How to Get Off Your Duff and Clean Your House
Posted on June 25, 2008 - Filed Under Personal |
I am definitely not the world´s best housekeeper, anyone who knows me and who has stopped by unexpectedly (or even not-so-unexpectedly unfortunately) will be able to tell you this. However, I happen to have chosen the perfect mate . . . a man who loves to clean. So we balance each other out quite well, I throw something on the floor leave something out, he puts it away. I let the kids play with their cereal and he mops up the disaster.
But we have a problem. He´s working for two weeks, gone every day. Which means it is up to yours truly to maintain the house in a livable state. Now, normally, I do try to clean once a day. I sweep, maybe even mop and wipe down the counters, wash dishes, etc. But my theory is that the place is going to be messed up again in five seconds, so why not wait until the evening and do it all at once? Pretty sound, right?
Not so much.
Because today my brother-in-law appeared in my doorway. He had something of Irving´s and wanted to return it and get a couple of movies from our collection. And of all Irving´s siblings, he´s the most judgmental. I could practically see him recoil as he surveyed the room and took in the spilled coffee and cornflakes on the floor, the cup of half-eaten yogurt perched on the arm of the couch, the pile of dishes in the sink (which actually looks worse than it is because one side is clean dishes just draining), the crumbs on the countertop, crumpled chocolate bar wrappers on my desk . . . and I started to imagine him going back to his house and telling them, “It´s no wonder the baby is sick . . . have you SEEN what those poor children live like?” :S
So, right after he left, I jumped up from my blogs and swept, put away the toys and half-eaten food that seems to multiply in my home, dumped more dishes in the sink (who knew there could be so many spoons and forks hidden in the couch cushions?) and then mopped the place. I haven´t yet tackled the counter or the dishes, but those are next on the list. And it really doesn´t matter, because I´m quite sure he won´t be popping back into this horribly contaminated house anytime soon.
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I cannot tell you how many times something like that has happened to me! I have been really trying lately to put away food and dishes as soon as we are done with them. I’ve also been following the rule that you don’t walk from one room to the next without taking a load of stuff to put away. That has REALLY seemed to help. My house has been much more visitor friendly.