Just tell them you're going hardcore Marie Kondo?

Yup. It's pretty much true!

Sophia - not telling her is not lying. She asks you what you've been doing - tell her deep cleaning your apartment. If you still think you want to move to a studio and she asks why, tell her that maintaining a place with 4 spaces/rooms where "stuff" can accumulate is too much for you.

Thanks all. I have a hard time obfuscating, which is weird, because I didn't randomly walk up to people and tell them my home is a disaster!

My therapist actually thanked me for being so forthcoming/honest because it made her job easier. I was like, I already let these Serve Pro people see it, what have I got to lose now as I have already given up all pretense to dignity after I told my boss and Maria and you guys!

One other reason I liked the therapist is that I told her I was afraid I was boring for her because I thought about things outside of therapy and she wouldn't have to dig too deep, because I was pretty forthcoming and she said that it might be true for long term therapy, but I was not boring her short term and we just need to do short term right now. This therapist is so much better than the one I had a bad experience with.

lying is really easy for me and I can do it well, so my therapist is really amazed that 1) I am truthful about the ugly stuff and 2) my friends online are not "just put your best self online" people, but a good community for showing underbellies.

Sophia, I completely agree that you don't have to tell anyone anything, but if you're at all like me and have trouble keeping anything from your mother, a half truth works too. Things got a little messy at home so I buckled down and took care of it, kind of thing. And I would have been so screwed if my landlords did regular inspections back in the day when I was living alone.

if you're at all like me and have trouble keeping anything from your mother, a half truth works too. Things got a little messy at home so I buckled down and took care of it, kind of thing.

Agreed. If I ever mention friends, my mom always wants to know how I know/met them, so I had to do some creative embroidering of how Tim and I met. Half-truths are all she ever needs to know on that. I think your apartment is the same, if you want it to be.

Aargh. I think I didn't clean enough, because now I can't sleep in anticipation of the cleaners at 8:30, I am so excited. But also nervous. Do they expect me to watch them? I am thinking of going next door to Dunkin Donuts and having them text me if anything comes up. I hope the dumpster is big enough. I hope I am not too shaky - the poor estimator man had to deal with me trembling the whole time. I hope my kitty is OK shut in the bathroom for most of the day. I hope there is not a giant dead raccoon in this bedroom.

{{{Sophia}}} it will be fine. Definitely leave for a while if you can.

I am thinking of going next door to Dunkin Donuts and having them text me if anything comes up.

Good plan! They don't you need watching.

They are there to HELP YOU. They will clean shit up. You've already made it so much easier for them. It's going to be fine.

Better than fine. You don't have to help them....you are paying them to do the job. They will go in there and do it.

Don't fret. Eat donuts. These are professionals.

Thanks. I just washed a bunch of Pyrex I wanted to save, and put it on a shelf. It was hanging out on the back porch and just dusty. I also found a very precious cake plate that was my grandma's. We didn't have China, but I love that cake plate with the violets

I was able today to put up curtains in the kitchen and the bathroom. The curtains in the bedroom are fine, and I have curtains for the living room when ai can get to them and take these ones down (they have been cat peed upon by old cat, so no longer good). I actually had the curtains already, I found them cleaning out the dresser.

The estimator guy was so kind, and he took pictures. I think I may ask hi. To send the. To me, because I couldn't do it, but it might make a good incentive for me.