decluttering

Yesterday we met with a woman about decluttering our house. The idea is that she is an expert on how to make it look good so it can be showed and sold (I have some hope--the lake is predicted to come up another three feet in the next week). She was very clear on John's stuff that needs to be cleaned up, and he seems to accept that he needs her help. Some of it was things that I have struggled to get him to clear up for years, such as at least 50 prescription bottles in the kitchen. But she also focused on some things I long ago stopped thinking about, such as the piles of his clean clothes because he washes them but doesn't get them put away. I feel great relief that someone else will be pushing him, not me. I have to admit it is worth the $15 an hour she is charging us. We can get an undergraduate for $8 an hour, but the undergraduates are in no position to tell John what he needs to do. Now I need to get more of my decluttering done so she doesn't have to work with me. I did pack up another 10 boxes of books to give away and I think I have homes for them.