Chores
I schedule my household chores like an appointment. Is that odd?
I dust and vacuum twice a week: I recently changed days to Monday and Thursday from Tuesday and Friday because hubby just started working from home on Fridays and I don’t want to disturb him while he’s working in the den. Plus he sneezes when I dust.
I clean the bathroom on Wednesday and Sunday and wash the hard floors on Sunday, too. Dishes are done daily and the litter box gets scooped every other day. I spot-clean counters, do laundry, and put things away in between these scheduled cleaning days so the house stays neat and tidy. I hate living in a messy house.
This may sound very anal retentive, but trust me when I say that my house is a mess compared to my mother’s home. She moves the furniture when she vacuums (!) and makes the bed every day. My idea of making the bed is pulling the blankets smooth as I get out. Misty likes to sleep on the bed and she hates lumps.
Hubby treats every flat surface as a potential resting place for his stuff. He hates it when I put his stuff away and I hate it when he leaves stuff out. The compromise is that I give him a two day clean up warning. If it’s still out two days after I’ve asked him to put it away, it’s fair game for me to clean up.
Two Saturdays ago, he bought a new target stand and left the assembly instructions and warranty registration form lying on the kitchen counter. After a full week of walking past the paperwork, I told him that I would find a suitable home for it if he didn’t take care of it himself. He said he’d take care of it, but I wound up putting it on his desk two days later. We didn’t argue about it, so the system seems to be working.
If I didn’t schedule my chores I might be tempted to skip vacuuming for a week, and with two cats in the house, that’s not a good idea. Dishes are my least favorite chore; it used to be ironing, but I try not to buy clothing that needs to be ironed, thus saving myself the trouble.
Cleaning can be a very Zen experience. The only problem with a clean house is that it immediately starts to get dirty again. It’s a vicious cycle.
I dust and vacuum twice a week: I recently changed days to Monday and Thursday from Tuesday and Friday because hubby just started working from home on Fridays and I don’t want to disturb him while he’s working in the den. Plus he sneezes when I dust.
I clean the bathroom on Wednesday and Sunday and wash the hard floors on Sunday, too. Dishes are done daily and the litter box gets scooped every other day. I spot-clean counters, do laundry, and put things away in between these scheduled cleaning days so the house stays neat and tidy. I hate living in a messy house.
This may sound very anal retentive, but trust me when I say that my house is a mess compared to my mother’s home. She moves the furniture when she vacuums (!) and makes the bed every day. My idea of making the bed is pulling the blankets smooth as I get out. Misty likes to sleep on the bed and she hates lumps.
Hubby treats every flat surface as a potential resting place for his stuff. He hates it when I put his stuff away and I hate it when he leaves stuff out. The compromise is that I give him a two day clean up warning. If it’s still out two days after I’ve asked him to put it away, it’s fair game for me to clean up.
Two Saturdays ago, he bought a new target stand and left the assembly instructions and warranty registration form lying on the kitchen counter. After a full week of walking past the paperwork, I told him that I would find a suitable home for it if he didn’t take care of it himself. He said he’d take care of it, but I wound up putting it on his desk two days later. We didn’t argue about it, so the system seems to be working.
If I didn’t schedule my chores I might be tempted to skip vacuuming for a week, and with two cats in the house, that’s not a good idea. Dishes are my least favorite chore; it used to be ironing, but I try not to buy clothing that needs to be ironed, thus saving myself the trouble.
Cleaning can be a very Zen experience. The only problem with a clean house is that it immediately starts to get dirty again. It’s a vicious cycle.
posted by Patricia at
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
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