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Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,766
Registered: ‎05-09-2010

For anyone that has animals, it is impossible to have a spotless home at all times.  We have two furry dogs who manufacture hair.  Always thought I could make a fortune if there were a way to turn their hair into cash.

 

I am not a particularly neat person.  I clean up after myself.  But as far as everything being clean all the time, not so much.  I don't want to spend all my time cleaning and I am not married to my house.  I clean when I want to and/or when it really needs to be done.  I also do not want to be the person who stresses when something is out of place.  Life it too short for that.  A woman I used to know told me that she could not fall asleep one night because her salt shaker was still on the kitchen table instead of back in the cupboard.  First of all, mine is always on the table, and secondly, that kind of OCD is not healthy in my opinion.  

Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else. Margaret Mead
Super Contributor
Posts: 493
Registered: ‎02-25-2020

I'm a very neat person, married to a guy who's mother was a hoarder.  He grew up around piles of things everywhere and he can't understand my need for order.  His workshop is a shambles in my eyes.  I think I may have mentioned in a previous post that one time I tried to straighten out the garage and he had a fit saying he couldn't find anything.

My daughter didn't inherit my neatness gene and whenever I visit her, I feel jumpy and nervous looking at the piles of mail on the counter, the living room scattered with used dishes and glasses, movie DVD's not put away, dirty clothes laying around...I could go on, but you get the picture.  When I go home I look around at the neatness and just feel more relaxed and calm.

 

Man plans. God laughs.
Honored Contributor
Posts: 15,523
Registered: ‎09-01-2010

In general yes.   The worst habit here is that we often don't put things away after we've used them, and if all 4 of us do it, it is a noticeable issue.  


My Mom was very proud of the house she and Daddy built, and she worked overtime to keep it neat and clean.   We truly lived in our house and when it got dirty, she cleaned it, but we knew to pick up after ourselves, etc.   My parents were not OCD about the house.   

My girls could never share a bedroom, as one was OCD and one was a slob.  As they aged, they switched places.  Now, they are both slobs, as they are in the stage of life of acquiring nice things, and have enough stuff in their bedrooms and my basement to fill a 6 room house!   

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,201
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

@happycat wrote:

@Desertdi wrote:

I grew up in a "Do NOT Touch" household.  I am now the absolute opposite.    

 

  Fingerprints don't bother me........Messy cushions, rugs with footprints, half-burned candles.........NOTHING bothers

me


That just brought back a memory. I had a friend who cleaned houses for a living. She hurt herself and needed some help. I went with her to clean a huge house over by the country club. These people had high carpets in some of the rooms. They wanted the rugs cleaned, but no footprints were to be left on them. So, we had to jump! 

 

When I was working, I had a house cleaner and I never would have asked her to jump to avoid leaving footprints. I think some people are just too big for their britches.

 

Things don't bother me much either, really. I just like to see my counters, lol.


In "Backstairs At the White House," the author said it was Bess Truman who complained about footprints on the carpet.

 

Jokingly, I tell my DH, "Do not make footprints!" He hasn't figured out yet how to levitate.

 

It's more like half-jokingly. Because I would rather see the brush marks from my steam cleaning!

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,576
Registered: ‎06-13-2011

I would say that I am.  I cannot stand an unmade bed or dishes left in the sink.  I have to clean my kitchen each evening after dinner so that when I get up the next morning everything looks tidy.  

 

I run my vacuum in every room on a daily basis and my bathroom always gets cleaned daily and I always straighten everything up throughout my house.  At the same time, I'm not a clean freak about my house.  My Mom always said that a home is to live in, it's not a showcase.  

 

My husband is not as tidy as I am and I give him a break on that. In his den he is allowed to pile things up on his end table right by his recliner.  The only caveat is that he has to clean it off once a week.  He's great about doing that so I don't say anything when it's loaded with his books and magazines that he swears he is going to read. I just walk by the room and look the other way. 

 

He's a good guy, he works hard, and treats me well so I just accept that he will never be as tidy as I am.  

 

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,073
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

I have always been a neat freak! I love to have things neat, clean, put away, & organized. I get this trait from my father. He was very neat & organized. I shared a room with my sister who was the complete opposite. Her half of the room looked like a tornado went though it. My DH is not neat or tidy either. He has piles of things scattered around our house. After many years & attempts of trying to change this behavior, I’ve given up. 

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,379
Registered: ‎06-14-2011

@Puppy Lips  bless you.  I am just like you.  I try.  I really do.  But I am not going to lose sleep if something hasn't been put away.  I do what I can and if my back starts to hurt I have to sit.  My daughter is the exact opposite of me.  She doesn't even let me put her items on the grocery belt.  They have to go up in a certain order and grouped together. LOL.  Someday I'll get my act together, until then, I'm good.  

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,613
Registered: ‎03-12-2010

I am very tidy.  I can't live with disarray.  It drives me nuts. 

Frequent Contributor
Posts: 75
Registered: ‎06-18-2010

Thanks to the OP for this topic.  Strange how fascinating it is.  I know there are all degrees of behavior, from hoarding to OCD.  My daughter and I have been in my relatively small condo since the beginning of Covid (She had arrived or a three week visit jat the end of Feb 2020.)  She can't travel, because she has a compromised immune system, and our neat and tidy behavior is very different.  We've done pretty well, alll things considered, with just two blow ups in the year together.  I bite my lip, as I close the open cabinets, etc., and I don't know everything I do that bothers her!

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,220
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Totally a neatnik!  Come from a long line of neatniks!