Hoarders

Do you watch "Hoarders" or "Hoarding: Buried Alive"?

TLC started their new season on Sunday. And just like season one, I'm glued to the TV watching with disgust over the way some people live. It actually grosses me out sometimes. So, why do I watch? Because I'm a Hoarder. At least I have hoarding tendancies. It all ties into the OCD and perfectionism, I'm sure. I never realized how much STUFF I collect and how much STUFF I hang on to all wrapped up in the excuse of "I might need it one day"...until I started watching these shows. So, I watch as a reminder to keep my hoarding tendancies under control. I don't want to end up like those on the TV, do I? And, a part of me watches because it's the only time I get to point at the TV and say to hubby, "Look! At least I'm not THAT bad!"

One thing I realized that I do hoard, is pens. I have tons of them. I will now throw out pens that don't work, or that skip, or that just don't write perfectly. But that wasn't always the case. It used to be that I would only throw out a pen if it didn't work...and even then I had problems...I would keep every pen I ever came across, even if I didn't like it...it would just sit in the drawer or a box, lonely, and unused for years.

Then I watched Hoarders last season, and decided to clean up my house. I think I threw out a shoe box amount of pens during the clean. All because they didn't work, or they weren't just perfect. And, now I've gotten to the point that I will only keep the ones I really really like. Give me a big fat pen, with a smooth roller ball in it, and I'm in Heaven. Most of my 'favourites' are stashed away in a little drawer so that no one else can use them. (Yes, I'm still possessive about my pens!) The others I can part with now, and can be placed in the "communal" pen holder in the kitchen. Although, I have noticed that my little stash is becoming larger and larger lately.

And, I have to be careful at this time of year. All those back to school commercials, and back to school specials. They have some nice pens now! Not like the cheap plastic ones we used when we were in school. You can get regular ink pens, gel pens, eco-friendly pens, skinny pens, fat pens, ergonomically correct pens....all different kinds. I have to stop myself from going out and purchasing any more!