Small Talk: The Prayer Closet

[Love2dance]

1 hour ago, Happyfatchick said:

I'd like to know that too, Absolom.  I have gray and darker gray outline, but when certain people post, their boxes are in color.  (Looking at YOU, Aja).  Is this a trick you figured out, or some way you set up your homepage?  I think Aja's come acoss as light pink.  Someone else has pale green.  (On MY screen, anyway.)

i repierced the second hole in my right ear this morning, yes, I did.  With a sanitized needle and string, just like it happened the first time 30 years ago.  That hole ALWAYS grows shut.  I was very careful and intend to keep it clean - but fully expect to have a right ear the size of MrRod by tonight.  Won't THAT be pretty?

ETA: Aja is clearly the teachers pet

 

Hmmmm. My iPad is colorblind. All the posts are light gray with darker gray outline. Even AJA's. 

[Absolom]

I saw an Aja in pink and then it turned gray.  Very strange.  All the posts except "mod" entries are gray with a darker gray boarder for me.  Very dark gray border for first unread.  It's all very dull and boring looking and a little difficult to find first unread.  I'm on anther board powered by the same software and also on the same version and with a purchased "skin" it has the line (!), we can select what color we want the board, and several other features.  It makes me sad for here. 

[bigskygirl]

If no one minds, I am bringing it back to the washing machine and dryer discussions. The local Lowes has a Samsung Washing Machine and Dryer I would like to have. I probably will get the pedestals to go with them because it will help with vibrations while the washing machine runs. Our old washing machine would vibrate to the point I thought we were having an earthquake. *yikes* 

I would need to use a different detergent for the washer. I used regular powder clothes soap in the old washer. I do not care for liquid clothes soap. Tide makes me itch and I need an anti-allergen soap when I can afford a new machine.

[Absolom]

Can you shop at Target?  There's a more natural detergent my daughter uses and it works very well with the front loaders.

[bigskygirl]

We do have a Target here. I heard All Allergen detergent is good. Crossing fingers we will be able to afford new machines before summer is over.

[lookeyloo]

I make my own laundry detergent (I am Not a Duggar). It is Zote soap (in a bar), (some people use feels naphtha bar soap)washing soda and borax. It makes no suds and has no odor that I can tell. It is a powder. Works great in HE machines if anyone is interested. Easy peasy in a food processor. 

[rumcake]

bigskygirl, I have a Samsung washing purchased a few years back at Lowes.   Front loader with hot, warm and cold wash temps.   It has 6 or so wash choices.  We really like it.

I use ERA liquid.  It is for HE machines like the Samsung.

[crazycatlady58]

3 hours ago, lookeyloo said:

I make my own laundry detergent (I am Not a Duggar). It is Zote soap (in a bar), (some people use feels naphtha bar soap)washing soda and borax. It makes no suds and has no odor that I can tell. It is a powder. Works great in HE machines if anyone is interested. Easy peasy in a food processor. 

 

3 hours ago, lookeyloo said:

I make my own laundry detergent (I am Not a Duggar). It is Zote soap (in a bar), (some people use feels naphtha bar soap)washing soda and borax. It makes no suds and has no odor that I can tell. It is a powder. Works great in HE machines if anyone is interested. Easy peasy in a food processor. 

I have made and used this it cleans great and is chesp, you use only  2 tablespoons  for a full load. Sorry I can not get rid of  the double  quote . 

[Almost 3000]

3 hours ago, lookeyloo said:

I make my own laundry detergent (I am Not a Duggar). It is Zote soap (in a bar), (some people use feels naphtha bar soap)washing soda and borax. It makes no suds and has no odor that I can tell. It is a powder. Works great in HE machines if anyone is interested. Easy peasy in a food processor. 

I grew up with my mom making that same combo in the 50-60s. Seemed to work well then too.

[louannems]

I have also made my own homemade laundry soap for my HE front loader. I've made the soap (liquid) for 16 years and have had my front loader 7 years.  I have a whirlpool and it twists and ties clothes and sheets into knots.  Anyway, I do use Arm and Hammer with oxyclean for whites only. I buy the powder and only use 2 Tablespoons for the front loader.  It does not need much soap at all and you do not need to pay extra for HE soap.  I learned this from a laundry worker at a coin-op laundry with front loaders.

[Happyfatchick]

If I made my own detergent, I wouldn't feel complete unless I beat my clothes on a rock to clean them.

JK.  I think I'm a rock star (and so do my babies) because I make their dog food.

[Micks Picks]

Mine gets chicken, usually canned, and whatever high quality dry food he will accept.  Finnecky as the devil.  He won't eat food that touches each other.  So nothing is mixed.  Separate on a paper plate or pie tin.  Or china (jk).

Waterford does make a dog bowl.  But they don't hold much water.  So he drinks from stainless steel bowls, only filtered water.  Out of the tap stains the sides of the bowl badly, which tells you what it does to your insides.  Yuck.

[frenchtoast]

I find it hilariously fascinating that dogs (and obviously not all dogs, but all dogs that I've seen) will drink the nastiest water outside, but grudgingly drink clean water from clean water bowls. Oh, heaven forfend, a bit of dog food in the water bowls. But, sure, let's drink from the filthy puddle. Why the heck not.

Gotta love those dogs.

[kathe5133]

My dogs pretty much ate what I gave them.  But.  They only ate if I was home, sitting at the computer.  My nightly routine was come home, change out of my good clothes, feed the dogs, then check in on the computer.  The dogs would eat while I surfed.  So, if I came home, fed the dogs and went upstairs to change, they would follow me, whining in hunger, watching me change.  Then we'd all come downstairs and they would watch me like a hawk.  Once my butt hit the computer chair they would tuck in.  They are such creatures of habit.  When you think of it though, they really don't understand English.  They watch our behavior for clues about "what is coming next".  I think it made sense in their minds that dinner time began once I was sitting in my chair.  Same thing when I left in the morning for work.  They both got Kongs filled with peanut butter, and then I would leave.  After I gave them their Kongs, if something delayed me walking out the door you could see their anxiety!  I do miss having dogs, but still don't miss the walks and poop patrol.  Someday I may have a dog or two again, but enjoying the break for now.

[Jynnan tonnix]

We have two cats (a 10- year-old overweight boy(Onyx) who hates feeling as though he's missing out on anything, and a 7-8 year old girl (Cora) we got out of rescue after our old lady of almost 18 passed away shortly after Christmas) and an alleged dog (a 7 year old Papillon (Pippin)who weighs less than either of them and less than half of the big cat, even though he could lose a little bit of weight himself (he's just short of 7 lb where he should be 5 or so). The problem is that no one wants to stick to their own food, and we can't figure out a way to segregate their dishes given that they are all used to "grazing" throughout the course of the day.

Pippin, of course, being a dog and an opportunist will steal the cats' food whenever it is set on the floor, which is where they get a little bit of canned food twice a day (the dry food they graze on is up on the coffee table in the porch where the dog can't reach it), since they eat a few mouthfuls then walk away. Cora, and occasionally Onyx, keep eating the dog's dry food out of his dish in the kitchen and it seems that we've been going through it at twice the rate we used to. But since cats can reach pretty much anything and the dog can't reach beyond about 5 inches off the floor, there's nowhere to put his food that they can't get at it.

I seems a good part of each day is spent shuttling food and animals around where they won't all think that someone else is getting something better than thy are.

[Almost 3000]

I've never had a dog that had food available at all times. (cats yes, dogs no) Is this a good idea?

[NewDigs]

And I've never had a cat that ate dog food!

My 13 yr. old cat seems to get picky about his food only after I buy a case of what had been his current fave. Keeps me on my toes!

[Jynnan tonnix]

He was 7 months old when I got him from a breeder and that's the way he had been used to eating. I always gave him about a day's worth of kibble, and it would last him all day. Now that the cat has been after it, it seems to go a lot faster, though I don't really know what proportion she gets. Don't know whether grazing is good or bad for dogs, per se, as we have mostly always had cats. The couple of dogs we had in the past ate dry food as well, though they would generally eat it all in one go. They were bigger dogs, though, so bigger kibble, and no chance of a cat deciding to go after it. Maybe it's a small breed thing to graze? At any rate, he's 7 years old now, and if I start taking his food away after 5 minutes and not give it back to him until the same time the next day, I'd be hearing a whole lot of whining for 23+ hours of the day. Not sure how I'd go about changing his eating habits at this point...

[Happyfatchick]

My babies all have specific stations for their bowls (we have 3).  We only feed them once a day (officially, anyway) but their water bowls are always filled.  The routine is this: Everybody eats their official fill at their own bowl.  The smallest is a cocker, who never eats his whole portion (from his bowl).  After they're all (technically) full, everybody swaps bowls.  I'm not sure who calls the signal for "BOWL SWAP!", but apparently one of them clears their throat (a doggie "ahem") and all at the same time, they all shift positions.  (The food is all identical).  

My husband isn't so locked into a routine anymore, but when he came home every day at roughly 5:00, all the dogs would go sit at the fence watching the turn into the driveway, waiting for him just before 5:00.  Every day.  And if it's raining, they sit at the window that faces the driveway at that same time.  The cocker sleeps with me (I know.  Yuck.  But there you go, it's our routine).  I'm a night owl by nature, so I'm always up later than the hubs.  I can get up and go in the kitchen, and the dog doesn't move from the couch.  Or go to the bathroom, or the sewing room.  He'll open one eye and watch, but doesn't move.  But if I stand up and turn off the lamp at the end of the couch, the dog is down the hall and rooting around in my bed in a nano-second.  And here's the bed routine - I make my bed every single day.  Every day.  And tidy the room.  So when he gets there at night, there are 7 (I KNOW, right???) pillows to contend with, and the comforter (or whatever) is pulled up underneath the pillows.  He jumps in the bed and starts digging like a crazy nut, pulling the comforter and top sheet from under the pillows.  He MUST have his little doggie fannie on SHEETS, thankyouverymuch.  When he gets to sheets, he circles and plops down.  Then when I get in bed, he adjusts himself so that his butt is against me.  The butt must touch the mom at all times.  He loves bedtime.  My favorite thing about the little guy (who thinks he's a TOTAL badass) is how he follows the bigger dogs around the yard and squirts at least a minute amount of pee wherever THEY pee.  I don't know how boy dogs do that - shut the valve on their bladder to spread the goodness around.  I love those babies.  I could talk about their quirks and personalities all day.  My middle child is a boxer who LOVES the outdoors - she stays out most of the day by choice.  She loves mud, she loves dirt, she loves to lay out in the sun, she loves to root around under the porch - her snot face almost always includes a mud crusted nose.  She's an outside girl.  Unless there's a raindrop.  This dog WILL NOT go out to relieve herself in the rain.  Will N.O.T. Do it.  I have seen her go two full days without pooping or peeing because she cannot get her toes wet.  We've tried everything, even going out in the rain to entice her.  Nope.  Princess doesn't do rain.  She looks up at me with that upside down mouth and black eyes, as if to say, "turn it off!!!!"

enough about the children.  Just before my mom's driveway is a curve.  It's a rural road, it has that poor mans blacktop, and only got that 2 years ago.  I grew up on a dirt road.  Just past the driveway were 20 blueberry bushes. Daddy's babies.  Been there probably 25 years or more.  Looooong time.  When he got too feeble to take proper care of them, he had a little folding canvas stool that he could carry out there, and the water hose lived there.  He would put his stool down, seat himself and point the hose at each bush for a set amount of time.  Pruning time, he could only manage one bush a day, so it took him awhile to get them all.  I'd say, daddy, I will happily do that for you...and he'd say, "you won't do it right".  Well, all-righty then.  So last night, someone missed the curve and took out every last one of them.  It looks like a Sherman tank plowed through there.  Took them out by the roots, most of them.  It looks so sad.  Bushes everywhere.  Pieces of my Daddy's heart all over the yard.  :(

[BitterApple]

We have a Presa Canario who's about 180 and we just make up his food bowl in the morning and let him eat throughout the day as he gets hungry. He gets 10 cups of kibble mixed with salmon and sweet potato canned food. However it's always a set amount. If he empties his dish by three, we don't refill it until the next morning. Because he's a giant breed, any extra weight is hard on the joints, so we have to be careful about overfeeding.

On the subject of water, I have a friend who's cat will only drink Aquafina or Dasani. If my friend puts tap water out, the cat won't touch it.

[Love2dance]

So, here I am, all ready to go to the gym and I see there is a new post by HAPPYFATCHICK. YAY!! I have a procrastination excuse. HAPPY, your posts can make me giggle out loud one minute (cocker pup burrowing in the sheets) and weep the next (Daddy's ruined blueberry bushes). 

I'm really enjoying all of the kitty and doggy posts, too. I miss having pets.

OK. Excuse over. Off to the gym.

[bigskygirl]

I was feeding Tia and Sassy once a day, but Sassy was eating most of the cat food, so I ended up feeding them small amounts three times a day. Tia is usually a sweet quiet cat. This has change to the point where she will not leave me alone until I give her some food. UGH!!! Sassy will eat everything including the kitchen sink if I let her. She is one big chow hound or should I say chow cat. I love them both, but I have my moments when I think no more pets after they both pass away. Yes, I know I am saying it, but I am sure a new kitten would be coming home with me when the time comes. I think a big part of it is the fact I am sick and miserable and want to be left alone. No buggy, hungry cats to get under foot. I try to get them to bug my husband about food, but they know I am the one who buys the food and feeds them. *lol*

[CherryMalotte]

 It looks like a Sherman tank plowed through there.  Took them out by the roots, most of them.  It looks so sad.  Bushes everywhere.  Pieces of my Daddy's heart all over the yard.

Oh no HFC!  Can they be replanted in your own yard?  I have no green thumb, but my mom was given a couple of plants and I'm going to do my best not to kill them.  One is a shamrock plant, and the other is something...I'm not sure what it is.  Something that flowers every now and again, hell if I know.  I am just going to follow directions and then get a couple of nice small planters to put them in.  

I'm trying to enjoy a Dad-Less day here in my hell hole, which needs to be picked up badly.  Days like this makes me wish I would or could pay somebody else to clean. 

[Happyfatchick]

I'm not sure, Cherry.  Some of them are  still roots-in-the ground, just flattened.  I'm going to try to baby them into coming back to life.  Some were totally uprooted.  I've never tended blueberries, so I don't know how hearty they are after trauma.  I'd like to recover anything I can.  

We found headlight parts and a couple car chips on the ground, and my son found the whole bumper about a quarter mile down.  I want to get that bumper and put it on display in the yard.  Just for kicks, you know?  That little road joins two pretty heavily traveled roads on either end.  It's a regular cut-through since the blacktop (it's sort of tarred gravel, complete with potholes).  So I figure somebody's dad might use the same road and see the bumper and "Johnny" might get busted.  "Johnny" was doing probably close to 60 on that little not-quite dirt road to take out 20 adult blueberry bushes with fat stalks.  They were SIDEWAYS part of the time, and the road and grounds were dry last night.  I guess anger isn't allowed in heaven.  If it was, there would have been one seriously pissed off little stampede up there last night!

oh, and remember when I said I was going to paint a message on river rocks and leave them everywhere we go camping?  I went back and forth for the longest over what to put on them - it doesn't have to make sense to anyone but me, I know that.  I finally settled on this:

FRONT:  remembering A & H.    Traveling through heaven in an RV

BACK:  Love you most

[thats what they always said to each other and to me when we parted -  had "love you most" put on the headstone]

[GeeGolly]

Is it taking 2 visits to a thread to have the red tile go back to black for anyone else?

[emma675]

Mine is not a grazer, she will eat everything you put in front of her whether she's truly hungry or not. The vet says she sees that sometimes with dogs that have been dumped--they don't know when or where their next meal is coming from so they eat everything in front of them, just in case. My dog was found dumped in the woods in Kentucky and we don't know how long she was on her own (asshole hunter dumped her because she's gun shy). I've had her for almost 10 years now but she still gobbles down everything in one go.

[NewDigs]

GeeGolly, I was having that happen in only the Bugs listing is Site Business and could only make it go away using the Mark Read flag. It's not doing it now so am assuming it's a forum changeover glitch.

emma675, I hope there is a special place in hell for people who abandon animals. We were lucky enough to be adopted, 12 years ago, by an abandoned cat who was half-feral and wandered the neighborhood in ever-expanding circles. We had decided to not "do" pets and now can't imagine life w/o Max. He wasn't crazy about being turned into a house cat but is beyond content now. 

I got in the habit of givng him a big dollop of plain low-fat yogurt twice a day and it seems to really help his tummy, especially after an erp. 

[lookeyloo]

We had a lovely day today. The son and husband (I know this would shock the Duggars but they would be missing out on two wonderful men) came over with our grandpuppies. They are rescue siblings - boxer/basset mixes and very sweet. They are a boy and girl 9 years old. Never been apart except when one needs something medical. They are always nervous when they get here although they love us at their house. We all went for a walk on the Silver Comet Trail and starting out the two of them quivered in fear or excitement. Hard to tell. We call it "fear-cited". They seemed to enjoy themselves and then sort of relaxed when we got back here.  and then they all went home. Just like human grandchildren - we get to enjoy them and love on them and then send them home.  We have not recovered from the loss of our wonderful German Shepherd Dog who was over 13 when he died in 2010. 

[Henri205]

Speaking of our pets.  Golden Retriever is dog one, VERY smart, knows how to manipulate everything to be sure she wins and gets what she wants, usually a treat or two. Dog two is a Lab/maybe pit bull mix, very sweet but (sorry, all) VERY dumb.  I'll let them out at bedtime and 1 pees and if necessary, poops.  Number 2 will investigate things and then eat poop that may be around the yard.  I've spoken to the vet about this.  GRRRRR   She's well-fed and is in perfect health.  Guess she just likes the buffet in the back yard.  Then we have the cat.  He's odd, for a long time avoided people but has lately found it necessary to plunk in MY lap and try to bite the tab on my iPad cover.  I wouldn't trade any of them for the world.   I find the cat quite comforting when I laze on the couch and he joins me, kinda curls up for some loving. 

[NewDigs]

Aw. I love comforting kitties!

Max frequently climbs aboard when I'm lying on the futon reading, which is quite often. I know he's in some kind of kitty heaven when he drools. And then once in a while he even gets a kind of a sweet dopey expression.

I sometimes think I should try to remember how old he's getting and should maybe try to prime myself for the inevitable loss but I get so verklempt I had to stop trying.

Edited May 15, 2016 by NewDigs

[MargeGunderson]

I love hearing about everyone's pets! My little old lady (20 in August) is having a rough weekend. Yesterday she had to go to the emergency animal hospital for what is most likely a urinary tract infection. She was very uncomfortable yesterday afternoon thru this morning but seems to be feeling better now. Additionally it looks like she has hyperthyroidism so she's starting on daily medication. If anyone has tips about giving pills to cats, I could use them.

[lookeyloo]

1 hour ago, MargeGunderson said:

I love hearing about everyone's pets! My little old lady (20 in August) is having a rough weekend. Yesterday she had to go to the emergency animal hospital for what is most likely a urinary tract infection. She was very uncomfortable yesterday afternoon thru this morning but seems to be feeling better now. Additionally it looks like she has hyperthyroidism so she's starting on daily medication. If anyone has tips about giving pills to cats, I could use them.

Sorry to hear. We have also had lots of cats over the years. Some took pills pretty well by us pushing them down. Some were harder. One was impossible even for the vet and vet techs. He would hold the pill somewhere in his mouth until everyone thought he swallowed it. Then he would run and spit it out. Sometimes he would look us in the eye and foam would come out of his mouth at a rapid pace. Then he would sneer at us and spit the pill out. I think we resorted to drops and/or shots. He was a mess. We loved him. 

[CalicoKitty]

Several months ago I adopted a kitty from animal control after my big boy cat had a stroke.  I still had my little calico girl, and the two cats get along very well.  Maise the calico is the smartest cat I have ever had.  Lilly the shelter cat------is not.  She is by far the dumbest cat I have ever had.  She falls off the bed, she can't find food unless I pick her up and put her near the plate, and I'm not sure she knows her own name.  She is very sweet and cuddly, but stumpf.  She really scared me the other night.  I heard her screaming and yowling and hitting the sliding glass door.  I ran into the room to find her fighting with her reflection in the glass. She would move, and the "other cat" followed her.  She could not figure it out, and I was afraid she was going right through the glass.  I turned a lamp on in front of the glass to break up the reflection, and took her in the other room and held her a while.  I guess smacking her face hard on the glass a few times wasn't enough to convince her it wasn't a real cat.  Maise is a grazer, and Lilly is a feline vacuum.  I try to slip Maise a few extra treats because once Lilly manages to find the food, its gone.  I'm so lucky that they like each other so much.  They spend a lot of time together, but Maise hasn't been able to teach Lilly anything.  Cats!

[Jynnan tonnix]

You are lucky that they get along...We have always had cats, generally more than one, but none of ours have ever done more than tolerate each other.

Our big boy, Onyx, is not the brightest bulb in the box either. My son has always said we should have named him Lennie (as in Of Mice and Men). He looks like a brute, but really is just a big, dumb, snuggle bug. He loves food and attention. He falls off things as well, and is the furthest thing from feline grace you could think of. Sounds like a stampede when he comes downstairs. A bit wall-eyed, so I don't think his depth perception is all there. He also snores. A lot. You can hear him throughout the house sometimes. 

[Micks Picks]

I've laughed so much at everyone's stories.  It's reminded me of so many of the pets I've loved as well….the ones who line up to eat, the grazers, the ones who are horrified at anything in the water bowl, like a blade of grass or an ice cube  that MUST come out.  A lady at the dog park today had me laughing telling me about a basset hound she had that was the dumbest dog she'd ever owned.  Put it in the front yard and it couldn't  find its own house.  

[GeeGolly]

Pets are amazing. I often find myself wondering what my granddog is thinking. Last night I went into the living room to sit down. She was wandering around, saw me enter the room, then proceeded to jump up on the couch to the spot where I always sit. She sat there looking at me and I swear she was smiling. I stood there for a moment looking at that adorable little face, and wished I could have read her mind.

[frenchtoast]

It has become a competition to get to my spot on the couch. Apparently, it is the comfiest spot. Even though we re-assembled the futon and put it up in the living room so they could lay on a couch. NOPE! It's my spot on the couch that Friday finds best. And if I get there first, I get a big greyhound head at eye level going after my coffee or just standing there waiting for the petting.

I read somewhere that a greyhound will make you laugh every day. I've found it to be true, thus far. What they didn't mention is that Friday will get a big drink of water, come over to me reclined on the couch, stand over me looking for love and burp. A big rumbling burp I can feel in his chest. Right in my face.

[emma675]

I love all of these pet stories!

Mine (Olivia) is some kind of bird dog, the vet thinks German Short Hair Pointer. She loves all animals (she's obsessed with cats, adores the neighbor's chickens, follows butterflies) but she's terrified of a really overweight pug in our neighborhood. She's three times the size of this pug, but she'll run from it. She's terrified of thunderstorms, but as she's gotten older she no longer needs to sit on me during them. If they happen in the middle of the night she'll come get in my bed, but now she leaves when they're over and goes back to her kennel. She's gotten less clingy as she's aged, which is good and kind of sad.

[bigskygirl]

Speaking of animals, I found a dead mouse outside this morning. Yuck!!! I do not know if one of the neighborhood cats caught it and killed it, or Sassy did the job this morning. I am grateful it did not end up in my house. I covered it up with some dirt. I just hope Sassy or Tia do not uncover it and bring the darn thing in the house.

[zoomama]

sooo random question for this group:  would you move from a 2000 sq foot house to a 1000 sq ft house to pay half as much in rent and utilities if it meant that you had to get rid of 2/3 of your furnishings and 'stuff' ? economically its a no brainer but day-to-day life, in such tight quarters....i am just not sure.

[lookeyloo]

That is a tough one.  If it meant more peace and security I'd seriously consider it.  You could take pictures of the "stuff" you get rid of to keep the memories.  And I'll bet most of them you'll never miss.  Keep the ones that are treasures.

[kassygreene]

There is a point where you can, without pain, get rid of stuff that you have been schlepping back and forth across country for thirty years.  For me it was when I figured out how to find good homes for my thousands of books (FreeCycle).  

[Lemur]

After my dad passed, my mother sold her house and moved into my tiny little craftsman bungalow that has about 1000 square feet.  After we managed to find places to either use or store the furniture in the house, she came to the realization that 90% of her remaining stuff was Christmas decorations.  Seriously.  Christmas crap.  It was a stunning commentary on life. 

[Love2dance]

1 hour ago, zoomama said:

sooo random question for this group:  would you move from a 2000 sq foot house to a 1000 sq ft house to pay half as much in rent and utilities if it meant that you had to get rid of 2/3 of your furnishings and 'stuff' ? economically its a no brainer but day-to-day life, in such tight quarters....i am just not sure.

For me, security and peace of mind are way more important than things. if you are happy with the smaller home's neighborhood, it will probably be fine. 

I look around my home and could easily get rid of 2/3 of the stuff, but I am too overwhelmed to really tackle it...yet.

Good luck with your decision!

[RainbowBrite]

3 hours ago, zoomama said:

sooo random question for this group:  would you move from a 2000 sq foot house to a 1000 sq ft house to pay half as much in rent and utilities if it meant that you had to get rid of 2/3 of your furnishings and 'stuff' ? economically its a no brainer but day-to-day life, in such tight quarters....i am just not sure.

Coming out or lurkdom to share my opinion :) 

I'm often torn about this issue. You watch the house hunting shows on TV and see a small family who says they need 4000 sq ft...I just think it's crazy! 

We bought a 1000 sq ft bungalow with a finished basement, and with our two small boys we fit perfectly. Once they become teenagers it may get tight, but we have three bedrooms, a separate dining room, eat-in kitchen, rec room, large master suit (but in the basement...). It's manageable and can be cozy :)

[Happyfatchick]

I once moved from a 2000 footer to a 1000.  We lost a business in the wake of 9/11, and although we both got jobs immediately, the pain of the loss forced us to re-evaluate.  We owned a small rental house, so we sold the bigger one and moved for your exact same reasons.  I set about knocking out walls and giving myself as much living space as I possibly could (added a dishwasher).  There were things I hated about that house, but things I loved as well.  Honesty compels me to admit what I loved was half the note and much cheaper taxes and utilities.  At the time, it was what we needed to do, to feel we had some control.  We got back on our feet and moved up and out (sold that little house for a tidy little profit).  It was worth it.  I'm glad I don't live there any more, but at the time, it was balm on a pretty severe burn.

BUT:. My goal was to get the ship uprighted and move on.  I never intended to live there for the rest of my life.  So Zoo, is this temporary, or a move you consider your final one for life?

I'll say this too: once we moved up and out, I found a house that was mine, all MINE in a neighborhood I loved, on a street I loved, with a gigantic back yard, privacy all around.  I loved that house with every fiber of my real-estate loving soul.  I did.  And then Daddy died.

Long story told many times, we rented out my lovely house and Moved into my mom's basement.  So THEN I went from 2500 down to maybe 500.  I don't commend that.  I nearly lost my mind.  I gave stuff away, I parked stuff, I mourned my space and my privacy - and kassygreene, I'ma say the worst day OF ALL (by far) was when I loaded up my boxes and boxes and boxes of books and donated them.  It didn't last, I just couldn't do it and keep sane.  (You'd think my husband would divorce me somewhere along the way - I told him I'd have left him looooong ago).  The day (night) I threw up my hands and said "Enough!  I can't live like this anymore!!!  I need OUT!!!!!", I'm not kidding, he looked at me for a second, then his face lit up and he said "I'll meet you in the truck in five minutes".  

I said all that to say this: my home is my nest.  I don't think it matters how much space you have if you love that space.  If a move like that is something you can do and think you'll love it, go for it.  If you think you'll choke to death, mourn your lack of space and miss your lovies too much, it's probably not worth it.  I always saw mine as temporary.  But if you're going there for permanency, you need to be in love with the idea all the way around.  Are you going to be comfortable and happy there?  Honestly, in the basement, my biggest issue was abandonment.  My brothers went right on down the road with their lives, while I was stuck there.  It sucked.  Well, that and my THINGS.  I'm not a pack rat, I'm a sentimentalist.  I want my lovies.  (No OCD there, right?)  oh, and I forgot to mention we go fleas while in the basement.  My dogs are my children.  Mama had 2 dogs and a cat that hadn't seen a vet in years.  Years!  No amount of flea treatment on my part could overcome the fleas.  I can't even describe how horrible it is to see your biggest baby miserable and sick because of fleas.  He couldn't sleep, he couldn't eat, it was a DISASTER.

the bonus in a tiny house is that (for me), I didn't have to move the vacuum plug.  I could vacuum the whole house from one plug in the hall.

Edited May 16, 2016 by Happyfatchick
Because sometimes I just can't type

[GeeGolly]

4 hours ago, zoomama said:

sooo random question for this group:  would you move from a 2000 sq foot house to a 1000 sq ft house to pay half as much in rent and utilities if it meant that you had to get rid of 2/3 of your furnishings and 'stuff' ? economically its a no brainer but day-to-day life, in such tight quarters....i am just not sure.

I can't answer about downsizing space, but I can comment on downsizing stuff. We lost most of our belongings due to a natural disaster about 4 years ago. We replaced the bare minimum and are quite happy with our decision. And it does make for quicker cleaning too.

I really think people are like fish, and without a conscious effort we tend to grow into our habitat. So far we have been successful in not accumulating what we now consider unnecessary stuff.

[NewDigs]

4 hours ago, bigskygirl said:

Speaking of animals, I found a dead mouse outside this morning. Yuck!!! I do not know if one of the neighborhood cats caught it and killed it, or Sassy did the job this morning. I am grateful it did not end up in my house. I covered it up with some dirt. I just hope Sassy or Tia do not uncover it and bring the darn thing in the house.

I'm surprised it's not already "in"!

Years ago a, now gone, kitty of mine left them in doorways. Some quite neatly eviscerated but all proudly displayed. Trophies, doncha' know? Couldn't miss them!

Part of me would love to downsize and we're just a couple hundred over 1000. It seems that however much space I have, I fill it up. Lotsa' books. And more xmas than I care to admit, though I have been thinning that annually.

And completely agree with peace-of-mind over square footage.

[bigskygirl]

We have a small house fill with stuff. I would love to have another bedroom and bathroom. My husband comes home from visiting his family with more stuff. I ask him if his family ever heard of yard or garage sales. *lol* I have a hard time getting into the shed because of my husband's stuff.

[MargeGunderson]

Zoomama, how many people (including any furry family members) will be living there? What works for 2 people may be a tad tight for 4. My husband and I have a 1200 sq. foot cape which is just right for the 2 of us and 2 cats. (We have a great closet space which helps.) I'm in a big purge mood and can't believe how much stuff I'm comfortable getting rid of. If it doesn't serve a purpose or I can't think of the last time I used it, out it goes. I find that the having too much stuff causes me anxiety so it helps me to clear out. Not that I'm living in a minimalist space (lots of books, cooking stuff) but what I have is deliberate.

The older I get the more I'm concerned with financial security, so I'd be tempted to downsize, assuming that I like the new living space and neighborhood. Good luck with your decision!