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Post by grungygeorgie on Jul 15, 2009 8:47:05 GMT -5
Back in May,I hired a window washer,actually my Mom paid, a birthday gift.My house has a lot of difficult double hung windows.Spiders made webs and there were dead insects.Naturally,he saw the state of my house as he peered in the windows as they were washed.I later shamefully said,"sorry about the clutter".He told me,he sees it all the time, and that sometimes the act of getting windows washed kick starts people into getting their homes in shape.When he comes back the next time sometimes their is a miraculous transformation.
I don't know if what the window washer told me is what began to spur me into motivation/action or that my deep depression began to lift after after my brain tumor surgery.Mind you,I have along way to go,but things are improving slowly but surely.
Before he left he asked to use the bathroom.Arrrghhh...hate when that happens.I was so humiliated,I knew the b-room was filthy.That was the first room I started with,I still cringe when I think about it him in there.
I hope the sun is shining in through your windows today,be they dirty or clean!gg
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Post by theroyaldump on Jul 15, 2009 8:54:59 GMT -5
Georgie I am so happy that things are improving for you emotionally and mentally. It makes a HUGE difference on how our day will go ... or not go.
The sun IS creeping through my emotional windows. Still have the blinds shut tight on the real windows. So afraid someone will see in. **BUT** each day I get closer and closer to actually opening them!
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Post by Peach on Jul 15, 2009 9:26:28 GMT -5
One of the first things I do each morning no matter the weather is open all the shades/curtains in my house to let in natural light. I find this simple act to be a very soothing way to welcome a new day. People, who keep their homes dark for fear of others seeing in, have a tendency to forget that during the daytime there is a glare on windows and people cannot see inside (unless they come within inches of a window). Screens also help to block inside views. If you look at homes during daylight hours, you cannot see inside. Windows appear "dark" even though the curtains are open. To test this, open your window coverings and then go outside and look at your house from the street. Can you see what's inside? On the side of my house that is 16 feet from the neighbor's kitchen window, I put up shear curtains. This is probably not necessary but it makes me more comfortable to have that extra barrier. It allows the light to come in and me to see outside. Natural light in our lives is very important. Especially for those of us afflicted with depression. And, it's free. While you're at it, open some of those windows to let in some fresh air and listen to the sounds of nature. This all very calming to the soul
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Post by bluefrog on Jul 15, 2009 9:55:03 GMT -5
Yes, Georgie, thank you!
I have sheer curtains on all the windows, except the ones in the kitchen that have half-shutters, to let in all the natural light I can. If I'm home, the front door, with an all glass storm door, is open. (It's an incentive to keep the front room picked up, and lets the critters watch the squirrels and bunnies). Otherwise SAD hits me like a brick in fall and winter and whenever we have days and days of rain.
Let the sunshine in!
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Post by Script on Jul 15, 2009 10:15:19 GMT -5
Once, a long time ago, I did some meals on wheels volunteer work through my church (maybe for 3 months?)
We worked in teams: a driver, and a delivery person. Most of the volunteers preferred to drive, so I was asked to be the delivery person. I was in my late 30's, younger than the average volunteer.
"DELIVERY" meant going up to and sometimes into an apartment or home. BOY was this an eye-opener. Sometimes we had instructions to leave the items at the closed door; other times the door was opened 'just a crack' allowing me to pass the food over. Once in a blue moon, I was able to enter the dwelling.
Still, I saw a LOT from those doors. What I saw troubled me. MANY MANY ELDERLY PEOPLE LIVED IN rooms that resembled a dim DARK cave. I have never seen so many closed drapes/blinds/curtains in my life. Fear, shame, panic, confusion: I guess these all played a part. Even the homes that were fairly clean were often dismal from lack of natural light.
I resolved then and there to keep my drapes/blinds/curtains open as much as possible, and also OPEN THE WINDOWS as often as possible. To form this HABIT now when I was fairly young, so that it would help me as I aged.
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Post by Peach on Jul 15, 2009 11:26:10 GMT -5
We live in an over-55 retirement community where homes are 16 feet apart. When we first moved in, there was an elderly couple next door. Although very friendly, the wife, Mrs. "F", rarely came outside and always kept all the home's curtains/blinds/shades closed. The windows were never opened to allow fresh air in. Her DH said she "did not like sunshine". So inside her home, it was always dim. Very sad way to live one's final years when sunshine was just outside the door.
Now that they are gone, their daughter has rented the house to a friend - a single working woman, age 55. To our surprise, the curtains/blinds/shades are still pulled shut 24/7. When she moved in 4-5 months ago, I took over a houseplant as a gift, as it is a "tradition" between our two houses. Mrs. "F. had told me that and I elected to carry the tradition forward. Since the window coverings were always shut, I anticipated what might happen and, as soon as the door was slowly and reluctantly opened, I let our new neighbor know that I was only dropping off a welcoming gift and did not expect to be invited in. I could see the panic in her face and what little I saw through the door, when she opened it to accept the plant, was of a dim, depressing interior. Although the home had been renovated with new paint and carpeting.
I guess age is not always a factor with people shutting out the world.
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