Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Which category do you fit in?

We have had a water bed for the last 27 – 28 years and we have decided that it’s about time for a change. My husband has a bad back and for the last several years he has had a hard time turning over without pain. Soooo… last Saturday night we went to the Select Comfort store to look at beds. The store was a bit busy but we finally got our turn to check out the beds. We looked at the # 5000 model and the salesman started his sales pitch. He started with the top of the line and before long he had us eating out of his hands. He pushed a button and the head of the bed started moving up. Then he pushed another button and the bottom of the bed started moving up. As it did my husband’s pain started to ease off. He instantly fell in love with the bed. Well needless to say we bought the bed and they will be delivering it within 10 to 14 days. We have been in our house now for 13 years and we decided that we should go ahead and get new carpet for the bedroom too. We will probably splash some fresh paint up on the walls at the same time. We have wanted to do this now for a while but didn’t want to mess with moving the water bed. Poor excuse, I know.

Last night we started cleaning out the room. I can’t believe how much stuff we have accumulated in the last 13 years. My husband threw out old locksmith publications that he had been saving just in case he needed them. Tomorrow I get to clean out all my stuff. I grew up with depression era parents who saved everything. Some of that has rubbed off on me and now I have to make decisions as to what to part with. It doesn’t help that we own our own home based business and have food storage. We also have 3 grown children who still have some of their stuff in the upstairs closets.

My sister, on the other hand, is a neat freak! She even has a special vacuum cleaner for her fireplace. When you go over to her house you have to take your shoes off at the front door. Please don’t spill anything on the carpet or she will run over there with a paper towel and scrub it up. Her house looks like a show palace and sometimes I’m afraid to touch anything. I remember when my dad died, she was throwing away a perfectly good Coleman Lantern because she didn’t need one. Did she ask if anyone else needed a Coleman Lantern? We had to watch her and make sure she wasn’t getting to trash happy. While cleaning out the garage we found cans of paint that was 50 years old. It really made me think about what is important and what isn’t important to keep. I don’t want to put that kind of think on my kids any day.

So the question here is: Are you … 1) a slob, 2) clean but a saver, 3) somewhere in the middle or 4) a neat freak. Did I leave out a category? I don’t expect you to answer the question, but just think about it.

17 Comments:

At 6:16 AM, Blogger Natalie said...

I used to save everything. I've adopted a new theory after having to move everything 5 years ago & then 2 months ago... "If I (we) don't love it or use it, it's gone." With that as a guide, I've thrown out many things that I'd probably have saved for "later/just in case" otherwise.

Now, I have things that are of value to me.. either sentimental or useful.. but way less clutter-type stuff around.

Oh. I almost forgot to answer the question. I'm 2) clean but a saver.

 
At 7:42 AM, Blogger T. F. Stern said...

For clarification purposes only; Lucy and I looked at this same fancy and very expensive bed 2 years ago and wanted it then, holding off until we could pay cash for it. The salesman was fun to listen to, war injuries and all; but the bed was sold before we got to the store. Impulse buying is fine for some things, not high dollar items.

 
At 8:33 AM, Blogger Beth said...

So the question here is: Are you … 1) a slob, 2) clean but a saver, 3) somewhere in the middle or 4) a neat freak. Did I leave out a category? I don’t expect you to answer the question, but just think about it.

I would be 4, a neat freak. I believe in purging the home at least every six months. I actually sound a bit like your sister. No shoes in my house either. Heck, we don't even have carpetting (we're renovating and ripping it up) because of the germs, dust mites, and allergens in carpet. Yes, definitely #4! Haha.

 
At 9:40 AM, Blogger Curious Servant said...

I suppose we accumalet a lot of junk and have been talking for some time about a yard sale or something.

I guess category #2.

Obviously there is a balance here. But it is more than an issue of clean & tidy vs. sloppy slob.

There is also the need to balance our devotion to things, materialism.

And lastly, there is the Mary & Martha thing. Your sister sounds a bit of a Martha.

Moderation in all things (incuding moderation).

 
At 11:39 AM, Blogger Oh great One said...

I like my house to be clean but comfortable. Lived in. I don't want anyone to be afraid to be themselves. I am a pack rat though. I'm trying to get over that but it's tough. My sis-in-law is just the opposit. She is attached to nothing. It's all fair game for the trash!

 
At 7:57 PM, Blogger Fred said...

Oh, I'm definitely a neat freak. I clean up as I go along. The Missus, on the other hand, blows up the kitchen but cleans up later in the day. It drives me nuts!

Plus, since she knows I like to clean up immediately, I think she takes advantage of me. Good for her...

 
At 8:14 PM, Blogger The probligo said...

In my own territory I confess to distinct, total, slob. One of my vices is the building of model aircraft. I belong to the small band who work on the principle that "if it don't go up the vaccuum there is a use for it..." As a consequence there are little bits of wood and stuff all over.

In the house I am a neat-freak. My wife makes sure of that!

:-D

 
At 9:00 PM, Blogger Joy said...

i have the hardest time keeping my room clean,but i'm very clean when it comes to the kitchen and other rooms of the house.

 
At 10:07 PM, Blogger BarbaraFromCalifornia said...

LOL..After 27 years, I think it is time to get a new bed. Sounds like you made a nice choice. We have been married 25 years and have had this bed for 19, now that I think of it.

To answer your question, it would depend upon who you ask in my house. I do tend to keep and accumulate stuff, so I might fall into the slop category to some extent.

Thank you for your kind comments on my blog.

Blessings.

 
At 11:47 PM, Blogger Darlene Schacht said...

I am a slob who is crying out to be a neat freak. That would be so great.

 
At 11:54 PM, Blogger Cool Dad said...

Lucy,
I wish you had let me know about the new bed. That's what I do for a living--sell mattresses. Select comfort is a pretty decent bed but a few things to warn you about. The first several weeks are a honeymoon period with a new mattress. It needs to get used to you and you need to get used to it. Be patient. It usually takes a good month to settle in. Good luck. Oh, and I am a slob married to a neat freak, so now I'm in the middle.

 
At 12:51 AM, Blogger John & Elaine said...

You might want to check out the Mattress Pro Discounters. HUGE savings, although they are the other side of town (Kemah, TX). I got my new bed from them when I moved to Houston.

 
At 9:40 AM, Blogger GodlessMom said...

Me? I'm a slob. I try, I really do, but my house always descends into chaos. I too grew up with depression era parents, I think that has a lot to do with the whole collecting part of my habits.

My aunt in Utah actually had an addition built on to her garage for her food storage! She is an organizational freak!

Good luck with the bedroom re-do. I bet it will be nice to get all of that taken care of!

 
At 11:00 AM, Blogger Melody said...

I'm pretty middle of the road. My house is clean...on the surface...but don't look too deeply and I don't like clutter around. My sister used to be a real neat freak, she's not quite so bad any more, I used to go into her house when she wasn't home and mess it up, hang pictures upside down, mess up the 'fancy towels' in the bathroom, move the place mats...stuff like that. It drove her crazy!

 
At 11:49 AM, Blogger Lucy Stern said...

Thanks everyone for actually answering the question. I'm not sure I would have done that publicly. Ha Ha.
John and K......Already bought the bed. My husband had make up his mind. We probably could have bought one on Ebay but I don't want to take my chances with a bed.

 
At 4:26 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

i'm a clean freak living with four slobs, some days i want to leave home, some days i want to cry, it's really hard mentally to have to live like this.

 
At 3:16 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Don't you just Love....salesman. LOL God Bless You.

 

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