Saturday:) Don’t Get Me Started! The Dust and Dirt Domino Effect

“The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.”

Pablo Picasso

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Señor Picasso, I would much prefer to be doing art than dusting my daily life. But today, I was cleaning up the kitchen a little after my baking/cooking frenzied Friday. I figured I’d do some laundry, strip the bed and wash the bedding, and one thing just led to another.This is a long story, so grab a cup of coffee, or better yet, a glass of wine. I’ll join you. 🍷

While I was getting ready to put the nice clean sheets back on the bed, I noticed that the headboard, rails, and wooden crevices were very dusty. Why did I look? My motto has always been, “If you don’t look at the hole in your shoe, it won’t bother you .” My sister reminds me of my motto quite often. Bit, it’s true.

So, I bit the bullet and got a damp cloth and was wiping all the dusty woodwork. I couldn’t quite reach the tippy top of the headboard, so I gave it a swipe with the towel. Wouldn’t you know, the towel fell and wedged behind the headboard and I couldn’t reach it. Therefore, I went and got a broom to try and finagle it out. It dropped to the floor. Still couldn’t reach it. I swiped and yanked and tried to oooch it out. After many attempts, I slid it Up and out, along with a LOT of hairy dusty yuk.

I put in another load of laundry, and feeling quite inspired with the broom in hand, I swept the kitchen and bathroom floors.

I have a magic broom. It stands on its own merit. I just wish it would sweep on its own merit.

Oh no! When’s the last time I dusted the blinds? Like… never.

Let’s not forget the baseboards. Why do we need baseboards anyway? They should call then dustboards. Man, there is dust everywhere. my friend Brunhilda the broom got quite the workout today.

Seeing as I was on a roll, I took out My Sharona, my shark vacuum cleaner. Everyone is coming out to party today.

Then, my least favorite task in the entire world… the tedious tempestuous toilets. I hate cleaning toilets! 🤦‍♀️ I always save this task for last, so I can jump in the shower after I’m done.

A funny story about toilets. When my youngest son Matt was in about third grade, they had a writing assignment to say what was their mother and father’s favorite thing to do for fun. Matt wrote that his dad liked to play golf, and his mother loved to clean toilets. He was a smarty pants even back then.

Be careful when you start a little project. One thing leads to another. My tip for the day…DON’T LOOK AT THE DUST. IF YOU DON’T SEE IT, IT’S NOT THERE.

Wednesday:) Words of Wisdom About Housework.

“Rule number 1- Never remove and empty the vacuum cleaner canister unless you know how to put it back. (Ask me how I know!)”

~ Toni Armenta Andrukaitis

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Phyllis Diller

Housework can’t kill you, but why take the chance?

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Well, you may remember my old friend Henrietta Hoover, my trusty vacuum cleaner. Yes, she sat patiently in the middle of the hallway for several days before I decided it was time to vacuum instead of tripping over her every day. That is my cleaning strategy. Annoyance.

Henrietta got a new belt and a good cleaning last month, so she was humming like new and picking up all kinds of hidden treasures, dust bunnies, and a lot long brown hair. (Where did that come from?) Unfortunately, she did such a good job that the dirt canister was just about full. Seeing as Wednesday was garbage day, I thought it was a good idea to empty it and take it out to the trash.

Well, I just pushed in that little grey nubby thing, turned the plastic thing-a-ma-jig, and emptied that sucker out in two minutes flat, and off to the trash I went.

Now, it was time to put the canister back together and back into Henrietta’s waiting tummy. But NOOOOO! As hard as I tried, I couldn’t get the twisty thing to turn into the right plastic slotty grovey spot. (You notice all these technical vacuum part names, right?)

Seriously, after about half an hour of twisting, turning, and cussing in two different languages, I was about to give up. Instead, I raised my right hand into the air with a fist and said, “As God is my witness, I will fix Henrietta before this day is over.”

I guess that did the trick. Maybe God didn’t like all that cussing, so He waited until I calmed down and asked for His help. And yes, we Catholics have a Patron Saint for every occasion.

St. Zita is the Patron Saint of housekeepers, maids and servants, and was well known for her patience, hard work, and spending her life attending to the poor and those imprisoned.

Next time, I’ll start out with a prayer instead of cussin’.

Wednesday:) What’s With The Cleaning Frenzy?

“My theory on housework is, if the item doesn’t multiply, smell, catch fire, or block the refrigerator door, let it be. No one else cares. Why should you?” 

― Erma Bombeck

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First of all, today is Wednesday again. Yesterday, I posted that it was Wednesday until my friend Mary commented on my post that it was only Tuesday. I lost a day. Where did it go? I changed it later. So, not only am I a space queen, but sometimes I get OCCD. Yesterday, it was compulsive cooking. Today, it was compulsive cleaning.

I started out the day by stripping the bed, throwing it all in the laundry, going for a walk in the blistering heat, then coming home to drink four glasses of ice water, then emptied the dishwasher. While doing that, I noticed the tile floors were all spotted and grimy, and could use a sweep and a mop. When I opened the blinds to get a better look, I saw the the window sills had little cobwebs and dust. Oh no!

Then, I had to dust all the blinds and sills. With all that dust floating around, I got out the broom and swept the floor. While I was at it, I might as well sweep the rest of the house. Wow, looks like the carpet in the family room could use a vacuuming. Oops, let’s not forget all the other rooms. I don’t take out that Hoover that often. Might as well make it worth my while. I even vacuumed all the tile floors because, after all, I was going to have to mop them all anyway, and didn’t want the mop to get all full of dust bunnies.

I even used the tubey extendy thing and sucked up the baseboards and corners. By now, I was possessed. One thing led to another. I couldn’t stop. OCCD. (Thank goodness it’s only a seasonal thing. Like once a year.)

Next came out the mop. The mop was safely hidden in the deep recesses of the garage. Darn! I found it anyway.

Kitchen, two bathrooms, entry, hall, and laundry room. Check. I took the little rugs and mats outside and beat them against the house. They didn’t do anything bad, they were just dusty. Then, the dryer went ding, and the sheets were dry and ready. Go make the bed.

Oh, those poor stairs. When’s the last time I vacuumed those stairs? The new little vacuum I bought months ago was still unassembled in its box. I put it together and laboriously worked on each step, fourteen or fifteen.

Aren’t you exhausted just reading all this? My sister called just as I was giving the kitchen floor a final rinse, so I took a break.

Well, I decided that was enough. I was going to dinner with Kathy across the street, so I needed to shower and change. We had a nice dinner, and I got home around 8 o’clock. When I walked in the door, I admired my nice clean floors. I decided I needed a little something sweet, so I opened the cabinet to look for my stash of chocolate covered raisins.

Oh no!!! Those cabinets are in such a sad state of clutter. After I post this, I have a late night project to keep me busy. OCCD. Compulsive Cabinets. I sure hope this frenzy is gone when I wake up tomorrow. I’m exhausted. I don’t think there’s a support group for this, because everyone is home cleaning their house. 

Sunday:Unsung Heroes

Weekends are suppose to be relaxing, aren’t they? But, what about all those little tasks that must get done, yet go unnoticed. All the laundry must get washed, dried, folded, hung, and put away. Meals are made, dishes are washed, floors are cleaned. Someone has pick up after the kids or the dogs. It’s like a little fairy comes in and takes care of all that housework with a blink and a nod. It all goes unnoticed by everyone, except of course, for that little fairy that does it all, week in and week out, month after month, year after year.

So, after a long week, and an even longer weekend, maybe take a few seconds to thank the little housework fairy at your house that usually goes unappreciated. If YOU are that person, well, pat yourself on the back and give yourself a special treat. You deserve it. After all, “Tomorrow is another day,” and it all starts over again.

Maintenance Monday: The Dust of Everyday Life

Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.
Pablo Picasso

Maintenance Monday is a cool term I borrowed from my friend Karen. She likes to set Monday aside to do the majority of her household tasks like laundry, paying bills, vacuuming, etc. Personally, I don’t have a particular day scheduled for housework. I do like to wait until my husband is around. This way, I make sure he knows I actually do something around the house, not just play tennis and go out to lunch.

The thing about housework is, it really isn’t anything noticeable. Does anyone ever say, “Oh, wow! You dusted today?” My husband has never said, “Look at that! You washed all the dishes and pots and pans.” No, all those things go unnoticed. The bad part is, I notice all those things.

My tennis drill was cancelled this morning, so I sat in front of the TV with a cup of tea and a guilty conscience. When I have tennis, we drill for an hour with the coach, and then stay and play an hour or so. By the time I get home, well, it’s time for lunch. After lunch, I need to put my feet up and rest after all that exertion. You see where I’m going with this? The day just flies by and I don’t get anything done.

No excuse today. The house has been so darn dusty lately, that I decided to tackle the biggest dust catcher known to man. I have a large 3-tiered shelf in the kitchen where I display my collectible tea pots and antique tea cups. And boy, I have a lot of them. I dreaded the thought of cleaning each and every piece, but the thick dust was driving me crazy.

I was up for the challenge, so I removed every single cup, saucer, and tea pot, carefully washing, rinsing and drying each piece. I dusted, washed and polished the shelf unit. Then, you know how one thing leads to another? I decided to dust the window blinds and floor boards while I was in the mood. It was an all day event, but now I feel good. When you have a clean house and a clean slate, your soul is happy.

No one will ever notice, but I’ll smile every time I pass the clean shelves. Well, at least for a few months, until it’s all dusty and grimly again. Now, I can get some artwork done. My everyday life is dusted from my soul.

Words of Wisdom Wednesday

“Others have seen what is and asked why. I have seen what could be and asked why not. ”
― Pablo Picasso, Pablo Picasso: Metamorphoses of the Human Form : Graphic Works, 1895-1972

Me and old Pablo have a lot in common. We both have a “different” way of looking at things. Well, my friend Señor Picasso is no longer around, but if he was, he would say, “Si, me gusta… I like that, Toni!”

“I have seen what is and ask…why can’t everyone else see this too?” Everyday activities and tasks present new perspectives. Today, after doing some laundry, I removed the lint from the dryer trap. When I examined it closely, I noticed the beautiful colors and texture. Who else would be in awe of the glory of dryer lint? That would be me. I did a load of darks and reds today, so the lint sheet was dark grey on one side and reddish on the other. With Valentine’s Day being around the corner,…like tomorrow, I decided that a heart would be in order.

I folded the muted colors, bending and twisting the shape around my fingers. It was amazing how the tiny particles of lint from a routine chore like laundry could become a fluffy art form. Yes, I see things differently, but my buddy Picasso would have approved.

Pablo Picasso captured my natural beauty. I posed for him…not really, but I can pretend, can’t I?

A lovely “Lint Heart.”