I'm officially a level one hoarder

no rats yet, but I'm finding some big ants all over the house.
......... definitely something is fucked up, I can find most of my stuff and I always try to put things on the right place, I actually hate things out of place, but I also hate to throw things away.
I had my last cell phone for so long that I could not longer see the numbers.
My computer is so old, that I have no idea how is still running. I'm always finding ways to fix it.
My cars are a joke. I have to pull back the clutch back with a string while driving my pick up truck. I finally got rid of my old crappy police car in exchange for brand new car, my family was getting embarrassed riding on it.
I got a new wallet many years ago, and still kept using the old beat up one until finally my wife (without my knowledge) threw the old one away.
At one point I had 3 snakes, one frog, one tarantula and one turtle inside of my house, but after a little incident with Arabella (the tarantula) I had to get rid of everything, except for the turtle. (wife ultimatum)
I have big piles of professional magazines.
I keep little things that are still useful like paper clips, rubber bands, etc. I even re-use those wipes that I get by the supermarket door to check the oil level of my van....the darn thing is leaking oil.
I collect stones and pieces of wood.
I have some new clothes by I always use the old ripped ones and I'm badly shaved and barefooted most of the time, despite being a germophobic.....I wash my hand a bazillion of times but I have no problem playing with dirt. I just don't like to touch people, specially guys.
I have piles of notes....I make lists for everything.

I guess, other than that.....I'M PERFECT.

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Levels of hoarding: some guidelines for recognizing the problem
December 2, 2010 12:00 am
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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The National Study Group on Compulsive Disorganization created a Clutter Hoarding Scale in 1993 as a guideline for professional organizers making their first contacts with clients:
Level One:
All doors and stairways of the home are accessible. Normal household pet activity with light evidence of rodents or pests. One to three pet accidents evident. Clutter is not excessive. Home has normal, healthy housekeeping and safe and healthy sanitation. No odors.
Level Two:
One exit is blocked and/or one major appliance or heating/cooling/ventilation device has not worked for at least six months. Some pet odor, pet waste puddles, light pet dander, three or more incidents of feces in litter boxes. Limited fish, bird or reptile care and light to medium evidence of common household rodents/insects. Clutter inhabits two or more rooms. Functions are unclear for living room and bedrooms. Slightly narrowing pathways throughout the home. Limited evidence of housekeeping, light unpleasant odors, overflowing garbage cans, light to medium mildew in kitchens and bathrooms, and moderately soiled food preparation surfaces.
Level Three:
Visible clutter outdoors, including items normally stored indoors, such as televisions and sofas. Two or more broken appliances, inappropriate/excessive use of electrical cords and light structural damage in one portion of the house has occurred in the past six months. Pets exceed local limits, excluding well-cared-for new kitten and puppy litters. Stagnant fish tanks, neglected reptile aquarium and/or bird droppings not cleaned. Audible rodent evidence, light flea infestation and a medium amount of spider webs. Indoor clutter leads to narrow hall and stair pathways, one bedroom or bathroom isn't fully usable and small amount of obviously hazardous substances or spills. Excessive dust, dirty bed linens and no recent vacuuming or sweeping. Heavily soiled food preparation areas and full or odorous garbage cans. Dirty laundry exceeds three full hampers per bedroom. Strong unpleasant odors throughout the house.
Level Four:
Structural damage older than six months, mold and mildew, inappropriate use of appliances, damage to two or more sections of wall board, faulty weather protection, hazardous electrical wiring and odor or evidence of sewer backup. Pets exceed local limits by four animals, more than three instances of aged animal waste, pet dander on all furniture, pet damage in home, excessive webs and spiders, bats and raccoons in attic and flea infestation. Bedroom is unusable, hazardous materials are stored in the home, and flammable, packed materials are in the living area or attached garage. Rotting food on counters, one to 15 cans of aged canned goods with buckled surfaces, no clean dishes or utensils in kitchen. No bed covers, lice on bedding.
Level Five:
Obvious structural damage, broken walls, disconnected electrical service, no water service, no working sewer or septic system. Standing water indoors, fire hazards and hazardous materials exceed local ordinances. Pets are dangerous to occupant and guests. Rodents in sight, mosquito or other insect infestation and regional critters, such as squirrels, inside the home. Kitchen and bathroom unusable due to clutter. Occupant is living or sleeping outside the home. Human feces, rotting food and more than 15 aged canned goods with buckled surfaces inside the home.


Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/neighborhoods-south/levels-of-hoarding-some-guidelines-for-recognizing-the-problem-275658/#ixzz2Q7LkWBhR

I'm not dumb, but sometimes I look at my warehouse and say, WTF?
So much stuff piled up and I still know where most of the stuff is. Sometimes I find something that I forgot I had. Most of my stuff is good and can be used but it is just collecting dust waiting for the day I may need it. On few occasions it is easier to go and buy a item I need and already have instead of spending time looking for it.
I also hoard information....either on paper or online...and a lot inside of my head.
Last night I was thinking about the correlation between hoarding and intelligence. I had a feeling that generic hoarders must have powerful brains in order to keep up with so much stuff. It was interesting to watch on TV that hoarders can tell a little bit of history about the thousands of items that they pile up. A wacky powerful brain.
Anyway, this is what I found:

Quote :

Hoarding
We have all seen or read about hoarders with the recent explosion of media coverage. But hoarding is nothing new. The term “Pack Rat” and “Crazy Cat Lady” has just been replaced with an actual term, “Hoarder”. Hoarding has been occurring for hundreds of years and will continue to be one of the largest disorders to affect our population. In fact, depending on which study you refer to, hoarding affects upwards of 5%-10% of the population. It is difficult to truly know how many hoarders are out there because the vast majority of them go unreported.

So, What is Hoarding? Simply defined, hoarding is the extreme collecting of anything from trash and animals to clothing and toys. It makes no difference what the hoard is made up of, but to be considered true hoarding it has to be large enough that it disrupts the functionality of a home. The Institution of Chronic Disorganization (ICD and formerly the NSGCD) developed a hoarding scaled where level 5 is the highest level and most severe hoarding to a level 1 which can be found commonly in the average household.

Hoarding is not race, gender, or age specific. It affects poor people as much as it affects the rich. We see hoarders of all types, but most of them do share a couple common factors. Depression is the biggest factor which causes hoarding. We see it in almost every client we meet with. This can be caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain or a past trauma suffered by the hoarder. One can only imagine the depression increases as their home is no longer functional and the hoarder becomes isolated with little or no social interaction. This allows the hoarder to live in these conditions sometimes for years without being discovered. In fact, it is not uncommon for a hoarder to lay deceased, undiscovered for weeks inside their home. It is truly heartbreaking to think about but a common everyday occurrence.

The second common trait we find in many hoarders is a high I.Q. Hoarders can be extremely brilliant people, many to the genius level which only complicates the disorder as well as tying to reason with them. Many of the hoarders we have seen over the past 16 years hold or have held very prominent careers. In fact our 5 biggest customers are engineers, professors/teachers, psychologists, lawyers and nurses. While studies are currently under way to help understand more about hoarding, I am sure we will see a correlation between this disorder and a person’s I.Q.

Hoarding can also be caused by past physical trauma such as head injuries. Hoarders can give you literally hundreds of reasons why they can’t let go of their stuff, but the most common reasons we hear are that the items are sentimental, are worth money, or they still have use, even if not for them. They simply cannot throw something out, even if they don’t need it or can’t use it.

When faced with a hoarding situation here is what we have learned. A hoarder will not be helped until he or she is ready for help. Hoarding is a complex disorder that needs months or years of therapy in most cases. First a therapist needs to find out the underlying issues that are creating the feelings that make a person hoard. Treatment must also include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) as this is designed to help people understand the thoughts and feelings that cause them to make irrational decisions. If a hoarder can understand what makes them decide to hold onto items, over time and with proper treatment they may start to realize that those items are not truly needed. Therapy must be started before the cleanup of a hoarder’s house or the stress and anxiety will most likely be too much for them to handle. The last thing we want to do is further traumatize a hoarder so they never want to attempt a cleanup again.

Cory Chalmers
Hoarding Specialist Featured Expert on A&E’s “Hoarders”
Owner of Steri-Clean “Hoarder Helpers”