I'm not much of a housekeeper, except on those rare unplanned days that I am.
Anyone who's seen the state of my desk at work or the floorboards of my truck have a good idea of what my house looks like under normal circumstances. I have a clutter problem--too much paperwork in my life--and an inability to throw things away. I'm not a child of the Depression, so I can't tell you where I got this weird drive to "save" things that "look useful" or "are perfectly serviceable" even when I've never used them and know I never will. I can't bring myself to throw stuff away. I even have a hard time bagging up stuff for Goodwill.
I think this is because the stuff* is mine, you see. Mine. Even if I don't need it and the clutter makes me crazy, I often cannot bring myself to throw it away.
* Junk is the stuff you throw away and stuff is the junk you keep.
And I'm inconsistent. The day before yesterday, we were leaving for the mall when I saw the distinct color of money on the lawn. I'm perpetually picking up trash that is either thrown onto my lawn or blows in from the street; this is the first time I've seen money. I pointed it out to Michelle and said, "Is that a dollar bill?" She hopped out and fetched it. It was a twenty dollar bill, as it turns out. She tucked it in her wallet and off we went. I ribbed her about it, but this didn't upset me in the least. I have enough money, so I didn't need that bill or feel any ownership of it. But just try to make me throw out a teeshirt I paid $5 for but never wear because it doesn't fit right and you'll have a fight on your hands. Or worse...stuff like a half-cannister of motor oil or six leftover shingles from when the roof was patched. That stuff is useful, don't you know.
All that is only tangentially related to how I clean house, which was the original point of this post. See, I live in a house that is moderately clean (depending of which pigsty you compare it to) and kept reasonably sanitary so it isn't a health hazard. However, I'm not anal about it. Most of the time, I simply do not see the clutter and filth.
And I clean my house by accident. Here's how it works....
I'll realize I need to take the trash out (often precipitated by an unpleasant aroma in the vicinity of the kitchen). I'll bag up that trash, then I may as well clean out the kitty litter while I'm making the trip, as well as walk through the house and get the tidbits of trash from the various rooms. While scooping litter, I'll notice that the floor desperately needs sweeping (perpetually). After I haul the trash out, I sweep the floor, then work my way through the house, as kitty litter has no respect for boundaries. On my way through the kitchen, I might pause to refill the dog's water and wash the dishes, because I'm there and they need doing, y'know. Then I'll sweep into the den where the table is cluttered with incoming junk mail, so I'll sort through that while I'm standing there. Of course, there will be a cat or dog bed near the fireplace that needs washing, so I'll run through the house and collect all the laundry and start a load. At the fireplace, I may as well pause to scoop ashes into the bag.
Down the hall with the broom, and the hall closet is a mess, so I leave it open as a reminder to refold and repack things when I finish sweeping. Into the bathrooms and ugh...how long have they been this filthy? Then into the computer room where all the clutter in the house eventually comes to rest, so I sort through that and file it accordingly. Then back to the bathrooms to clean, and if I deign at any point to pick up a dustrag, there's another half-hour shot as I work my way back through the house.
There are usually other things that crop up, as well. I need to polish those shoes, and I should shell these pecans (are they even still good?). That chair is broken so I should take it to the garage and fix it real quick, and once I walk into the garage...you do the math.
And so it is that what should have been a twenty-second job (taking out the kitchen trash) has sucked up my entire morning. And heaven help me if it's summer and there's lawn work, as well (hedges to trim, wood to chop, gardens to weed....).
My housekeeping method feels manic. How do normal people do it?
d
