Grunge Garage

[Red Leader]

Bill,

If that hangar rental is used to house a plane, that is probably a LOT of money sitting in that item and its storage that could be used to better your life in the current-right-now.

I'm not saying that you should get rid of everything you enjoy. Quite the contrary - during this 'purge' you need to have a few things that you can do to just unwind. But as things stand now, and maybe 20 years from now, it will always be a plane in a storage locker.

You mentioned something about get back to some money-making activities. I think it might really be time to drop the hanger, sell the (whatever is in the hanger), sell the lathe(s), the mill, all that equipment that you already know you won't get to for several years. I assume that it sat outside for a while? Some/all of it probably needs to be rebuilt, if it is not ruined already. A buddy once told me a woodworking machine can sit outside for 100 years and be just fine (typically true) but for a metalworking machine, it doesn't take much to wreak havoc on those tools. Right now they are beyond your capacity, which may not always be the case, but it is probably time to cut a lot of that loose and make enough money.

Make yourself a deal - when you get room to put those tools in your garage, then you can look and future purchases. As it stands now, a lot of that stuff, stuff that is definitely not just, is still just a hindrance to you, just like the trash. The only difference is that you can sell it and get some $$ for it and apply it toward a dumpster.

 

[bczygan]

is fifteen rakes and shovels a lot?

I sent at least fifteen with my parents when they moved out, I've come across at least that many more.

I love this thread. It makes me feel better about myself, and verifies that my Dad is indeed a hoarder, the **** I'm clearing out that he has accumulated mirrors the **** that Bill is trying to get through.

So who's thread do I get to look at to make me feel better???

I'll just have to improve things here until there are others that are a lot worse.

Better yet, improve until things here are normal.

 

[bczygan]

Bill,

If that hangar rental is used to house a plane, that is probably a LOT of money sitting in that item and its storage that could be used to better your life in the current-right-now.

I'm not saying that you should get rid of everything you enjoy. Quite the contrary - during this 'purge' you need to have a few things that you can do to just unwind. But as things stand now, and maybe 20 years from now, it will always be a plane in a storage locker.

You mentioned something about get back to some money-making activities. I think it might really be time to drop the hanger, sell the (whatever is in the hanger), sell the lathe(s), the mill, all that equipment that you already know you won't get to for several years. I assume that it sat outside for a while? Some/all of it probably needs to be rebuilt, if it is not ruined already. A buddy once told me a woodworking machine can sit outside for 100 years and be just fine (typically true) but for a metalworking machine, it doesn't take much to wreak havoc on those tools. Right now they are beyond your capacity, which may not always be the case, but it is probably time to cut a lot of that loose and make enough money.

Make yourself a deal - when you get room to put those tools in your garage, then you can look and future purchases. As it stands now, a lot of that stuff, stuff that is definitely not just, is still just a hindrance to you, just like the trash. The only difference is that you can sell it and get some $$ for it and apply it toward a dumpster.

I am right now at a decision point. I need to choose what I want to do with my life and focus on that. Obviously I don't want to spend the rest of it cleaning up a house. I've spent the last decade or 2 acquiring things that were going to be used to build a greenhouse and build a house on the property and build a shop and build a house up north, etc. etc. Obviously all these things won't happen. I need to choose what things WILL happen and choose not to keep dreaming of doing the others. Julie does this too. Things are bought for that place up north that will be a farm with lots of animals and a runway, near the beach. Financially that will never happen. Meanwhile she puts no effort into making what we DO have into something we can enjoy. Part of it is that this was her childhood home. She works with upper level managers who have beautiful homes in fancy suburbs. She aspires to that and anything less is a failure. To me, this 2 story colonial, even though it is in Detroit, is an accomplishment. Cleaned out and simplified it can be a simple but beautiful place to live.
So back to the choices.
Greenhouse will never happen. Dispose of the aluminum and glass.
House up north will never happen. Dispose of excess building materials.
Pottery - I have a shed half full of pottery molds. Never going to happen. Dispose of.
Shop.......A modest shop is possible in the existing structure in the basement and garage once everything is cleaned out. Keep this as a possibility. Dispose of all the tools? Maybe it would be better to define what I can accommodate and dispose of the others.

Flying.....This is something I definitely want to do as long as physically able. I have 2 flyable planes and one project. Sell the project and one of the flyable planes and focus on flying the best one.

Camping trailers. We like to camp and will do so. Keep Airstream and 1 good pop up. Sell the rest. Focus on fixing these 2 up.

Making choices means choosing to keep some things and choosing to give up others. It means focusing on what's important. I've had so many interests that I haven't been able to do any of them. Time to choose.

I am imagining that I have already disposed of the things listed above. It would be such a load off my mind!!!

I've got a lot of other things I can dispose of right now TODAY! I'm going out right now and start doing that!

 

[RVDan]

So who's thread do I get to look at to make me feel better???

I'll just have to improve things here until there are others that are a lot worse.

Better yet, improve until things here are normal.

Theres always those TV Shows, there was a UK version that profiled a guy who had so much **** piled up that it was like a fun park, you actually had to slide down a pile of newspaper to get into the kitchen, he didn't have pathways to get from room to room, he actually went over the top.

 

[bczygan]

Theres always those TV Shows, there was a UK version that profiled a guy who had so much **** piled up that it was like a fun park, you actually had to slide down a pile of newspaper to get into the kitchen, he didn't have pathways to get from room to room, he actually went over the top.

That's how I got into the garage!

 

[bczygan]

Just put Apache Mesa pop up, USS Constitution ship model, Pottery molds (Free), 4 poster bed (Free) and wallpaper on CL.

 

[Phxphenom]

I see the ads on CL. I think you will get a lot more interest in the pop up and molds if you include a pic.

Marc

 

[bczygan]

I see the ads on CL. I think you will get a lot more interest in the pop up and molds if you include a pic.

Marc

A guy already wants the molds to donate to his kids school.
Will put up photos soon on pop up. Already got scammer responses....Ain't CL great!


Pop up photos are up.
Bed is gone but they didn't take rails. Scrappers will get.

 

[BlueSuedeShoe]

Great seeing your progress, Bill!
Thanks for letting us all be part of your and your home's transformation!

 

[Homerr]

Oh $%#@! there's an aircraft hanger with 3 aircraft and who knows what too?

Bill, you've pared it down to:

1 hanger/aircraft
1 Airstream
1 pop-up camper
1 shed
1 basement shop
1 garage shop
1 house ("simple but beautiful place to live")

This is a huge list of man-hours. How about a goal of no projects other than the last one? Is it possible?

Right now you're transitioning from your "hoarder" self into what you hope to be a "normal" self. (The shift is obviously happening from just a few pages ago, but I doubt it's complete.) How about getting the house clean and your finances in order and THEN decide about what and if you can take on a project?

I.E. when you are in a mentally healthy spot in life, just wanting all this stuff gone and taken care of doesn't make it so just yet. You've got to get to your destination first, and travelers know that the journey changes them.

 

[bczygan]

Oh $%#@! there's an aircraft hanger with 3 aircraft and who knows what too?

Bill, you've pared it down to:

1 hanger/aircraft
1 Airstream
1 pop-up camper
1 shed
1 basement shop
1 garage shop
1 house ("simple but beautiful place to live")

This is a huge list of man-hours. How about a goal of no projects other than the last one? Is it possible?

Right now you're transitioning from your "hoarder" self into what you hope to be a "normal" self. (The shift is obviously happening from just a few pages ago, but I doubt it's complete.) How about getting the house clean and your finances in order and THEN decide about what and if you can take on a project?

I.E. when you are in a mentally healthy spot in life, just wanting all this stuff gone and taken care of doesn't make it so just yet. You've got to get to your destination first, and travelers know that the journey changes them.

There, I fixed the list in order of importance and order of completion.
First work on and get this:
1 cleaned up and fixed up house ("simple but beautiful place to live")

Then:
Dispose of items until we have:
1 hanger/aircraft
1 garage shop
1 Airstream
1 pop-up camper
1 shed
1 basement shop

Then work on the above items until they are also, like the house, usable.

Even with all the disposing of things. This is a real long list and a LOT of work. And for someone who is a lazy guy at heart.

 

[Bronson]

Bill, I am a retired Aircraft Mechanic. What have you got to sell and how much/ I need another project...Not really, but what Ya got?

 

[novaboy009]

With the situation he's in, he may never be able to buy that kind of stuff again. I'm kind of inclined to be okay with the list he has. I have a bunch of hobbies and "stuff" for all of them. They fit just fine in my relatively small house and I use all of them because I have time to do things I like (I'm not trying to unbury my house from sewage and garage like Bill). If he can honestly, truly, pair down his collection to the items he mentioned and down to scale (ie. probably doesn't need the bridge port, lathe, etc for the shop), then that list would be pretty typical for any of us here on GJ.

 

[cleoent]

This thread makes me so sad. I wont pretend to understand mental disorders such as hoarding, this **** is disgusting and is no way to live.

After wading through most of this ********, what's really concerning to me is that from what I can read, the only non-ruined non-trash **** Julie and Bill have only gotten rid of are some floppies (that haven't been useful for over a decade).

Yes, a couple of rooms have been cleaned out, but really it sounds like cleaning out means moving garbage to the dumpsters, and ruined things to the dumpsters, but moving "useful" things to another location.

That just won't work. Start throwing away everything. You're both in your 60's. To survive you'll need some clothes, some food, a tv, a bed, some tools for you and that's it. Firebomb the rest.

Good luck.

 

[Kevin54]

This thread makes me so sad. I wont pretend to understand mental disorders such as hoarding, this **** is disgusting and is no way to live.

After wading through most of this ********, what's really concerning to me is that from what I can read, the only non-ruined non-trash **** Julie and Bill have only gotten rid of are some floppies (that haven't been useful for over a decade).

Yes, a couple of rooms have been cleaned out, but really it sounds like cleaning out means moving garbage to the dumpsters, and ruined things to the dumpsters, but moving "useful" things to another location.

That just won't work. Start throwing away everything. You're both in your 60's. To survive you'll need some clothes, some food, a tv, a bed, some tools for you and that's it. Firebomb the rest.

Good luck.

I would suggest reading some of the problems on hoarding that is out there. In some ways, everyone has the tendency to do it, but in different stages. If they didn't, there would be no storage buildings around anywhere. i'd guess that 10% of the people that have a Storage Building rent them on a temporary basis between moves or remodeling. The other 90% rent them to store the overflow from the house and probably couldn't begin to list what is even in them.

 

[bczygan]

Bill, I am a retired Aircraft Mechanic. What have you got to sell and how much/ I need another project...Not really, but what Ya got?

Not likely to be anything you are interested in. I am a Sport Pilot and I fly Ultralights. More specifically, Quicksilver fixed wing aircraft. I have an MXL. a MX Super and the project is a MXIIA. They all have Rotax engines. After I fly the Super a little I might sell it. The MXIIA is definitely on the block. The MXL I will keep as long as I can fly. The MXIIA is a 2 seater. The others are single seat.

 

[bczygan]

Just went out in the back yard to see if I could get to the shed with the molds. I did, but what a mess. A true dumpster is looking more and more inviting. Ripped some ivy vines off the west wall and some aluminum siding came off with it. House looks like the US Capitol building in Planet of the Apes. Took some photos of the back walk from the upstairs bedroom (Office) window.

 

[Fueler]

Dumpster, Dumpster, BIG Dumpster, Dumpster, Dumpster.
Repeat

 

[bczygan]

Dumpster, Dumpster, BIG Dumpster, Dumpster, Dumpster.
Repeat

I see it now!

 

[BigWil]

I see it now!

Does that mean that you will accept our offers of help? I'm up for helping pay for a dumpster, if we can confirm it shows up.

 

[bczygan]

It's looking like the job is just too big for one guy with a few trash cans to do in any reasonable time. It's taken me a while to see the full size of it. I'm still not throwing everything away. I will keep more than many here would like. But I will dispose of WAY more than I ever thought I would. In fact, I need some time to go through everything and photo and make lists and more importantly, come to a realization about each pile and the contents of each shed. And it will take some planning on how to go about it. But yes, I NEED help. That's VERY hard to admit. And I'm VERY worried about losing control. I won't pull the trigger until I have the whole plan figured out and laid out here. And thank you BigWil and everyone else, for staying with me all this time. Your moral support and friendship means the most to me.

 

[JC23]

Make that pic of a full dumpster!

 

[98TJ]

Bill, did you/your wife have an event in your lives that triggered this?

 

[Red Leader]

Greenhouse will never happen. Dispose of the aluminum and glass.
House up north will never happen. Dispose of excess building materials.
Pottery - I have a shed half full of pottery molds. Never going to happen. Dispose of.
Shop.......A modest shop is possible in the existing structure in the basement and garage once everything is cleaned out. Keep this as a possibility. Dispose of all the tools? Maybe it would be better to define what I can accommodate and dispose of the others.

Flying.....This is something I definitely want to do as long as physically able. I have 2 flyable planes and one project. Sell the project and one of the flyable planes and focus on flying the best one.

Camping trailers. We like to camp and will do so. Keep Airstream and 1 good pop up. Sell the rest. Focus on fixing these 2 up.

Making choices means choosing to keep some things and choosing to give up others. It means focusing on what's important. I've had so many interests that I haven't been able to do any of them. Time to choose.

If it is enough aluminum it can be turned into $$ if there is a scrap yard near you, but don't let that turn into a reason for not disposing of it either. Good idea to scrap the greenhouse, maybe you'll get there at some point but it is pretty far off to be honest.

House up north - Bill, if it becomes a possibility, the situation will present itself. You have 1 house to worry about right now that is in dire need of attention. It makes no sense to have completely neglected your current house to dream about and save supplies for some far off house that is not your current reality.

Pottery - yes, get rid of it all.

Shop - Bill, you mention that a modest shop in the basement and garage is a possibility. Having both a shop in the garage and the basement is not modest. It is excess. How many drill presses can you use at one time? There is no need to have two shops, in different places. You're veering here with your thinking. As far as defining what you can accommodate, you have already shown all of us in this thread that right now you cannot accommodate anything, which is why the thousands of pounds of trash live inside your home and the thousands of pounds (and thousands of dollars) of precision machinery are living outside and getting ruined. As harsh as it sounds, it is your reality.

Instead of thinking that you are losing control by getting rid of this stuff, why not try reframing your thoughts - instead try thinking about the control you are exercising over the situation by deciding where the stuff's new home is - the trash to the dump, the machinery to people who will take it and care for it, and all the stuff that is still somehow too good to just throw away but doesn't really serve a purpose...to the thrift store. That, to me, is having control because you are actively making the calls on everything.

Flying - honestly Bill, this one is hard for me. You were about to lose your house but you own 3 planes? That is nearly unfathomable. And to be honest, the way we've seen the way you take care of some of the finer items you have (the nice machinery living out in the weather), I'd be seriously concerned about the maintenance on those planes. It may be time to get rid of them. You don't have to get rid of your passion for flying, but it sounds like now is not the time to be focusing on such extremely expensive hobbies...at least not when you are about to lose your house.

Camping - I say, keep the one that is in the most livable condition or the one you have the best memories attached to and sell the rest. You can only use 1 at a time.

Dispose of items until we have:
1 hanger/aircraft
1 garage shop
1 Airstream
1 pop-up camper
1 shed
1 basement shop

Then work on the above items until they are also, like the house, usable.

Even with all the disposing of things. This is a real long list and a LOT of work. And for someone who is a lazy guy at heart.

Bill,

I have a garage shop. I don't have a hangar, or a plane, or 3 planes, or an Airstream, or pop-up campers, or a shed or a basement shop.

And I already have way too much to keep me busy...and I am not a lazy guy at heart. I find it very hard to see how any human being could possible manage all of the stuff you have above.

That list is a good starting point, but it needs to look more like this:

1. House
2. Garage

See? It is refreshing. No mountains of stuff to worry about or have to do maintenance on. Nothing else to pay rent for or to try to think about how to fix up one day.

You could have tons of stuff and have it all overwhelm you and waste away and get neglected and trashed or you could have just a little and have it be awesome and know how to manage it and take care of it and work with it and have no stress. I know you are wanting the latter.

So JUST DO IT.​

 

[bczygan]

Bill, did you/your wife have an event in your lives that triggered this?

Our marriage!

Seriously.....we are 2 people who both find security in things and happiness in getting a good deal on something and a high from buying things. Having a house and yard and property to fill up made it convenient to keep doing.

For me, a life history of unrootedness, starting with an alcoholic father and moving often. Then my own broken career history.
For her, the nesting instinct and also a career as a temp with the associated unease about job security.

Credit card debt has trapped us (We did it to ourselves). Bad money management. Bad life management. Bad decision making. Refusing to face problems and take responsibility for them and do something about them. Neither one of us want to deal with things. We'll do anything to escape.

That pretty well says it.

 

[Nighttrain]

Lets see a picture of the inside of the hangar!

 

[2mJps]

Its no inposable for me to understand your way of thinking. I have hauled scrap Iron for years. I see a lot of usable stuff throwed away or recycled. Its hard not to look at something and see a usable item. I saved alot of stuff over the years.It was a bad deal I had to deal with it alot. I would haul it home witch was my dads farm move it around try to keep it dry. I was always thinking about stuff geting wet or mice geting in to it then when I needed something I couldnt find it. About a year ago I quit my job and stated to get rid of stuff. I am more or less living of of the money from selling stuff. Its hard to understand why I saved stuff and wasted time on it just to scrap it years later. I hope in the future I can make better decision. Luckly most of my stuff is made of steel so it is easy to sell. Evey one wants you to get a big dumpster but I think you would have trouble dealing with it. Good luck stay after it.

 

[bczygan]

Lets see a picture of the inside of the hangar!

No photos available but it contains 2 small pop ups, 1 hang glider, 1 kayak. 1 completely disassembled MXIIA, 1 partially disassembled (Wings and tail removed) MX Super, 2 ladders, a small pile of lumber and a 16' enclosed trailer with a partially disassembled (Wings and tail removed) MXL in it.

 

[morfmedia]

Sell your most expensive items first (planes?), that will free up plenty of cash for fixes / roll off dumpster and labour to help. You seem to spend a LOT of time raking leaves, can't believe you don't have leaf vacuum considering you have so much other junk?! Good luck with this mission.

Is your wife computer literate? If she is I'd try and divide the jobs up such as you carrying on with the manual labour part and her concentrate on selling the items on CL.

 

[bczygan]

Sell your most expensive items first (planes?), that will free up plenty of cash for fixes / roll off dumpster and labour to help. You seem to spend a LOT of time raking leaves, can't believe you don't have leaf vacuum considering you have so much other junk?! Good luck with this mission.

I do have a BillyGoat. Wouldn't you know it?!!! It works on expanses of leaves on walks and streets. It's a pain to empty the bag. Other areas have too much slope and trees obstruct use of it so flower beds and the berm need raking. Still plenty of raking needed. Almost entire back yard is full of piles of lumber, sheds etc. so no use there. We do have too many trees. Something else we need to thin out.

Money isn't the problem at this point. Stuff is. Things at the property and the hangar are too far away to deal with efficiently right now. Every item I can simply pitch from the house and yard gives me more space to operate in. I will continue to use CL to get rid of stuff for free or for sale. And I will use the curb for items scrappers will take and things the neighborhood will haul off for me. 4 poster bed went quickly yesterday (It was very nice - see photo below), but I didn't see a place for it in our planned uses of this house. I am proud of myself for disposing of it. Still a tinge of regret. Could I have sold it? Not without too much more effort. Should I have kept it? ABSOLUTELY NOT!

After I clear out stuff and begin repairs, then money will be needed and I will aggressively market things of value.

 

[morfmedia]

onwards and upwards then

 

[RVDan]

seriously just leave the aircraft alone, its the hazardous waste that is the real problem, the newspapers, magazines, books...everything that is holding moisture and encouraging mold growth is the stuff that needs to go first.

Of course everything thats in the way of getting to the hazardous stuff has to go too

Remember you're not alone. Yesterday I hauled away two more truckloads of scrap wood and a load of garabage. That makes 14 fullsize truck loads of scrap wood and 18 truck loads of garbage. Oh did I mention my lot size is only 7500 square feet? My Dad has the same illness as you, I suspect it will be another three months before I finish removing everything that he spent his life storing.

 

[Need4racin]

Our marriage!

Seriously.....we are 2 people who both find security in things and happiness in getting a good deal on something and a high from buying things. Having a house and yard and property to fill up made it convenient to keep doing.

For me, a life history of unrootedness, starting with an alcoholic father and moving often. Then my own broken career history.
For her, the nesting instinct and also a career as a temp with the associated unease about job security.

Credit card debt has trapped us (We did it to ourselves). Bad money management. Bad life management. Bad decision making. Refusing to face problems and take responsibility for them and do something about them. Neither one of us want to deal with things. We'll do anything to escape.

That pretty well says it.

This video relates to your problem. MATERIALISM

 

[98TJ]

I'm cleaning up today and throwing things away just to get them gone.

Sure, I could keep the stuff that once held some value to me, but having less **** taking up space means more right now.

I started about an hour ago and I already have two 42-gallon bags full of trash and I'm well on my way to loading the back of the F-250 with stuff.

Bill, you HAVE to LET STUFF GO.

It seems you/your wife might've initially liked buying stuff but it seems that, at some point, apathy took over.

It's good to see you making progress, but you know you need to make a much larger dent in things. Instead of moving stuff from one place to the next, just move it into an actual dumpster. Then you're not duplicating/creating work for yourself by moving stuff around that once had value but has now lost any value it once had. 5 1/4" floppy machines should be recycled/trashed. If they were worth using, you'd be using them to post here on GJ. The fact that you don't use them tells you how "valuable" they are.

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

It's looking like the job is just too big for one guy with a few trash cans to do in any reasonable time. It's taken me a while to see the full size of it. I'm still not throwing everything away. I will keep more than many here would like. But I will dispose of WAY more than I ever thought I would. In fact, I need some time to go through everything and photo and make lists and more importantly, come to a realization about each pile and the contents of each shed. And it will take some planning on how to go about it. But yes, I NEED help. That's VERY hard to admit. And I'm VERY worried about losing control. I won't pull the trigger until I have the whole plan figured out and laid out here. And thank you BigWil and everyone else, for staying with me all this time. Your moral support and friendship means the most to me.

Is there anyone there in a physical proximity...relative, friend, co-worker, whatever...that is helping you at all with this? I think an understanding person who could help you with this stuff would go a long way to getting this situation the way you want.

Doing it yourself, or with your wife, is going to be much tougher, as you're both predisposed to hoarding, not purging.

Just my $0.02.

 

[bczygan]

Is there anyone there in a physical proximity...relative, friend, co-worker, whatever...that is helping you at all with this? I think an understanding person who could help you with this stuff would go a long way to getting this situation the way you want.

Doing it yourself, or with your wife, is going to be much tougher, as you're both predisposed to hoarding, not purging.

Just my $0.02.

Part of hoarding is trying to keep it secret from family and friends. And you don't have friends because you can't ever have them over. You can't ever have family over either. There is family in the suburbs, but luckily they are resistant to come down into the city of Detroit. Part of the hoarding is also hiding away from society. It's a great pastime for retired folks.
Lately I have admitted the problem to family. Julie doesn't like that. No way she would want them to actually see the problem before it's cleaned up. My 2 brothers are here on GJ and have followed the thread. One lives in the UP, 10 hours away, and the other is physically unable to help.

I've thought about getting the brother from the UP to come down. He is a builder/contractor and summer is when he makes his money. I couldn't ask him to do it. I am perfectly capable of doing all the work. Most of it is just dumb labor (My specialty). As an architectural designer I know how to do all the house repairs too. I re-roofed half the roof. And there is no shortage of people in the neighborhood who would do day labor for cash. But you don't want to employ them and let them see what you have.

One solution is to get Julie more fully involved . Two problems with that. First, she works 40 hours and pays the bills. She is exhausted when she gets home. A lot of it is stress. In addition she is way out of shape physically (As am I). Maybe some physical activity will help her with the stress and excess weight. The other problem is she doesn't know the extent of what I am throwing away. She would save each item. She would bemoan each ruined item. It would further depress her. Better that all the forgotten items just disappear. Later she will ask "Whatever happened to?"

I can get her going where the basic cleaning is completed. She has been purging shoes and is interested in going through bins of clothes.

I know she is far behind me in dealing with this in her mind. Bringing up problems and asking her to deal with them just causes her to put up a wall. She actually says "Stop! I can't deal with this right now." She expects me to be the one responsible for fixing things. And that is reasonable. I am taking a leadership role in some things. I have now taken charge of savings. Each month I am putting aside money. Next I will start dealing with the CC debt.

So I am rambling. The short answer is that I should think about finding a trustworthy person to hire to help out.

 

[Kevin54]

It's looking like the job is just too big for one guy with a few trash cans to do in any reasonable time. It's taken me a while to see the full size of it. I'm still not throwing everything away. I will keep more than many here would like. But I will dispose of WAY more than I ever thought I would. In fact, I need some time to go through everything and photo and make lists and more importantly, come to a realization about each pile and the contents of each shed. And it will take some planning on how to go about it. But yes, I NEED help. That's VERY hard to admit. And I'm VERY worried about losing control. I won't pull the trigger until I have the whole plan figured out and laid out here. And thank you BigWil and everyone else, for staying with me all this time. Your moral support and friendship means the most to me.

You don't need photos or a list of everything. You're not writing a book. By the time you get done dicking around doing all of that or even a fourth of that, the snow will be flying again. Trash is trash. It's money you spent, it's money you wasted, and it's items ruined. A lot of the items you have are perishable items anyways. Magazines, papers, old computers. All perishable items that depreciate from the time you purchase them.

And Holy Hell Bill.....THREE planes, a hanger that is probably packed to the gills also. You sir, have some very fucked up priorities. I only wish I had the money that you two have pissed away over the years buying stuff just to let it get ruined. That would be like me buying an $80,000 car and running it through a fence because I know it's going to get scratches on it later.

You don't need to make an inventory list or photo everything. From the pics I see of your yard, there's not much there that's any account at all. Get a roll-off and pitch it all. Get a trailer and load up the Bridgeports and lathes and haul them to the scrap. As long as they've been outside, there probably not much account anyways.

And lastly get your head out of your *** and quit living on pipe dreams. You want a nice house and you want a nice shop. You have neither because you don't take care of what you have. Once you can take care of your house and make it half way livable and take care of your health, then maybe you can concentrate on a shop, or flying, or a vacation. But you keep saying when this happens, when that happens, well it's not going to happen. Plain and simple.

And one other thing, you blame the condition on being uprooted, and having an alcoholic father. You're not special. Quite a few on here have had the same thing, me included. What happened when I was young made me all the stronger and determined to day. I made a vow not to be like that, so I guess I have to call B.S. on that excuse you use.

If you really, really are sincere about changing, you'll stop making excuses for everything. I hate to say it, but you're not what I call a "high roller". You have pipe dreams of being somebody you're not, by buying things to keep up with everyone else. Somewhere along the line you met a person that had an Ultralight. You were intrigued. So you bought one, then another, then another. Then you try to compare yourself to them. You were introduced to woodworking at an early age. So then you started buying woodworking tools. Now you can call yourself a "Carpenter". Then you met someone that had a mill and a lathe and were again intrigued. So you purchase a couple of mills, drill presses, lathe. Now you can say you have more than the guy you met. And now you can call yourself a "Machinist". I hate to tell you Bill, a "Carpenter" has cabinet doors on his kitchen cabinets, a "Pilot" keeps his planes in top notch working order, and a "Machinist" would not store his **** outside.

So to put it bluntly......QUIT YOUR ******' JONES'N !!!!! Material possessions will NOT make you the Pilot, Machinist, or Carpenter that you want to be. I'm a Machinist and I don't even own a mill. I might someday, but a thing called PRIORITIES take precedence over that. Priorities are bills for one, health care for another, a good running vehicle, and a clean house. Once those are taken care of, THEN and ONLY THEN can I concentrate on toys. I want someone to be Jones'n for me, I'm not Jones'n for someone else. My goal in life is to take care of priorities so when the time comes, I can relax or play the way that I want. You on the other hand, have taken your biggest asset in life which is a home, and totally ruined it. My home is money in the bank. My home is worth more today than when I bought it. I think ahead. If I have a medical condition and absolutely need money, I can sell my house, downsize, pay cash for another house and still pocket $100g's. If I would happen to die, my wife will be sitting fairly well afterwards. I have Medical Insurance which to me is a priority above everything, I have Life Insurance which will take care of my wife if something unfortunate happens, which again is a priority to have. And the house will be paid off in a couple of years.

Look out in your backyard Bill. Look at your shop. Look at whats in the shop, yard, and house. THAT IS YOUR PRIORITY!!!!! TRASH. Ruined material possessions that you created yourself. If you would have something catastrophic happen to you tomorrow, is Julie set, and will she be content living in squalor conditions? If so, then you made your goal in life.

 

[bczygan]

You are right.
And it's probably too late.
No savings.
No life insurance.
Health insurance only as long as work lasts.
CC debt up the wazoo.
Health starting to get iffy.
The whole financial house of cards, health and hoarding will come crashing down soon.
I'm just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

 

[JC23]

I'm just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

I've avoided saying just that but, yes. That's where you are right now.

So now that you've stated the problem, what's next, Bill?

(Hint: action plan, not more talk)

 

[novaboy009]

Get your hard hat on and go to work. Time to stop dicking around raking leaves and shuffling stuff around. You're sitting on a gold mine of scrap and fairly useful items. Shuttle the junk into a dumpster and sell everything of value. You'll reset your life course in about 2 months. It's hard work, but it's not that hard!!!!