And then Life Happens

after a crazy work day

To continue in the kitchen, well, Thursday turned into the craziest day for work. First I went to work from 5-6:30 AM. Then I came home for a bit, fed the ducks and chickens, drank more coffee. I did 15 minutes in the kitchen throwing away some junk and getting a bit more counter space cleared off. (That is an ongoing project that comes in about a square inch at a time). I even ran a couple loads of laundry and managed to get one of them hung out.



I had to leave home and return to work at about 9:45 and didn't get home until just about 1:00. My blood sugar was hitting the basement so I gobbled up some cheese and crackers, went out and picked some chili peppers, made a pot of green chili for my dinner. I fed and watered the livestock, watered some newly seeded lettuce and carrot beds, made my lunch and left again for work at 2:45. I got home after 10, cruise the internet a bit and went to bed. And then today I went back to work at 7:30, just happy it wasn't 5am again.

The picture above shows the state of the house this evening. I spent 15 minutes in there tonight, washing up the dishes, scrubbing on one side of the stove top and cleaning up the sink again.

Kitchen after 15 minutes

I know it doesn't look like I've done much, but really, the dishes are all clean and there's a few square inches of clean counter space that wasn't there earlier. And now I"m off for a shower and bed. I'm beat.

The Kitchen

The dreaded kitchen

Well the kitchen has always been my nemisis. I hate washing dishes; I suppose because I was an only child till I was 8 and it was some years after that before my sisters could do dishes. I was forced to wash dishes every night after dinner. I don't mind doing them so much now, and I dearly love it when my kitchen is clean and shiney. It just seems really hard for me to keep it that way.

The kitchen after one 15 minute session.

So I plunged right in and did 15 minutes in there. I know that it's hard to tell from this photo, but I did actually get a lot accomplished. It just happens to be all at the far end of the room and not all of it is visible from this end.

kitchen tonight

I did a couple more 15 minute sessions, mostly washing up dishes and putting some stuff away. That was a couple days ago. Since then I've mostly been trying to maintain to clean spots, keep the dishes washed up and put away some more stuff. So here it is tonight. I did manage to sweep the floor at the far end and put away most of the clean stuff. Some things I have to find homes for.

The Bedroom

The bedroom before

Well, to continue, after getting a lot done in the bathroom, I tackled the bedroom, 15 minutes at a time. Here's a before pic from the doorway. I couldn't tell you how many months it's been since I actually made my bed.

Bedroom before

I did three 15 minute sessions in here, there is still a good bit of dust, trash and junk in here, hiding on the other side of the bed, but at least the walk way to the bathroom is cleared, the feather bed fluffed up and the bed made. I put away most of the clean clothes (there isn't room in the dresser for the winter stuff and since I'll be needing it soon, no point to packing it away now! that's the pile on the floor next to the dresser) I got all the dirty clothes corralled in the hamper, it's been raining so I've gotten a bit behind on the laundry, tho one sunny day and I can catch back up.

Bedroom after

Bedroom after

I also vacuumed the open part of the floor in here.

After the bedroom I tackled the kitchen, but that's another post for another day!

Happy New Year

Starting the New Year off right with a shiny sink!

Happy New Year! May you have a wonderful year with many blessings everyday! Like many of you I have a few goals for this coming year. And yes, of course one of them is to 'get organized'.

I am coming to think however, that to 'get organized' is not really the destination. I am beginning to wonder if it isn't more of a never ending path/journey. Where each day we make the choice of doing something that helps us accomplish our other goals or not.

For example, on a daily basis we choose to deal with the incoming mail, sort, toss, act on it. Or throw it in a pile and ignore it. The first scenario is the choice of people who are organized (at least in the area of taking care of the mail!) and the second one is the choice of those of us who are not organized.

I can see now why I've struggled with this issue for so much of my life. The idea is beginning to sink in, that it isn't about doing a huge amount of work and digging myself out from under the clutter, it's about dozens of small choices and actions through out each and every day. I choose to become a neater, tidier, more organized person over the coming year. Because I need to be organized so that I can accomplish my other goals, otherwise there is the risk that 12 months from now I'll be in the same shape I'm in right now.

I spent a little time each day this past week tackling just the obvious trash about the house, doing a bit of laundry and getting the dishes all washed up. I'm proud to say that I am starting out the new year with a clean shiny sink. Well, for a beat up sink that is pushing 70 years of age, this is about as good as it gets.