need to emphasise just how badly there is nothing in or on any of these places that I need or use in my life. It's just stuff taking up space that could be tidier or better utilised.
But every god's damned fucking time I go clear one off or out I am suddenly confronted with the fact that it's potentially useful stuff. I might need that notepad, or that nail filing kit, or that dusty bottle of lotion. And even if I don't how can I just throw out a perfectly usable item? People need stuff, people might be able to use this stuff, except it's all junk stuff literally all of it would get thrown in a dumpster if I were to take it to a charity because it's old, partially used, or cannot be sold due to safety concerns. So it should go in the trash because that is what it is, but what if it isn't and how can I be this ungrateful and so the cycle fucking goes until I am standing there, garbage bag in hand, culturally poor and on the verge of tears from the weirdest combo of unnecessary guilt and decision fatigue.
The side table still isn't clean.
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mattodore · 11 months
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I would like to shamelessly and respectfully ask about the bed talk between Matthias and Theo.
your mind... yeah, i'll talk about this. slipping my reply under a readmore for this one bc i'm just going to speak candidly <3
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so on theo's part, he doesn't say much during sex. in the same way he has a lot of difficulty expressing his feelings inside his relationship with matthias, he also has a hard time expressing his desires. theo is... kind of mired down by shame and repression. like, even when theo is actively fucking men he's still repressing a lot of what he really wants and feels. it's interesting, though, because he definitely isn't shy about sex. it's just... he can't speak what he wants out loud, because then he might really get it, you know? and i think he's scared by how that would feel... like having it be that easy to get what he wants after all the years of shutting everything up inside his heart and burying it down so deep. honestly, theo has a hard time even making sounds during sex. he holds his breath, bites on matthias's arms, clenches his teeth... he's just always holding himself back. he can't help it, really.
matthias can sometimes get a few words out of theo if he's prompting them, though. he likes to make theo say please 🙄... and i think matthias will prod and ask theo if it's good, if he likes it, and theo will kind of nod and say yeah, yeah it's good... and i think during those first few times, that question makes theo flush real fast and get all teary. because it really does feel good... and i think theo needs that. and i think he probably... god, well... i think he sort of realizes that he's never really had anything as good in his life. not, like... not in a wow-matthias-is-a-sex-god way, but in a way where it's like, okay. theo is being treated well. time and care went into making sure he wasn't hurt. he's being listened to and matthias is carefully watching each of his reactions. when he says stop, matthias stops. and theo never had that before. so... it's very intense and it's probably both the hardest thing theo's ever had to say during sex while also being the easiest. the crying is an emotional release.
matthias, on the other hand... as you can probably already tell by, well... every other bit of information i've shared about this man... he's filthy. i do think matthias is more sweet with theo than he's ever been with any of his previous sexual partners, but nonetheless... he's still kind of nasty even with theo. i mean, one of his main character traits is his amorality and a complete lack of shame or guilt for anything he feels. so he's very uninhibited and you can definitely tell by the way he talks during sex. every word under the sun that you think is too perverse is probably going to be said while he's fucking someone. i think he really enjoys saying and doing things that society at large deem as Reprehensible... like, just in general. so. yeah, he gets off on saying/doing the things most would gasp and clutch their pearls at.
with that said, matthias does actually tone it down for theo's sake, because i think theo isn't necessarily comfortable with half of what matthias says lmao. but matthias still pushes theo sometimes, because he has this scary accurate sense of what theo needs, and he knows that theo desperately needs to have some of that shame razed from his skin... and what better a way to do it than by making theo realize the things he's so scared of can actually turn him on so bad it makes him shake? so... he talks a lot. it's sort of one-sided, but he's always asking rhetoricals anyway, so i think he's fine with that. however, he definitely doesn't like that theo doesn't make sounds often... tho that changes pretty fast when he starts having fun with it... 🙄 he sees it as a game, like, just where do i need to touch, how far do i push, what do i need to say, to make this little mouse squeak... HORRIBLE MAN.
but when matthias gets theo worked up enough that theo's too dazed to tamp the sounds down, matthias actually starts being incredibly sweet. lots of you're so lovelys and i'd never let anyone hurt yous (...) fall pretty fast from his lips. and he kisses theo alllllllll over. lots of cheek kisses in particular, because he really likes theo's cheeks. and, to clarify, it's not always dirty talk in the bedroom... sometimes it's just intimacy and matthias kissing theo and touching him and making him feel good. matthias's one redeeming quality is how well he takes care of theo, what can i say...
for specifics... hm. theo says: please. it's good. it's too much. more. harder. wait. keep going. switch. like, just little things to direct matthias, in a way... and he never says more than he needs to. he's very sharp and clipped.
matthias is harder to pinpoint specific dialogue for because he just says so fucking much....... like you can really tell that this man loves talking to himself by the way he talks dirty in theo's ear. but i'd say some common phrases are: do you want it? what're you gonna do for it? do you like that? hold still. open up. where are you going? feel that? go ahead and ask for it.
but waaaay down the line, when they've been together for a couple of years and theo's worked past a lot of his issues, i think theo actually becomes comfortable enough to do everything he wants. i think he starts to boss matthias around and take control more... and matthias has always liked when theo is mean, so theo kind of... plays with that a bit. i think he degrades matthias and matthias laps at the palm of his hand for it. matthias has always wanted to be challenged, so. later on, there's definitely a shift in their dynamic, sexually speaking.
#river dipping#asks#anonymous#theodore doe#matthias evanoff#a burning house to live in#echthroi#oc extras#nsft#my ask box starts working again and this is one of the first two messages i receive <3#so now here i am replying and posting this at four p.m. on a monday of all days............... lmao#took me forever to getting around to it i'm sawrry </3#that room is actually a veeeeeery early rough draft of theo's room later on in the story...#it's not his apartment either it's in one of matthias's homes... i'm thinking the chateau but i haven't decided#matthias has five homes four that he inherited and one he bought himself#it's either the chateau or the home he bought that theo moves into for a bit...#theo has a very different decoration style than matthias tho so the room would clash like crazyyy in the home matthias bought for himself#i think theo's emotional repression definitely shows even in his decoration style tho bc his apartment is like. maximalism.#but when he moves in with matthias for a bit it's just modern everything instead....#theo's actually a bit of a hoarder and has a ton of knickknacks and furniture he subconsciously views as an outward show of his personality#bc theo has a really hard time like. knowing who he is. so he uses objects to try and piece it all together for himself and for others#especially because he doesn't outwardly express himself often... so his things are like... well. they're him in a way.#but he still is soooo locked up that even when he temporarily is staying with matthias he doesn't actually Show Himself in that way#so it's all just items matthias bought for his room (that theo picked but... kind of at random) and a few things theo's brought from home#.....anyway.#hello everyone <333333
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say-al0e · 7 months
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Dealing with the remnants of someone else’s life is fucking impossible.
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28?
I collect a few things !! i collect rocks; I am not a geology person but I like putting them on my jewellery box. What can I say I love pretty shiny things !! I also collect tickets, museum guides/brochures and that sort of thing. I am big into keepsakes, you know?? I keep hospital bracelets, plane tickets, postcards. Less of a collecting thing, more of a ‘ I’m very sentimental, let me hold onto this little piece of today’ sort of thing. I’m also very into porcelain, china or any kind of antique or old things !! so whenever I get the chance I purchase a little teacup or teapot. I am running out of room for them on my desk and am in the process of nagging my father to build me a shelf for them all </3
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colourfulmes · 3 months
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Currently resisting the urges to make ANOTHER OC—
I already have like too many OCs to handle how do I cope with this/j
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#i’m cleaning my room#i have organized so many boxes full of stuff#one for cool containers one for general craft stuff one for things with nice textures one for yarn one for markers#why do i have so much crafty stuff#where did i get all of this#i apparently have also hidden a great number of sharp objects around#the sheer number of open safety pins and stolen steak knives is almost impressive#my hands are bleeding#i just have so much stuff#i’m a collector of things i will never use but i might use them so i shouldn’t get rid of them y’know?#i am not a hoarder >:(#i prommy#i’m like a magpie. i take cool things and keep them#like the bag of sand i found under my bookshelf#and the kitchen utensils i’ve taken at some point? why do i have chopsticks in here? why do i have any dishes? i don’t eat in here?#also found two ziploc bags full of advil#i was looking for those tbh#i also have so so many buttons. everywhere. so many buttons#and half-empty ballpoint pens#and a bunch of books. everywhere. my bookshelf is full of books. my dresser is full of books. my desk is covered in books#my bed is covered in books and art supplies#any flat surface is being used to flatten buckled paper (from paint) with heavy books#i also found a whole bottle of peppermint extract. nice#and more scented candles are discovered by the hour#my room isn’t even that dirty i just have so many small objects that i’ve shoved in weird places. it’s annoying to clean#but i have promised myself that i’m vacuuming this weekend so it must be done
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zenathezee · 7 months
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Googling tips about moving all involve throwing stuff away first and I get the reasoning but I'm currently dealing with the emotional upheaval of moving, I can't add the emotional upheaval of deciding what to get rid of on top of that
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lisatelramor · 9 months
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Am cleaning the garage of some stuff that's been untouched since the move, and if mom ever says anything about me being messy and unorganized, I am totally pointing out the fact that I've found at *least* a dozen unmatched socks randomly in bins, some having paperwork from a decade ago in them.
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lostmykeysie · 2 years
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Uhm, hello. Not necessarily an ask. Read the first two chapters of The Horcrux Hunt and I just have to tell you: you write magnificently. The amount of times I've caught myself giggling maniacally as I scroll down in excitement for MORE -- really, what have you done to me... It's so good. WHY IS IT SO GOOD?? How dare you, honestly.
STOP HELLO THANK YOU HI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
first of all i was keeping this like a selfish little hamster gerbil thing that keeps things hidden (i have literally never met a gerbil i have no idea if this is on brand but it feels right so go with it, and i hate hamsters because i am actually lowkey (highkey) afraid of small animals and i once got stung by a wasp and then immediately had to hold someones hamster and it was TERRIBLE and so wriggly and then it pissed on me but that might have been because i was flailing it around a bit my bad but literally the worst thing about that day was the hamster not even the wasp) so i can come and look at it and probs tear up a bit and then giggle and roll around on my bed and then maybe hide under my bed
but then i realised it's probably RUDE because you've come and been so nice to me when you didn't have to so thank you xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
i feel like PERSONALLY we should all be reading and giggling maniacally like this is exactly my aim in life you probably couldn't have given me a better compliment!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i just want us to hold hands a teehee over all these stupid things is that too much to ask!!!!!!
also i hope that the rest of THH and maybe even TML if you're a read as you go person have been up to ur giggling standards xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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I'm SO scared of what I'm going to see when I unpack everything my parents are about to bring over to my new house
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alltoolewis · 8 months
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Timeless- Mason Mount
I'm finally off for the summer & finally back writing! This one is super special and is inspired by timeless by Taylor swift, if you haven't heard the vault track please listen to it while reading this! This has to be one of my favourite things I have ever wrote... Hope you all enjoy & I can't wait to write more! Hope this apologies for my absence Love you guys x
P.S I will not comment on him leaving to united btw... as Liverpool fan I am devasted 😒
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Summary- When you and Mason are cleaning your nan's attic you discover a book of your grandparents love story... helping Mason think of the perfect anniversary present for you...
Words- 2.6k
"Mase please.." you squealed as he wrapped his arms around you from behind, taking you by surprise as you continued to search through the old dusty boxes "This really needs doing and I never would of agreed to let you help if I knew you'd be messing around like this!" You didn't realise that agreeing to clean you nan's old attic would result in your clingy boyfriend of almost 5 years joining you. What was suppose to be a solo task, turned into a duo one the minute his brown eyes grew wide at your claim that you were leaving him for a couple of hours alone.
"I didn't know showing my beautiful girlfriend of 5 years love was classed as messing around..." he pouted, loosening his grip of you but of course not fully as his arm still hovered your waist. "It's not 5 years yet loser" You smirked, throwing something you believed was an old sock that was hiding in the box at him "We're still 3 weeks of that title!"  You still couldn't believe that it had already been that long. It felt like just yesterday that he caught your attention in the dimmed lightened room, his laugh being the loudest noise as the speakers blaring out the music you had always hated silenced, allowing you to hear what has since been your favourite sound. Since that night you had been by each others side, through the ups and downs, the spot next to him was always yours and vice versa... there was no Mason without (y/n) and he prayed there'd never have to be!
Silence filled the room once more, however the smiles never faded as you sorted through all your nans precious things. Growing up you never thought of your nan as a hoarder, her house was also tidy barely anything on display except the odd pictures of core memories but little did she know that she kept the purest things locked up here. From her old ballet shoes to her old school books, her old prom dress to a rock she found on her secret dates with your late grandfather... she kept everything.
"What's this?" Mason asked curiously, lifting up a book covered in dust and cobwebs. Being nosy of his new finding, you quickly went to where he was sitting next to him on the old fragile footstool, floor creaking as you did so. Your eyes hovered over the brown book in his hands, that it was safe to say that  time has took its toll on. Crouching down in front of him, your hand swept across the front cover, tears immediately filling your eyes as you read the words...
'THE STORY OF ANNIE & JOHN'
The words were followed by a photo of them together, smiles brighter than the stars as the look of love was written in there eyes. You had already heard the story of your grandparents many times from your nan... but seeing it in hidden pictures made your whole world freeze.
Noticing the sudden emotion in your face, Mason sighed "You okay, darling?" wiping away the fallen tears as they fell down your cheek, letting his hand hover there as a guard. Nodding, you gulped "Yeah... yeah I'm good.." Smiling he patted his knee, silencing telling you to come over which of course you obeyed. 
Now the book was on your knee as Mase held you tightly on his lap, head leaning over your shoulder as he traced comforting shapes on your arm. "Are you going to have a look honey?" He could see your clear hesitation to open it, as your hands strummed over the outskirts of the pages. Apart of you wanted to open the book, see the love of your grandparents everybody talked so dearly about, the love that was always compared to yours and Masons, however the other part of you couldn't help but think you were invading the privacy... you knew there story like the back of your hand. A secret romance that was forbidden by there families, your grandmother being in a privileged family who had a tradition to pick other privileged people for there children to fall in love with. While your grandad was the son of the maid, 2 years older than her but fell head over the heels the second he caught eyes with in his word 'a princess' They hidden what they had for years, scared that there families would tear them apart... but faith took its role and 12 years later they were happily married as a runaway couple, ready to start there new lives together.
As your mind wondered away, you felt his hand lace over yours, squeezing it tightly "It's okay (y/nn)? She would want you to see this??" You knew he was right... she'd be screaming for you to open it if she was there. Listening to him, you squeezed his hand back before opening it up. 
The pages looked just as battered as the front cover, but the love was still clear as rain. The book had different chapters, just like a fairy tale. It began with there first year, where your pop's mum first got the job and he was allowed to be involved in the staff picture where your grandmother stood just 5 people away. 
"I didn't know your grandad was in the war.." Mason whispered, scared to ruin the moment as you were flicking through there years together. It was there 7th year 'together'... the year your dad got drafted to fight in the war. "He didn't want to go" You mumbled back, hand touching the envelopes your nan had clearly stuck in the book "He wanted to stay with her although no one knew about them... he wrote her love letters, signed them off as Dave so no one knew it was from him"
"Didn't she call him Dave all the time..." Mason chuckled, squeezing your hip gently. He only had a few years with your nan, while with your pops he only had 1 short one & for the longest time he was convinced he was called 'Dave' "Yep!" You giggled back "Even after all those years together she still called him it. It was there secret code word..."
For the next couple of hours you flipped through the rest of the book, pausing to read the letters, see the small details of the grainy images. From there wedding to the birth of your mum, from the day they ran away together to the day your grandad came back to find your nan had been set up to marry someone else... it had all be recorded in the book.
Your heart broke when you flipped to the last filled page in the book, your grandads order of service leaflet from his funeral. Your heart broke even more when it came clear that your nan had placed it in by herself... ending there story together...
Noticing the tears falling faster down your face, Mason closed the book placing it gently down as he wrapped his arms tighter than ever around you, allowing you to sob in his chest. He didn't say much as you cried, just rubbed your back and whispered a few words of comfort, knowing what you needed most was time to absorb what you just saw.
Once you calmed down, you lifted your head back up to look at his warm brown eyes, his hand instantly going to your cheek "They we're amazing (y/n).." He smiled, causing you to mirror it back "They would been so happy you got to witness it through there eyes..."
"They were timeless..." You breathed out, looking down to the book on the floor that was bound to come home with the two of you.
"Just like we will be.."
Your head shot up to look at him with blood shot eyes "You think?"
"Oh I know we will!" He smiled, causing you to cuddle deeper into him "I hope so Mase..."
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3 weeks later.....
"Mase stop!" You laughed as he picked you as you went to put the key in your new shared home in manchester  "Please stop we need to get in before it rains... stop messing around!"
"I didn't know showing my girlfriend of 5 years of affection was classed as messing around..." He sulked as your laugh continued to echo around the house, taking the heels that had killed your feet all night "and before you start I can call you that now!!"
"I know..." You smiled, turning around to wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him in for a kiss, one of many that day "and I couldn't be prouder to now say it.." Mason returned the kiss as he muttered I love you, which of course you mumbled back. Somehow you two ended up in your bedroom, his jacket through on the floor as the zipper on your dress began to be pulled down.
Just as it was about to get even more heated, he pulled back causing you to sigh dramatically. "Don't be dramatic lovie, we have all night to do that.." He laughed, dragging you to the end of the bed "But first I want to give you your final present of the night.."
"but mase you've already given me loads today.." You groaned, hating how much he had already spoiled you today. Giving you far to many presents, making you bed in breakfast and then taking you to the fanciest restaurant in Manchester. You honestly didn't know how he'd make the day even better before he pulled out a box placing it gently on your knee... "Now this one is kind of for the both of us..." He smiled wrapping his arm around you "But I think you'll appreciate it.."
Carefully, you untied the little red bow on the box lifting the box up with the expectation of finding more personalised jewellery. However your heart dropped to the floor as you saw something you'd never thought you'd see...
A book... Similar to the one of your grandparents but instead of there names it read...
'THE STORY OF (Y/N) & MASON'
And just like the other one, a picture displayed below it. One of you and him at the champions league final, your smiles brighter than stars and the same look of love they had.
"Oh my god M-Mase..." You speechlessly gasped, covering your mouth as tears escaped your eyes "I c-can't believe it.."
His eyes mirrored yours with tears as he placed his hand on top of yours "Open it darling.." He whispered, voice full of love "Don't be scared to read this one... it's ours only"
Listening to him like always, you opened the book, smile immediately spreading across your face as you flipped through to see the many filled pages of your story so far.  The first day you met at that party, the first selfie you took together, your first chelsea game, the day you moved together... every memory shared together was captured in perfect unison to the orginal.
"I didn't even know this exsisted!" You laughed messily, as you looked at the picture of you drunkenly asleep on Mason's lap at his Chelsea leaving party. You couldn't remember much of that day, other than you drunk the night away in hope that it took the sting away from living the beloved club and city... 
"Ben took..." Mason smirked "He sent it me the next day along with the video of you doing my celebration on top of the table..."  "Please say that's a joke.." You muttered as you hid your head in embarrassment, hoping that he  was lying..
"Nope!" He chuckled "I'll show you that later darling, first you have to finish this book!"
So you did. There wasn't much after that, other than his first day at united and your new home in Manchester... little did you know there was one final page to your story you were yet to experience...
"What's this?" You questioned as you flipped the page to see a brown envelope stuck to the page, similar to love letters your grandad use to write. Unable to say much, Mason whispered "Open it and see..."
With shaking hands you pulled out letter which was folded in half, his scruffy handwriting evident. You shot him one last look, nervousness written all over his face as you began to read the love letter addressed to only you....
My dear (y/n),
I've never been good at doing speeches or expressing how I feel, but with you by my side I feel as though I can do anything, so here I am... Ever since I saw you my whole world changed for the better. You fixed the hole in my life like a puzzle piece and ever since then I knew I'd never want to lose you.
The other week when I held you in your nan's attic made me think of if we met in another life, would be the same as we are right now... and the truth is sweetheart we would of have! Even if we met on a crowded street in the 40's or if I was sent to war and you were forced to marry another man... my head would of still turned for you just like it did at that party...
you still would have been mine, I'd of make sure of it!
I'm going to love you for the rest of our lives, till we have grey hair, mini mounts running around the place, a cardboard box stored of memories we made, we'll have it all! 
Our story starts now Angel... 
we're going to be timeless...
look forward...
Mase x
Tears poured down your face as you followed the letters instructions, showing him down on one knee, a small box with the most gorgeous diamond ring displayed in it, one that coincidently resembled the one your nan had...
"Mase..."
"(y/n)... will you please make me the happies man alive & spend the rest of your life with me??"
Unable to speak you nodded your head, falling to your knees as you wrapped your arms around him. "I love you so much.." You sobbed into his neck.
"I love you so much more..." He cried back, pulling back from you for a brief second to slip the gorgeous ring on your finger "This is your nans ring" He smiled "I asked your parents if it was okay if I gave it you... I want us to be a timeless classic like your grandparents, I want to fill that book up with you till the day we are torn apart by fate..."
Once more you were speechless as his arm wrapped around you, your head lay on his chest listening to the heart which had loved you for 5 years... there was no (y/n) without Mason and you prayed every minute of the day that you'd be the couple your grandparents were. A love so strong it could be seen from miles away, a love everyone dreamed of but only a rare few could experience... one that even time couldn't forget... Your going to be... 
TIMELESS
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captain-mj · 10 months
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Home Video
Soap and Gaz find mysterious home videos in Price's garage
Price had enlisted Gaz to help him do some spring cleaning of a garage he had and Gaz had complained to Soap who had immediately volunteered to help them. Price had been less than thrilled that Gaz had invited Soap to help go through his personal things, but he could admit the garage was huge and filled to the brim so maybe it was fair. 
The three men stepped into it and Gaz groaned. “It looks like a hoarder has lived here for a couple of years!! How did this even happen??”
Price looked sheepish at least. “Yeah… So long story short, I uh… just shoved things in here for the longest time.” 
Soap and Gaz stared at him for a few minutes before Price sighed. “Okay, maybe I am a bit of a hoarder. But that’s besides the point. I want this cleaned.”
Soap examined it for a few minutes before sighing. “Alright, I volunteered. Not going to complain.”
“Cool. I’ll be back in an hour.”
“What??” Soap whipped around. 
Price sighed. “I’ll give you both twenty pounds. You don’t need to get all of it cleaned, just some of it okay?”
“Alright, Captain.” Gaz sighed and stepped into it. Soap got to work right next to him. Luckily nothing was gross, mostly just dusty, but items of all sorts were just… scattered. Everywhere. Clothes, children’s toys, model planes, military memorabilia and weirdly a box of christmas lights. Occasionally they’d get lucky and find a box. Soap noticed one of them had marker on it and it was filled to the brim with vhs tapes. Unlike everything that was boxed where it was clearly stuffed in there, these were neatly organized by year. He flipped the lid back over to see the label again and actually read it this time. 
“Tommy and Riley.” 
Soap frowned and tried to wrack his brain for any memory of who that could be. He was pretty sure he knew all of Price’s relatives. 
His mom? Dead but her name was Brenda. 
His dad? Dead but his name was Charles. 
No siblings. So no nephews or nieces. And not a single person that Soap could think of who would be named Tommy or Riley. 
“Gaz. I found something.” Soap picked up one of the older looking ones. It had a label, but it was smeared to hell. He could vaguely make out an S and IRTH. 
“Soap, you’re not going to believe this.” Gaz lifted up a VCR player. 
“It’s clearly fate.” Soap said immediately. 
“Exactly, we gotta watch them.” 
It took them a few minutes to set up in Price’s living room, but they managed to get everything up and running and they popped a tape in. 
There were four people. A blond lady, a dark haired man and their two sons, presumably. One of them looked like the spitting image of his mom with blond hair and the other was more ginger. The two boys were clearly excited. 
The lady lit a few candles on the cake in front of them. “How does it feel to be four Tommy?” She asked and her voice was so soft. It had a Manchester accent that reminded him a little bit of Ghost, but there was also a clear London influence. 
Tommy, the blond one, smiled up at her. He was missing a few teeth. A few more than the average kid his age, but maybe he just lost a bunch of his baby teeth at one time. “Cake!” 
She laughed and the other kid, who didn’t look much older, rolled his eyes. “Tommy! Hurry up and blow out the candles!!” 
Their mom ruffled his hair. “Hey, now, a little patience okay? Make a wish and blow out the candles.” 
Tommy seemed to think long and hard before blowing them out.
The man spoke for the first time and Soap’s heart jumped. It sounded like a scratchy version of Ghost’s voice and Soap did not like it. “What did you wish for kid?”
“For Simon to stop being a jerk!” Tommy poked his brother hard.
“Since you said your wish, it’s not going to come true!”
“Simon, stop antagonizing your brother.” 
Simon stuck his tongue out at Tommy while Soap had a mental breakdown.
“Simon Riley.” Soap put it together. “Oh my God, it’s fucking Ghost!” Gaz shifted, staring at the tiny kids on the screen. 
Soap watched the two of them squabble while their mom cut the cake. She smiled, but when she came a bit more into view, he noticed her arm was bandaged and it clearly hurt a bit to move it. Their father stayed in the same position, arms crossed over his chest and a bored look on his face. The video ended after a moment and Soap popped another one in. 
Gaz looked like he was going to say something for the briefest of moments before just watching them with him. 
The next one was similar. Just holiday stuff. Simon didn’t look very happy in this one, staring off in the distance for most of it. He winced when his dad hit his shoulder and quickly rubbed his arm like it hurt. His mom handed him a gift though and he beamed. 
“There’s my good boy.” She ruffled his hair as he unwrapped the present. He was methodical, undoing the tape so he could take the wrapping off without tearing it. Soap was fascinated. 
Gaz grabbed a video from further into the box and they were met with a teenage Tommy getting ready in a mirror. With skull makeup. It was uncanny, the only difference between the two being their eyes. Tommy’s were a bright green. Simon stood next to him, slightly shorter than him. At first, Soap thought he had to be sitting down, but no. He was in fact slightly shorter. 
Simon leaned into his younger brother, makeup covered the bottom half of his face, making a giant fake Glasgow smile that Soap felt was a little ironic considering Ghost had a real one. 
“You done?” Simon’s voice had just started to deepen, sounding a little more like the voice Soap was used to hearing over comms. It definitely sounded younger though, clearly a teen. He also looked like a teen, mostly thanks to him wearing dorky sunglasses and a leather jacket that didn’t fit his shoulders right. 
“Give me a second, Si.” Tommy grumbled, voice still cracking a little from puberty. He looked annoyed as he once again tried to get the lines straight. He finally managed and looked proud of himself. “How do I look?”
“Like a loser.” Simon responded but he smiled at him. Tommy rolled his eyes and picked up the camera. The two of them left then with him carrying the camera around. Both of them were talking about something and then they set the camera in the back of a car. Their dad climbed into the driver’s side and he looked at Simon in the front seat.
“Why are you wearing sunglasses?”
“Uh…” 
His dad took them off his face and Simon’s eyes were very red. There was also some bruising where it looked like he had been decked. 
“Are you high?”
“Yeah. Got some weed from Jason. You want some, dad?”
His dad laughed. “Course you’d get high on something like weed. Nah, I’m good. Got some needles in the back.” He ruffled Simon’s hair who smiled, relaxing into his seat. 
Soap looked at Gaz who looked just as taken back by it. Simon fixed his sunglasses and they continued going to wherever they were going. His dad put on the radio and they all three belted out the 90’s rock. 
Soap wondered if Simon still listened to it. Did he sing in the car when they weren’t around?
Once he got out, he saw that their dad also had skull paint on and he looked even more like Simon than Tommy did. He looked at the camera for a moment before hitting Tommy rather hard for it to be playful. “Fucking idiot, you ran the battery down. I swe-” The camera clicked close. 
Soap decided to pick the next one, since Gaz obviously had bad taste, and he got one that was on the complete other side of the box. He slipped it in and sat next to Gaz eagerly. 
An adult Simon and Tommy. Simon must’ve finally gotten taller because he was now several inches taller than Tommy. They were at a concert and clearly high on something, but they looked happy. Soap couldn’t argue that. Tommy kept glancing at Simon, clearly wanting to say something but Simon didn’t acknowledge it. The video went out for a bit, some shitty rock band playing live in the background. 
“Hey Simon?”
“Yeah?”
Tommy paused before shaking his head. “I’m so-”
“Don’t be. Stuff happens. As long as it wasn’t you that got hurt.”
“But your ribs…”
“I’ll be fine. I’m your older brother. It’s my job to protect you, ya know?” Simon smiled and it looked sad. 
They changed that one rather fast. 
It opened to a group of fish. They were all moving about slowly.
A small child started to talk. “Did you know sharks are older than trees?
“Really?” Ghost. Soap recognized his voice right away. “I did not know that.” He sounded like he was smiling.
“Also, scientists can age sharks like a tree too!” 
“No way. How could they do that?”
“They count the rings on their vertebrae.” The camera turned to them. Soap wasn’t sure who was holding the camera, but he didn’t really need to. Simon was standing there, unmasked and wearing a short sleeved shirt. His arms were covered in little tattoos and on his shoulders was a small kid. Tiny little hands were buried in Ghost’s hair to keep himself stable. “But they have to hurt the sharks to do that.” 
Simon smiled, looking like the absolute gift he was. “Yeah. We don’t want that. If I meet any sharks, I’ll just ask their birthday, huh Joseph?”
Joseph smiled and they looked exactly like each other. Simon took him off his shoulders and started walking to the camera person, swinging Joseph back and forth as he walked. There were scars on his face already. Soft ones along his mouth. But he looked so pretty. So young too. Rather young to be a father, though the way he talked with the kid and the fact that there didn’t seem to be anyone else, it made sense. 
Was the person holding the camera the mom? Were they married? Just dating? Were they still together? Ghost was also on leave. Was he with her right now? 
Soap had never really… thought of that. He should’ve, but stuff like that doesn’t always come out during conversations with soldiers. Ghost was a lone wolf though, so Soap always assumed he was completely alone. 
How old was this kid now? Based on the age, he assumed the kid would be a teen now, right? 
Simon threw the kid in the air and caught him, hugging him close to his chest. He laughed. Genuinely. It was so sweet sounding. He smiled right at the camera. 
“You two look cute!” 
Simon blushed. “Ah, it’s all the little guy.” 
“Yeah, that’s fair.” 
Joseph kicked his feet and Simon put him down. He clinged to Simon’s hand as they walked. Simon was clearly about to say something but the video ended. 
Gaz looked at Soap. “Ghost is a dad??”
“Oh my God, Ghost is a dad.” Soap echoed, staring at the now blank screen. “He picked the name Joseph though. What a boring name.” He looked away and hoped Gaz wouldn’t catch his expression. 
Ghost was a dad and never told him? He understood everyone else. Price obviously knew. But why not tell him? They were close he thought! 
Gaz popped another one in while he was distracted. It was from the same section so it was more about Joseph. All of the focus was on the kid actually. Where before, the camera was just pointed in their general vicinity, someone was clearly holding the camera to make sure to capture everything. 
Joseph tore open his presents with a fierce ferocity, grinning. He grabbed the legos and immediately looked at Simon who was just off to the side.
“Ya gotta help me build them!!” 
Simon nodded. “I will, don’t worry.” He smiled at him. His hair was buzzed like the standard military cut. The rest of the birthday went with most of the focus on Joseph, who looked even more like Simon than before, and occasionally a pretty lassie with red hair. 
Soap got an answer to who was behind the camera when Simon smiled at him. “Cute kid right Tommy?”
“Fucking cutest.”
“Swear jar.” 
“Kill yourself, Simon.”
Simon laughed and Beth smiled at the camera too. Joseph seemed oblivious to the adults around him, still trying to tear open another present. 
The next video was a little more confusing. There was jostling and it was just Tommy. He set the camera down for just a moment to fix himself. After making sure his rather casual outfit was straight, he picked up the sign that had a simple “Sergeant Simon Riley” painted on it. He held it up immediately and beamed, completely forgetting the camera on the seat. 
Simon slowly made his way over. There was a very pronounced limp and he was holding himself like he was in a lot of pain. Tommy looked worried, but he grabbed everything and they got a glimpse at the bandages. They were wrapped all the way around Soap’s throat and were across the bottom half of his face. Dark circles under his eyes gave away how exhausted he was. 
“Hey, Si… you okay?”
Simon blinked slowly before nodding. He went to take another step but Tommy quickie got under his arm, offering support. The camera went off.
“Price might be here soon. It’s been close to an hour.” Gaz pointed out, but Soap could see it. The curiosity for more. More answers, more information, more of seeing Ghost not be… Ghost. 
“Just one more.” Soap grabbed another one from that side of the box and popped it in. 
He could tell as soon as it started playing that something was wrong. 
Simon looked… exhausted. He had a medical mask on and a hoodie, yet still seemed to be shivering. His eyes were another factor. They shifted around frantically, clearly afraid of something, even though he was in the exact same home he had been in. 
The camera was from an odd angle, like someone was recording him from a different room. 
Joseph slipped past the cameraman and Soap saw an older woman’s hand reach out to grab him but it was too late. Joseph stood right in front of Simon and all of his attention was immediately on him. 
“Hey, Joseph.”
“Do you want to watch movies with me?”
There was a pause. The kid had certainly aged, must’ve been at least a year since the last one, but he was still so young. A baby in the grand scheme of things. 
Simon slowly scooted over to make room but Joseph still sat right next to him, invading his personal space as children often did. He put on a movie himself, it looked like a Disney one, and started talking.
“Mom said you used to watch movies with me all the time, especially when I was little. She said you worried about dropping me so you only ever held me if you sitting down.”
Simon shrugged. “You were tiny. Still are.”
“Hey! I’m 5 now!” 
“Still tiny. Worried I’d… hurt you somehow.” 
“Mom and Grandma said you’re scared now. Is it because you think that again?”
Simon slowly reached up and pushed his hood back. His hair was far longer and not evenly cut. Soap could see where there was scarring along his throat as well as the edges of bandages that went under his mask. “No. I don’t think I’d hurt you.” 
“Good. So you’re going to keep watching movies with me right?”
“Yeah. I’ll always watch movies you, kid.” Simon didn’t relax as Joseph cuddled up to him. Even after Joseph fell asleep, he stayed stiff. 
The person holding the camera moved closer and Simon immediately moved his head to look at her. He was afraid for just a moment and his hands immediately covered Joseph to protect him first.
“Hey, Mum.” Simon’s eyes were tired, but… they weren’t Ghost’s. There was a spark of something there that wasn’t present in Ghost’s. 
“I knew he could cheer you up.” 
Simon let out a tiny huff and his eyes started to close. Her hand gently cupped his cheek and he finally relaxed. “There’s my good boy.” She whispered softly and he let out a shaky breath, like he was trying not to cry. He fell asleep after a few minutes and she tucked them both in. 
“You kept them?” 
Soap and Gaz both screamed, looking up at Ghost who seemed impassive. There was nothing in his eyes to indicate anything, let alone something as trivial as how he was feeling. 
Price grimaced. “Yeah. I had planned on giving them back to you when I found you in Mexico, but you were in such a bad place I decided to wait and then I just never found a good time.” 
Ghost nodded and watched as his Mom set the camera down on the counter as she did her hair. She must’ve forgot the camera was still on. 
“You’re a dad?” Gaz asked, much braver than Soap ever could be about it.
“Joseph is my nephew.” Ghost explained, not taking his eyes off the screen. She pulled away to start making tea, humming a Beatles song as she did. She must’ve heard something because she disappeared suddenly and then was leading a shaking Simon in. He held on to her, looking more like a lost kid than a 6’4 adult man. 
“Sit down, love.” 
“She had sixth sense for when I had nightmares. Even when I was a kid.” Ghost sounded delicate. It was new. Price gave them a signal to keep quiet. “When I came home, I had them so often, but she would always be there. Usually with a cup of tea or she’d try to push me back to bed.”
She started speaking again and Ghost went quiet, just like the version of him on the screen, he hung on every word. “You’re okay. You’re right here with me, okay?”
“Okay…”
“Whatever happened, whatever they said, you’re alive, safe at home. We all are, alright Simon?”
Simon nodded slowly and tried to grab the cup she set down in front of him. His hands shook too hard, the liquid spilling on to his fingers. He winced and she quickly took the cup from him to set it down. She made sure the burns weren’t too bad before smiling. 
All at once, she remembered the camera and quickly grabbed it. “Oh i was supposed to be recording Joseph but he ran off to play with you and I just got so…” She shut the camera and the video ended. 
Ghost stared and Soap saw it. The tiny flicker of sadness. Soap grabbed his hand, deciding to try to be brave. 
“What happened to her?”
“Same thing that happened to Joseph and Tommy and Beth. They’re a bunch of gravestones.” 
“Seems they really cared about you.” 
“...Yeah. They really did.”
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AITA for stealing jewelry and a few other items from my hoarder aunt?
This was a few years ago now, I wanna say maybe 2018? My dad has two sisters, Z and K. K is married to a hoarder and has some hoarding tendencies herself so their house and particularly their garage is a mess. Not biohazard levels of mess but for sure just dusty, dirty, and stuffed with with ancient unusable garbage. K and her husband don’t have any kids, they’re both in their mid-70’s and both are in pretty poor health, so Z flew down from Florida and asked my father and I to come help clean. We agreed and came down for a day.
I have a weird relationship with my aunts. K took care of their mother until she died, and until she died my father would be at his sister’s beck and call. He would frequently abandon his own family to go help K and his mother. I don’t blame him for this, he wanted to help his sick mother, but I do blame K for using him as free labor. He built the house K is hoarding in, destroying his body in the process. Now that I’m an adult I don’t really speak to either aunt, like I had no contact with Z since Z’s second wedding in 2013. K is much closer location-wise but I don’t speak to her either because she’s just kind of off putting. The last time I spent time with her we went shopping and she kept telling me stories of her miscarriage and how annoying her husband is and pointing to someone and loudly asking “you think that’s a man or a woman?” Like I understand we are family but K and Z are as close to strangers as family can get to me. This doesn’t even cover my mom’s opinion of them and their treatment of her. Both Z and K have a history of manipulation, deception, and are both very vindictive and ignorant. She hates them both to the point of paranoia. My sister and I have a similarly low opinion of them both, but we both are more tolerable, myself especially.
So we arrive and we clean, Z and I working together to throw away a bunch of shit and my father worked on installing a new dishwasher. I stumble upon this gorgeous hanging lamp that looks like a large full moon. I text my mom about it and she flips. “That’s mine,” she says, “your father and I found that on the side of the road one night when we were first married.” So I load it into my dads car because it’s so pretty and it belongs to my parents. “Hey, you better ask if you can take that” Z says and I flat out tell her that it belongs to my mom. She shrugs and we continue to work. I find another really cool set of hanging lamps and a solid wooden lamp base carved to look like a gazelle that probably belonged to K’s husband’s parents and I took those too, with no input from Z.
These items weren’t lovingly packed and carefully stored away. They were sitting in plastic bins stuffed with dozens of boxes disintegrated plastic gloves and tools that were more rust than anything else. Towards the end of the day we discover some jewelry boxes and I take those inside to go through with K. A lot of it was junky costume jewelry but there’s some incredible pieces including a pair of 14k gold hoops that look like rams heads, a cool brass ring with an enameled signet with the Sagittarius archer, and a huge silver heart pendant. I carefully set aside the items that I would like to take home and K didn’t say anything, either because she didn’t notice or didn’t care.
Finally when we got home I showed my mom all of the cool stuff I found and she kind of scolded me, saying I should have asked to take this stuff and I brushed it off by joking that this was payment for my cleaning services. She was very happy that I rescued her moon lamp though.
I’m wearing that chunky silver heart pendant today and am thinking about it again. K doesn’t have any children so the only people who would ever inherit this junk would be either myself or Z’s kids, but Z’s daughter is no contact with Z and Z’s son lives on the other side of the country. We own the property that K lives on, pay for the taxes on it and pay for the maintenance on it all without charging K anything, so even when she and her husband die my family is going to have to clean it anyway and I can assure you I would be the only person who would actually want to sift through the garbage to find cool stuff. I feel like I saved this stuff from the landfill. I wear the jewelry I took, we have that really cool gazelle lamp displayed in our living room, and my sister said she was going to use the hanging lamps I brought home for when she has her own home. But of course I technically stole all of it and for sure will not be giving it back, even if she noticed it’s missing. AITA?
What are these acronyms?
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ms-demeanor · 2 years
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do you have any tips for cleaning a space? I’ve been frozen trying to clean my room for 4-5 months now and just spent 10 hours reading through your adulting blog et al. and most of your tips have been incredibly helpful (despite me being much more on the autistic than ADHD side of the venn diagram)
YES. YES I DO.
Hi. On top of the ADHD I also have some history of OCD, which primarily manifested in being a hoarder. Like. Clinically. Like towers of stuff in my room and piled on my bed so I slept on the couch. In retrospect, cleaning it up was a problem for a number of reasons, but one of those reasons was executive dysfunction and not knowing how to start cleaning.
Long story short the way that I did it was by finding something called "40 bags in 40 days" where the goal is to remove 40 bags of trash/donations from an area in 40 days. 40 bags in 40 days was initially created as a challenge for Lent and a bunch of the people who blog about it do so in a manner that is religious to an extent that I am uncomfortable with, and there's this weird bullet-journal thing where planning ends up becoming aesthetic and there are charts and shit but you can ignore all of that, here are the basics:
Start with a written plan
You are going to try to declutter while you do this
Limit your scope each day so you don't get overwhelmed
Remove things that you won't be keeping in the space immediately; don't leave piles of "throw away" or "to donate" or even "to keep and organize later" stuff in the room you are clearing
Give yourself a firm deadline/number of days to do this project
The written plan: Break the area you are cleaning down into manageable bite-sized chunks. When I was doing this I moved in a pattern for increasing access to the room, because I literally could not get further into the room without cleaning some parts first, so my first chunk was "the space between the door and the bed" and then it was "the surface of the bed" and then it was "the nightstand." People who aren't doing cleanups on quite as catastrophic a mess might focus on even smaller areas (make each drawer of a dresser an area, or a single jewelry box, or one shelf in a bookshelf). But the key is that you have to sit down *outside* of the room that you will be cleaning and make a list of places that you need to clean. Don't stand in the room and look at everything and get overwhelmed because there's so much, don't go in and actually try to clean, just make a list of areas that you think you can do in an hour or two. And make sure to actually write it down so that you can use the list to refocus yourself - it's super easy to drift when you're cleaning and to move into another area because you found something that belongs in that other area, but you need to clean the other area before you can put more stuff in it, but you can't. You are focused on ONLY the area you've written down that day.
Declutter as you go: Do whatever you need to do to sort stuff you're going to keep from stuff you're not going to keep, Konmarie spark joy sort or rainbow label or whatever sorting scheme works for you, but you should have three categories of stuff: keep, donate, throw away. The "bags" in "40 Bags in 40 Days" is supposed to be bags of stuff to donate or throw away, but I actually made another category of bag which was "keep for memory book."
One of my huge problems is that I want to keep tons and tons of little mementos and business cards and stickers and fliers and photos and wristbands from shows and the thing is, if you do that you eventually have a huge pile of what pretty much looks like trash. So what I did was I had gallon storage bags (see-through) and any time I ran into some weird little memento thing that I wanted to keep but that probably seemed like trash, I would put it in the storage bag. Eventually I ended up with ten bags full of that kind of stuff, which I set aside for later, and in the end I put that stuff into three fuck-off huge photo albums with self-stick pages. They aren't organized scrapbooks or anything, they're a bunch of bullshit arrayed together in a displayable form, but it is so much better to have these three huge books than a million tiny piles of paper that I don't know what to do with. I also have a pile of tee-shirts I cut the image off of that is in a bag to become a quilt someday, and I have some small decorative boxes for stuff that I didn't want to get rid of but didn't fit in the albums and that wouldn't really go on display shelves or anything like that.
My "keep for a memory book" bags were more key to decluttering than the trash or donation bags, because a LOT of stuff that I had was stuff that I wanted to keep but didn't have anywhere to put. I *still* make bags like this. I have three or four of them right now, one of which is JUST stuff like wristbands and drink passes and business cards and fliers from shows I did with my band. I just fill up the bags until I've got enough stuff to sit down and work on a memory book for a while, then I go through and stick stuff in the book for a few hours. Having someplace to put all that stuff has been a huge help to prevent me from ending up with the same kind of messy disaster that I had before. This is my personal biggest kind of clutter and isolating it in bags and books has been an enormous quality of life improvement for me.
Limit your scope each day: Cleaning is mentally exhausting, and looking at how much you have left to do or getting distracted by uncovering another area can murder your momentum, so limit the scope to just your area for the day. You aren't cleaning your room, you are cleaning the surface of your desk today. You aren't cleaning your room, you are cleaning the floor of your closet today.
If you're feeling up to it, you may be able to move through several areas on your list in one day - that happened to me a lot, and 40 days ended up becoming more like 15 days - if that happens, and you're up for it, feel free to move on to the next area. But you still should be limiting yourself to the areas in your list, not the room generally. Don't finish cleaning the bottom of the closet and then look up and go "I can clean this whole thing, actually", if you finish cleaning the bottom of your closet and feel like working on cleaning still, move on to the next area on your list instead of randomly attacking everything.
Remove stuff from the space that you're cleaning while you're cleaning it: take any full bag of trash or donations out right away, but also remove stuff that you need to reorganize later. For example: I had books on every surface in my room, but the book shelves were on the wall furthest from the door. Instead of trying to put every book I found on the shelf, I set aside books as I cleaned and took them out of the room so that I could put them on the shelves when I got to them, but wouldn't be tripping over them or dealing with seeing them as distressing visual clutter as I worked on other areas. It helps to have a designated space to do this, so if you live with roommates or family make sure to tell them about the project and designate an area where you will be placing stuff until the project is done; if you can't get that, then have one dedicated box/bin/area in your room that is the 'sort when i get to it' station, and add books/clothes/etc to it as needed.
Give yourself a firm deadline: I know that brains are weird and deadlines are sometimes fake and sometimes motivational, but this deadline is a combination of "promise to your housemates that this pile of stuff won't exist in the entryway forever" and "schedule so that I know that I'm not going to be doing this project for the next seven years." 40 days was the suggested schedule because it was originally a lent thing, but also because that's a reasonable number of chunks to clean up. If your room would work better as 10 chunks, it could be 10 days. I think that more days is probably better because it lets you make smaller areas to focus on, but you know your space best.
Also, be kind to yourself. There have been a number of times that I have gone through all the effort of cleaning and reorganizing a space only to sit down at the end and cry because it's too different and I don't like it. That's not me being unreasonable, that's me being stressed after a stressful process and I am not allowed to beat myself up about it. I'm not allowed to yell at myself for how bad I let my space get, I'm not allowed to call myself names or denigrate myself 'because an adult should be able to keep a tidy space.' Cleaning is stressful and facing your flaws is stressful so the very least that you can do is not add to that stress by topping it off with self-criticism. Other people may be critical of you in this process, and if they are my advice is to let them know that feeling bad about your room isn't going to help it get any cleaner, and that if they want you to keep cleaning they shouldn't make cleaning more of a painful process than it already is by making you feel bad about it.
Good luck! I hope this helps!
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waywardstation · 21 days
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As someone who's gotten verrry good at the first two PMD games I wanted to give the input that Ingo's strategy is honestly not far off the mark- scanning for items can be very useful, especially if you happen to be a hoarder like I am and pack light for the dungeon ahead. Also yeah, starving tends to happen if you're conservative with your resources, not a big deal though usually.
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Sometimes Ingo prepares so much for the dungeon ahead in anticipation of all the items they’ll need to take back with them, that it loops back around to being entirely unprepared for the long haul (<- I do this more often than I should).
Haha I make Ingo a fan of thorough exploration because I’m also a fan of doing it and I’m really the one who insists on scouring every single floor. I love looking for rare items, searching out battles with a specific pokemon to recruit them, farming treasure boxes, and razing monster houses!! So yes among that, I am also a fellow hoarder lol, and I do also pack very light for dungeons to save as much room as possible for whatever I pick up.
Hunger mechanic just really gets in the way sometimes which is why I’m looking hard for the tight belt item right now, it eliminates the hunger points going down entirely (except for a few exceptions I think?) I NEED THAT ITEM!!
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emmymaehereeeeee · 1 year
Text
Stuffing for Two
summary: when you are pregnant, decorating for the holidays can be a little bit difficult.
warning: none
word count: 801
requested: yes
You loved the holiday season and you were known to go absolutely full out. Austin would happily follow along with whatever you asked him to do, but now since you were eight months pregnant things looked a little different around the Butler house. 
“Good morning gorgeous, you ready?” Austin pressed a kiss to your cheek, you smiled and slowly scooted yourself to rest your back against the headboard. “C’mon lazy bones.” He teased whilst swinging his lanky legs out of the bed. 
“Aus, I am eight months pregnant!” A smile played on your lips as you shook your head.
“Yeah, you are in charge of lights this year.” He bit down on his lip, attempting to suppress a laugh. “Oh come on, I am only kidding.” He helped you out of bed and into your comfy slippers, “Alright mama, here you go.” He helped you settle on the couch and made his way up to the attic to grab some of the decorations.
“Austin be careful up there!” You hollered out from your place on the couch, he did not respond so you pulled your phone out and called him. 
“Hello, my love.” He answered, “What’s up?” You heard him shuffling around some boxes then a soft grunt as he pulled himself into the attic. 
“Can you Facetime me? I want to see what decorations we have so I can start planning how I want to decorate.” You twiddled with the fringe on the blanket.
“Yeah, give me one secondddd- answer.” You clicked the green circle and smiled as you saw the face of your husband appear on your screen. “Let me prop this up.” He grabbed the phone and propped it up on something. He took a few steps back and realized he was too tall to fit into the frame. He sat on the floor and leaned over to the right to grab a box marked “Christmas decorations”  Digging around in the box he held up a few items, mainly tinsel. “Since when did we become tinsel hoarders?” 
You laughed at his comment, “What? I like tinsel, it's shiny. Have you found the ceramic village? I want to have that set up on the coffee table.”
Austin pushed the box over and reached to grab another one, “Um, is it the Santa one or the other one?” 
“Santa’s village. Austin, how are we going to get the tree in? Last year we had to call your dad to come and help us!” You smiled at the fond memory of Austin and his father struggling to pull the artificial tree down from the attic. 
“Ah, you have no faith in me! Don’t worry about it honey, we will have a tree up by Christmas Eve.” 
The two of you went back and forth for about an hour before Austin finally found the lights. He brought down all of the boxes and headed outside to grab the ladder. He leaned the ladder up against the house and began to work on hanging up the lights. You worked inside, placing the decorations all about the house, Austin finished up after about an hour or so. 
“Hey sweetness, oh wow- it looks amazing in here!” He pulled you in and placed a gentle kiss on your lips. “Even smells like Christmas in here.” He teased, and he glanced over at the end table with a candle on it. “I like that one.”
“It would feel even more like Christmas if we had the tree set up.” You poked a finger at his chest and he lolled his head back.
“I know honey, let me go back up and grab it. Pregnant or not, you are going to help me with the ornaments.” He smirked and hurried back up to the attic.
You watched with a smile on your lips as he did so, “Fine, it’s not like I am carrying your child or anything.” You giggled, leaning up against the counter awaiting his reaction. 
With a giant bag containing the Christmas tree he retorted, “Wow, you are really going to pull the pregnancy card?” He shook his head, “You’re lucky you are cute and that I love you.” 
“Oh, you better believe it.” You teased back at him.
Austin set the bag down and looked over to the stockings you had hung up, “Wh- why is yours bigger than mine?” He walked over to his stocking and held it up. 
“I’m stuffing for two, bubs!” You smiled a hand resting on your stomach.
“I think the baby can have their own stocking.” 
“Um, no. If I am still carrying this baby, then I get a bigger stocking.” You quipped back, a smile playing on your lips. 
“Fair enough.” He replied, beginning to set up the tree. “You’re still helping me decorate the tree.”
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