Domestic Goddess

That's me these past few weeks. I am lucky enough to be in the middle of two weeks off (holiday time, combined with vacation). I'll be honest, going into this, I had a to do list as long as my arm. The first part of it involved getting ready for Christmas (which I did, with a scaled back approach). But mostly though, I have been lazy. Playing with the grandchildren, futzing around the kitchen and way to much computer time is what has occupied my days.

Well, today I looked around at my terribly neglected house and I got busy. I took the books off the shelves to dust and rearrange them (this was really an attempt to fit more books back on). I cleaned the refrigerator. I wiped down the kitchen cabinets. I knocked down cobwebs. I cleaned the bathroom and replaced the toilet seat. I dusted my furniture and then oiled it down with furniture oil. I did laundry, lots of laundry. It may sound like I was reacting to incredible boredom, but I was really trying to overcome the months (years) of neglect. I am not nearly done, but I am quite proud of myself.

Last week is when I shopped for the toilet seat. If you all recall, I do not have a car and rely on the kindness of strangers (okay, friends and family) to drive me around. Therefore, I found myself at one store, that had the tackiest and ugliest toilet seats imaginable. Padded ones, all different colors, with embroidered seats. Not to be discouraged, I decided to choose the absolute tackiest one there was and buy it. (Well, not really, the worst one was pink with a swan on the seat.) It is orange, sort of, maybe more peach, with shells on the seat. So now it graces my bathroom in all its tacky glory. I think I may love it! At least it makes me giggle each time I see it.

Many pieces of my furniture are antiques, they used to belong to my grandmother. My bedroom and dining room sets are 94 years old. I know they are valuable (though their value to me is not monetary). I love having them, but they have been sadly neglected. Old wood dries out, plus having three dogs in the house leads to lots of dust and grime. Boy, the wood really soaked up that oil, but tonight it is clean and gleaming!

I thought I had kept up with the laundry, but then R (youngest son) cleaned out his car. He kind of lives out of his car, he goes from school, to work, to friends', to home, to work (or some semblance of that). In the interim, he changes clothes and throws the ones he took off in his car. He carried in three arm loads of clothes, announcing, "I found out where all my clothes went." Now, I know he is old enough to do his own laundry, but I'd rather he didn't. Call it control issues, perfectionism, whatever, but there you go. (I will say that he, or at least one of the boys living here at the time, broke my old washer by over-loading it.) He is also a chef, he wears a uniform. Certain restaurant kitchens (usually the more upscale ones) tend to be a bit militaristic. His chef's jacket is white, and it has to be white. No stains, spots or dinginess are acceptable. Of course, the same jacket has black trim, so it cannot be bleached. Let's just say, I am a pro at getting out stains.

I am still not done around here, I am on a mission. I know that the clean will not last, I sweep up mounds of dog and cat hair daily, but I am determined. Maybe it is time I got back to work!

For those of you who celebrate Chanukah, I know I missed it, but happy belated. J sent me this link, I had forgotten about this song. I am posting it here, enjoy!