OrganizingLA Blog

Hollywood Hills Fire: Are You Prepared for a Disaster?

Global warming finally arrived in Tinseltown when a fire broke out in the Hollywood Hills, threatening the Hollywood Sign, million dollar homes, Warner Bros. and Universal Studios.

Friday's rush-hour fire burned over 150 acres and reminded Angelinos that the city really hasn't been hit with any disasters for a long time.  It's been over 10 years since the Northridge Quake, O.J. and the Malibu fires above PCH.  But watching the news yesterday, people talked about evacuating their homes and only taking themselves, and their pets.  So it makes you wonder the important papers, birth certificates, social security cards and family memorabilia they are leaving behind.

So in this weekend's reader poll, we ask:  How prepared are you (in general) for a disaster?  Do you have your important papers at the ready to-grab-and-go?  Do you store even minimal emergency food and water under the staircase?  Answer our poll, and share you opinions in the comments section below.

As for me, I am heading out for some bottled water and a few canned goods, just in case.

Photo courtesy of craig1black on flickr

Mind Your Own Bees-ness

I woke up this morning to find a dozen dead bees inside my living room.

I had no idea how they got inside my house, and little did I know there was something much bigger lurking inside one wall.

Today, as the warm California sun warmed up my roof, out came lots and lots of friends (see picture.)  I have to tell you, I wasn't prepared to handle this phenomenon.  Are you?

A stalwart friend helped me make some inquiries.  Several calls later, we hired an emergency exterminator to take care of the problem.  Upon investigation, they may not be bees after all, but Social Wasps.  I live in Hollywood, so why does the term "Social Wasp" make me laugh?

$300 later, the bees were under control by a private exterminator.  But the search to discover the origins continue.  One thing we learned is that city services only controls non-structural vector.  Be organized, and keep the following number handy for such a problem:

• Los Angeles County West Vector & Vector-Borne Disease Control District
• 1-800-825-3400

In your community, you can enter a search on Google, Yahoo or Metracrawler for more information.  Enter your city's name, and the words "vector control."  Chances are, you'll find free help around the corner.

Brooke Shields Organizes Her Memorabilia

When I was growing up in Princeton New Jersey, my simple life was all about learning, playing soccer, mowing the lawn and hearing stories about Brooke Shield's adventures around the University.

When she started college in 1983 (I was a Junior in High School), Brooke's mother (Teri) had bought a condo in our small town, presumably to be close by her studying daughter.

Back in those days, The Princeton Packet reported on their various movements to Carnegie Lake, Palmer Square, Nassau Street and even Thomas Sweet.  Now that I live in Los Angeles, and work around high-profile people some of the time, I feel bad that the community paid so much attention to her.

A while ago, Brooke received a gift from her mother:  decades of unorganized memorabilia.  And as you would expect, she is discovering how much of her life has changed, and what remains constant.

Cataloging her days as a child actress in Pretty Baby and Blue Lagoon, through her recent years on Broadway and Suddenly Susan, the actress is only now putting her "life" in order, and going through the old documents piece by piece, picture by picture.

When Life Magazine interviewed Brooke this weekend, the subject of this memorabilia came up, among other things:

"There's so much [in the way of memorabilia]-- Richard Avedon magazine covers, pictures of me with Andy Warhol.  I look back and think, My God, who am I?"

You may not have lived a so-called glamorous life, but if you've had difficulty going through your personal archives, what thoughts can you share?  What's going on your head as you pass through the photos and year books?

• Read the entire interview with Brooke Shields, in this weekend's Life Magazine (click here).

Picture courtesy of About.com and Nip/Tuck

 

A&E Premieres "Clean This House" This Month

Premiering this month on A&E is television reality show on organizing, but with a game-show twist.

This time, Molly Pesco (iVillage Live!, Backyard Habitat) hosts Clean This House.  (That's Molly, pictured left.)  Here's what the show's website says:

"Clutter be gone! Dust bunnies run for the hills!  We will pit two messy families against each other in the ultimate clean-off competition. Host and tidy taskmaster, Molly Pesce will offer-up expert cleaning tips and pithy observations. When the Clorox bottle is empty and the Bissell Vacuum bag is full it's up to Molly to put the homes to the "white glove test" and declare the winner."

Rage Diaries Blog has observations of the first show, and the host.  Check out the post.  I don't know about you, but if I offered "pithy" advise, I am not sure if I'd be in business very long.  But if I ever tackled a television show, I realize it's all done for viewing amusement.

If you've seen the show, please share your thoughts!

Madonna's Former Nanny Exhibits Unethical Behavior and Attempts to Pen Tell-All Book

As readers know, we work inside client's very private spaces.

As a professional organizer working in Los Angeles, we understand the need to sign non-disclosure agreements put forth, and in fact, we have our own in place too.  A Client's business is their business and not ours, or yours (respectively).

So It's really disgusting to hear the kind of unethical behavior a-very-few A-list household helpers exhibit, in their so-called tell-all books about the goings-on in those private Hollywood houses.

Perez Hilton is reporting that Madonna's former Nanny is shopping around a tell-all book about the singing superstar's family, children, husband Guy Ritchie and their religion.  How shameful, and it really breaks this trust.

Madonna's former Nanny, Melissa Dumas, is basing her tell-all book on the "success" of Michael's Ovitz's Nanny's book You'll Never Nanny In This Town Again.

We don't support this behavior.  Do you?

Picture of Madonna infamous former Hollywood Hills home, Castillo del Lago (once owned by Bugsy Siegel), courtesy of Mulholland Drive

NY Times Article About America's Obsession with Self-Storage

There is a frightening New York Times article from last Thursday's Home and Garden section about America's approach to clutter:  rent a storage unit.

Not only does this not solve the problem, but the article sharply puts out that many people use storage to delay decisions, or clear out their home for sale.  They then re-accumulate clutter in their homes, thus creating a new need for a second or third storage unit.  The costs can be thousands of dollars per year and the addiction is growing.  Here is the scariest statistic we've ever heard:

"There is 2.2 billion square feet of self-storage space in the United States or nearly 90-square miles, an area more than 3-times the size of Manhattan."

We feel storage is only useful for short-term periods, or for out-of-season clothes or sports gear if you have limited space in your house.  Storage can be used in thoughtful ways.  Perhaps thinking about the cost of what you're storing versus the cost of the unit may persuade you to ditch the junk and just re-purchase it when you need it.  We agree with this quote from our organizing colleague in San Diego:

"Many professional organizers, in fact, advise their clients against renting storage space. "I think the easy access does enable them,” said Dana Korey, a professional organizer in Del Mar, Calif., who estimates that nearly half of her clients rent storage units. "We ask people: 'Do you really need another aromatherapy candle? You could light 10 a night and still have enough for two years.'""

But we got that we're all easily persuaded to join-in on the fun.  Self-storage companies have a policy of "easy-in."  They give you your first month's rent for a dollar, and also give you the use of a truck for load-in.  Many "fifth-generation" storage super centers are offering the use of conference rooms, carpeted lobbies, coffee, kitchens and dsl hook-ups.  Gosh, you'll never have to leave.

Your thoughts?  Come on now, let's get this party started!

• Source:  The Little House In the City Blog
• Read: Suzanne Gannon's article Hooked on Storage in the NY Times (for a limited time, we're sure.)

Picture above courtesy of NYT and photographer Michelle Litvin