Can I learn to be Tidy?

[Orangesauce1]

I have a confession....

I am naturally messy!! (i would like to say not dirty!!) just live in a bit of a mess. Until now I have kind of just lived with the fact and given in to the fact this is just the way I am.

Now I have a dilema, my boyfriend is naturally tidy and his life, wardrobe, cuboards are always in straight lines. He always tidies up after himself, and i might add me!!

Now it is getting to him and is causing us to row!! For the first time in my life I want to be tidy I am trying but its not going smoothly. Can a person change there stars and by me saying I am 'naturally messy' is this a load of rubbish.

Comments, advise. heeelpppp x

OJ x

[spurslady]

Orangesauce you sound exactly the same as myself. I hate housework with a passion and as I have to do it everyday staying at home with the kids, I hate it even more. My boyfriend is a naturally tidy person and does get fed up tidying up after me and the kids if he's at home for a day. His clothes are all neatly put away after they have been washed where as I tend to stick them in a big pile hoping they will put themselves away. Having 3 kids as well as my own the pile gets pretty big.

So hopefully any advise you get I can learn to do it too.

[ummmm]

You just have to be really strict on yourself. I'm naturally tidy and like things to neat around me but the people I live with are untidy and I have some days where I give up but then I have twice as much to do in a day.

[johnlambert]

I instructed recruits for the last 2 years I was in the Army, (male + female), for some strange reason, at the start of their course, the females were the most untidy creatures I have ever come across. However, after 2 weeks they were soon outshining their male counterparts. This was down to a combination of punishment + praise, and they are carrying on the practice of tidying up after themselves throughout their careers and hopefully, for the rest of their lives when they go back into "civvy street".
In answer to your question, yes you can change your messy ways, you just need to change your mindset.
The only person who can help you is you, unless you want me to burst into your room at 0600hrs shouting "STAND BY YOU BED WITH YOUR BOOTS IN YOUR HANDS"!!!!!

[Orangesauce1]

John, thats was excellent thank you.

You may actually find this hard to beleive but I am actually in the reserves engineers (my bloke is also in the TA) somehow i manage to muddle though with the one pocket rule!! but find it extremely hard and am always battling against my messy nature in the field. My cadre was extremely interesting lol but did get through it and picked up my tape last week.

How much do you charge for room inspections?? and could I borrow you full time :-)

Your experience of the messy types and there ability to change is encouraging and I am grateful for you advise

x

[spurslady]

I was tidy when I was in the Army Cadets kept my kit etc spit spot but those days have long since gone. I nearly joined up myself, went through the interviews etc then A week before my physical I gave it all up as I fell in love.

At least the relationship is still going so it wasn't for nothing. I do sometimes look back and think what if though.

[johnlambert]

I spent 2 months with the RE's in Bosnia clearing up the minefields, (I was an RAMC lance jack in those days), my driver and I got "Mentioned in Dispatches" for keeping the majority of a Sapper's toes together after he trod on an AP mine. Can you belive we had been walking on the same ground for weeks before, the detonator had been frozen solid (it was a winter tour in the mountains outside Glamoc, average temp -25c) and it went off as this lad walked over it. We got him to the nearest military hospital, minus 2 toes which was pretty good all thing considered.
He wasnt really minus his toes at all, they were in my bergan lol.
Anyway, I digress, as I said orage, I've retired now, I spend most of my spare time tidying up after our 3 year old (I cant wait till he's old enough to understand how to "get on parade",good luck with your TA career and any future cadres, (have you been mobilised yet)?

[Orangesauce1]

Funny you mention mine injury, my boyfriend had his foot blown off my a mine 6 weeks ago, going to have another 10 inches amputated on Monday so will have lost it just below the knee. Not nice.

No tours as yet but have been in 4 years in EOD bomb disposal and should be looking at a squadren strenght deployment to afghan in 2008.

[bobtheduck-]

i dont know where anything is when my room is tidied by the maid

[divegirl]

Hi, if you want to be tidy it's simple.....

Choose a room and have a massive clear out, make three piles.......
Keep it
Bin it
Charity shop/ebay it

Then as my Nan would say 'find a place for everything....and keep everything in it's place!'.......Simple.
Reapeat on each room.

I remember reading your posts about your partners leg, I hope you are both coping OK. Good luck with everything.

Lisa x

[spurslady]

Best of luck to him to Orange, Hope it all goes well for you both. X

[johnlambert]

Sorry Orange, I apologise for the flippant remark about toes, I didnt realise your boyfriend had been a casuallty, had I known I never would have said it.

[dot.hawkes]

Hiya

hope things will work out for you, gotta say you have taken on a big responsibility at a young age with being your BF carer, what help are you getting? i assume the military are doing the best they can.

[R~B]

hey..............i have not seen you for a while, how are things going?? i hope all is well!

rugeleyboy.

[notfrom-fiji]

I'm a messy bird and have a tidy bloke....the amount of rows we have about it is ridiculous!!!!

i had to think about what it was that made me untidy and its because I'll always do things later/in a minute/tomorrow/....never!!

i tried to fix it by being very conscious to do things right away...didn't work so he moved out and I'm happy in my squaller!!

[joko]

i have the same problem and i have been considering having hypnotherapy...