Hoarder Mumsie Monster Issued A Citation By the City

Last autumn when I took several days to clear out parts of Mumsie Monster’s house, I warned her that she was breaking the law and that her neighbors could turn her in at any time. She’s been in violation of both health and fire codes for years at this point. All the cleaning we did 10 months ago–? May as well never have happened… her house is back to being a safety hazard all over again! That’s the way it is with hoarders. They aren’t really able to be reformed– they just shouldn’t be allowed to have agency because they can’t help but do the WRONG THING when it comes to their own living situation. Theirs is a mental illness that requires constant supervision and intervention.

It seems Mumsie’s neighbors got sick of the smell of the garbage she refused to let us take out of her fenced side yard and called the city! [Note: YAY!] They came and issued her a citation and told her that if she didn’t get rid of every bit of trash in her yard, they’d fine her thousands of dollars! Now THAT actually got her attention! The next door neighbor, and prez of the condo-board, basically ordered a junk removal service, and my mother had to pay for it. My mother’s very stubborn, but the citation got her to give in when nothing else did, which is what I advised the neighbor lady. I told the condo-board president that all of my mother’s relatives were on the neighbors’ side, not my hoarding mother’s side, and that if she had to make calls, we’d back her all the way. My mother never knew this, though– and I didn’t tell my aunt Dora, who spills all the information to my mother far too quickly and easily!

The junk men came, and the job was SO horrible, that a guy on their crew– experienced junk hauler mind you!– had to keep leaving to vomit!

What can I say? The guy has my total sympathy… I’ve retched a number of times cleaning my mother’s house. (Which is actually also my sister’s house, but my mother won’t let her do much, and my sister doesn’t understand she has equal rights to my mother.) My sister and a support provider were there and reported to me that my mother complained to the junk crew (who were NOT on her crazy-ass side!) that she was pissed at ME because all of this was MY fault!

~ Puh-wha? ~

That fucking floors me! The neighbors called the city, the city investigated and made the citation, the condo-lady called the junk removal people, and I– who haven’t been there in 3 months!– was to blame! I mean, if so, bring it on! I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to take credit for getting my own mother in trouble with the city and making her FINALLY get rid of the trash in the yard she adamantly refused to let us take away. (Though we managed to get 2/3rds of it hauled away in secret, and she had a shit-fit when she realized THAT happened.) There was broken furniture and several things already back there before we added the bags, so… yeah it was a fucking giant-ass cesspit of a mess!

But, alas, I cannot take the credit.

The neighbors, my sister’s social worker tells me, are up in arms with my mother and have absolutely had it with her. Who can blame them? I’m happy to hear of it, actually. That means the next time I clean her house–? I will be putting the bags directly into a pick-up truck to haul away the same damned day! I won’t argue with her, I’ll just do it and leave and let her have a baby’s temper tantrum! After all, we wouldn’t want her to get in trouble with the law again, now, would we?

Why won’t the woman who gave birth to me DIE already, huh?!

Gods I hate her…