My wife likes to torture me with the TV she watches. She loves to watch Hallmark and Lifetime network shows. Even worse though are Intervention. My least favorite of all is Hoarders. Hoarders sickens me. I am not a hoarder by any stretch of the imagination. That show makes me sick to my stomach. Not only to see how much filth and mess are created in one person’s house, but the fact that they show mentally ill people on TV and exploit it for a show just makes me so bitter.
This is not to say I’m a clean person. I create dishes and messes all the time. I leave clothes places, and have to constantly be reminded to pick this up, close this door, turn off this light, stop putting things places. In fact, today at work we are having some VIP’s coming in, and we have to make sure our desks are clean and we are wearing appropriate clothes. (I assume by appropriate clothes they mean sweats and clean T-shirts).
This got me to thinking, why do some people warrant advanced warnings on cleaning up places? Mother’s Day is coming up this Sunday, and for some reason mother’s-in-law in particular seem to warrant advanced clean up. Every time my mother comes to visit, my wife is planning the particulars of how, when and where things will be cleaned. The floors are to be done, closets organized, and shoes picked up. Even the basement is done, even though neither us or my mother have been down there for the last 6 months. Even utility closets are scrubbed to the nines.
Then there are the dignitaries. The last time the queen, prince and princess visited we had to dust the top of the fridge and the china sets. We even had to wash the Tupperware. I’m not sure why we had to clean our regular plates, because the whole time, all they wanted to use was my daughters plastic tea sets for “fake” afternoon tea parties and play with the dolls. They never even asked about our real china sets.
And all Harry and Charles wanted to do was play Fortnite on our Xbox and eat pizza and donuts. They got us banned from 5 different groups because they kept claiming that they got Royal rights to winning and my groups were having none of that. They didn’t even offer to take us out, and when they did they only wanted to go to McDonald’s. We got them caviar, and they said they didn’t like those “slimy fish thingys” so we had to throw them out and get Sausage McMuffin’s instead. They were so rude to the other kid’s in Playland too. I guess you can’t take royals anywhere.

All they wanted to do was play Xbox.
What I don’t understand is why when I go places, people don’t put their best efforts into cleaning their houses or work places for me. Is my status as the King of Bitterness not good enough for an effort in cleaning their house? Is my constant bitter face not worth cleaning your desk whenever I visit your office?
How do you all feel about that? Doesn’t it make you bitter when people don’t clean up for you, wherever you go? Why should Princes, mother’s, and CEO’s get all the constant clean up? Why are they so special?
ARRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHH
Bitter Clean Up Ben
I used to clean for my mother. Until I realized nothing would ever be clean enough.
Now that she’s long dead, I clean for no one. I tell them to move anything and sit where they like. And do they like brownies.
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Sounds good to me. I will be over to sit on your couch and eat some of your brownies.
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WELL, I guess my efforts to leave pizza in the couch just weren’t enough!
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Pizza should never go in the couch! It should be eaten ON the couch. Do you not have my novel about all the pizza eating rules?
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HA!!! 😀 You make me snort-laugh! 😀
Sign: “My house was clean last week, sorry you missed it.” 😛
Another sign: “A messy desk is a sign of genius.” Just ask Mark Twain, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, and Steve Jobs…apparently they all have/had messy desks. 😀
If a person’s house is too clean, or has too much white (furniture, carpet, drapes, etc) it freaks me out a bit because I know I will be the first to drop a slice of pizza! Sauce side down! 😮 😛
HUGS!!! 😀
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I just think if your desk is totally clean, then you are focusing too much on the desk and not enough on the work(or play) on the desk. That is why my gaming area is so messy.
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True dat!
I like my house to have a lived-in-look so no one has to feel uncomfortable…they can take their shoes off if they want to, put their drink on the coffee table sans coaster, lay down on the floor to watch a movie, eat food in the family room, etc. 🙂
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I prefer that my home does not feel comfortable for other people, because then they will want to stay and then talk and then never leave. My home is for me and my bitter self.
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HA! I snorted! 😛
Big surprise…I actually like them to stay and talk! 😉 But, at some point…even I want them to leave! 😉 😛
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I can’t imagine ever having house guests that I would want to stay and visit with them. Why can’t they just stay in a hotel and get a nice pool?
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Hoarders makes me sick too…I just cannot watch it. I try about every 3 months and I’m quickly reminded why I avoid that show.
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The only reason I ever end up on that channel is because of my wife. She likes to remind me how well she takes care of the house.
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LOL! I too like to watch Hallmark and Lifetime networks – soppy but feel good movies would do it for me to de-stress. As for cleanliness, it is with most women unless you find one who can stomach dirt. My sister is obsessed with cleanliness too! Good luck Bitter Ben and be squeaky clean else you will be dusted!
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Do you torture you significant other with those shows? I like to watch them so I can make fun of them. My daughter and I are sarcastically skewering them when we watch.
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LOL! No significant other sadly as still single. Just Garfield and me haha. Hey it is what I call feel good movies, though the plot is soppy most times and endings always predictably happy haha
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I prefer the channels I watch which have feel bitter endings.
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LOL! That would be you Bitter Ben, no less! 🙂
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Feel bitter endings are the best!
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You are in fine form Ben! That was hilarious!
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I wish I was in fine form. Yesterday I could hardly breathe when walking up the stairs.
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These gifs are hilarious. I’ve always wanted to be a housekeeper for royalty. How proud I would be. why don’t they give me chance!!
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I couldn’t stand being a housekeeper for anyone, but least of all royalty. Do you see how much abuse they get from them in TV shows?
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Yes, but that’s all part of it. You get paid for that right? Upstairs Downstairs, sweet!
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Yeah, money seems nice, but having to do work for it? That seems not so nice.
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I hadn’t really thought about the “work” part. Uhmmm.
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Yeah, work is kind of the worst part about anything.
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😊
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I say that as I am sitting and work, trying not to.
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I file my nails and look off into the distance.
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If I had any nails to file, I would. Also I would probably sleep while under my desk.
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😊
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Great post! And I feel the same way about Hoarders! If someone else’s unseen private place (car, office, home, etc.) is messy, I don’t mind. However, it upsets me if someone leaves a mess in a public place: leave no trace!
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I just think it isn’t right for the show to shame people into cleaning up. I just think if they really wanted to help, they wouldn’t show these people on TV and just do it privately. I don’t need to see that stuff.
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What surprised me is why you’d clean for the Royal family? You guys aren’t part of the Commonwealth, right? So you don’t owe them to have your place all cleaned up when they decide to drop by…
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My wife insisted. She finally had a real excuse to use the real nice china for visiting dignitaries and the royal family didn’t want to use it. Now I’m ready to just throw it all out.
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I have no nice china, so I guess I don’t have to worry about them showing up at my door… LOL
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I wish we didn’t have nice china. All it does is break and get in the way.
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LOL well then, I’ll consider myself lucky 🙂
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Yeah, you are lucky and of course I’m not.
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Luck is so overrated 😉
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It gets you things like winning the lottery though, so maybe not so overrated.
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I’ll believe that when this Friday’s 60 million $ jackpot is safely transfered to my bank account 😛
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I’m pretty sure I won’t be lucky enough to win that. If I did though, I would be one of those lottery bad luck people that lost it all just as fast as I got it.
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Maybe if you cared…What you need to do is put up a fuss if you go somewhere. Complain how dirty things are…stuff like that. It should work for next time. But don’t ever try that at home. 😂
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That’s so true. Maybe I should be like the crazy mother-in-laws when I visit. Complain about the dirt on the baseboards, and how any little speck would set me off if I was in my home, and then make them all anxious about how their house was.
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Well, my desk would probably win the award for cleanest, least cluttery, dullest desk every day. It’s so clean and empty, it makes me want to sleep instead of working. I guess if you were ever to visit my office, then I could temporarily move to someone else’s cubicle, full of knick-knacks, kids’ drawings, plants, and empty plastic water bottles, just to make you bitter. But that kind of environment might make me feel bitter, too.
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Well, at least we would know that one of us would be bitter. Most likely me, because I always am, but maybe you too, which would be a bonus.
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I agree about Hoarders–those people are desperately in need of real help, and the show seems mostly about trying to gross the audience out as much as possible. I like to keep the house clean but sometimes it gets ahead of me–having a dignitary over is a good excuse to tidy up!
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I just think they unnecessarily exploit the mentally ill hoarders for ratings and it just makes me so bitter. I just think it is pretty crappy to take advantage of them like that. Are they even really trying to help them? I don’t think so.
And yeah the queen was kind of a pig when she visited.
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We clean for those who have perfected the art of non-criticism: “Oh…wow…I’m glad you’re comfortable not cleaning up for me. It’s OK. I’m nothing special. I don’t mind…”
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I think the whole mother-in-law/daughter-in-law thing is the worst. I can’t imagine cleaning the house for my father-in-law, can you?
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The house – no. The tool room – OMG yes!
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I guess I would love to clean out his stamp collection.
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Not only DON’T they clean up when I visit . . . there’s nary a red carpet in sight! I mean . . really!
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Seriously, what is wrong with people? My son is only 10 and he has already been on a red carpet and rode in a limo. I’ve only been driven by my wife to the grocery store, and walked on the dirty carpet.
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Ugh!
And to all those people who would hit us with “Well, it IS a young person’s world” . . . well . . they can bite me!
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Yeah, they should be treating me, as an elderly person, with respect. I’ve been through social media wars.
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You sir, are a veteran of social media wars.
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As a veteran of the social media wars, I should get some sort of metal and a holiday right?
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At the very least, Target should offer you some kind of discount. Just saying . . .
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Well, I do get 5% off for using my Target card, but I would hope I get a little more than that. Doesn’t even cover the tax.
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Yeah, it’s a sham I tell ya!
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I know. They used to send out rewards cards a lot when you would spend a lot of money. Now they just give you the 5%.
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And a sticker if you’re well behaved. I know . . it’s supposed to be for the kids, but they will give you one if you ask. Believe me . . .
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I have asked before, but for some reason they wouldn’t give me one. Said I misbehaved or something.
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Damn! You too?
Wait . . we just did this. There’s the glitch in the Matrix. That is SOOO Matrix!
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Probably Agent Smith morphed into a Target register employee, trying to keep us in line. Never again, Smith!
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Target register employees . . . never look them straight in the eyes. You do that and you’ll find yourself in a Target distribution center in Weehawken, imprisoned in a pod full of amniotic-like fluid.
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I assume Weehawken is in Idaho or Iowa. Unpopulated enough that no one would ever find.
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Jersey. Populated enough that no one would ever find . . . Ask Tony Soprano.
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Makes sense. But in Iowa, you could hide in a cornfield forever and only ghosts from baseball past would ever find you.
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Yeah, but even in those cornfields, the goodfellas find you, Look at how adeptly Ray Liotta navigated his way.
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I forgot how he did that. I guess I will just have to hide in the Times Square New Years Eve crowd.
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I always wanted to do that. Until I found out you have to arrive super early and then you’re stuck there for countless hours. Some people resort to wearing adult diapers. So . . no Liotta, he ain’t doing that.
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Oh yeah, my sister went there once and somehow found a hotel nearby that didn’t break her bank. Anyways, yeah, ever since my bitter cold days of South Dakota, I have no desire to wait outside in cold weather for hours to see some fireworks. I’ll do it in 100 degree heat for July 4th instead.
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Wait. You lived in South Dakota? Okay . . that explains it. Everything, actually.
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Oh, my gosh yes. It is a dark period of my life that I would like to forget. Once when I was in 3rd grade, it got to -80 below windchill and one time during Christmas break, I stupidly decided to work construction to earn some money. It was -30 and I worked outside all day. It explains everything about my bitterness.
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It sure does . . .
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Especially my cold dead bitter heart.
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