Kevin's Watch

Cleaning and housekeeping are one big areas of weakness for me.
Yet it's connected to how I love others, how I steward what's mine, and to humility and patience.

(So I'm talking about it on a site where dozens of people will see my thoughts; oh, the ironies.)

I've thought of starting a "blog" here about this even before Shuram's very-relevant "Houses and Hearts" thread.
(Worth checking out, for anyone who hasn't seen it!)

So here's something to start with...
A few things that keep my home dysfunctional:
Me slouching around the house in PJ's all morning.
Not getting the leak in my kitchen sink pipe fixed
(Do have a drip bucket though.)
Not clearing off the kitchen table every day.
(there's flour all over it now.)

A few things that inspire me:
The role food plays in the Redwall books.
A book I found called "Simple Hospitality"
A discussion my hubby had about how hospitality can be a tool to combat the "deadness/numbing effect of suburbia."

Anyone else?

For people joining this discussion:
Please don't share the deepest, darkest secrets of your dysfunctionalities or home right off.
I have no intention of doing so - at least not right off.
We don't know all the details of each-others' lives, so if someone reads that I yelled at my kid over not cleaning something carefully, they might (not too unreasonably) think I'm a lot like someone they knew and really didn't like.

I'm a messy guy, but it doesn't really bother me or reflect on my mood that much. My room's a tip rain or shine, happy or depressed.
The only time I'm consistently clean is if I'm having, er, visitors.
So I guess in a way it does reflect on my mood, in that clean = very good mood.

Hahaha, yeah, I'm pretty messy in some ways. I let it build up until it annoys me, then tidy everything up. Usually every 3 or 4 months.

--A

my office becomes a hovel - stacks of books, cd's, comics, art stuff.

i really need a maid.

sgt.null wrote:i really need a maid.

What if you just wear a maid outfit? That could help motivate you.

as i am currently hobbled, nix.

My house is quite a mess right now (disgusting), and I have no desire or ambition to clean it. As I've mentioned before, my house tends to reflect the way I feel inside.

I am thinking about a way to cheat my unhappiness. If I pay someone to keep my house clean, will that make me feel better? How much does that sort of thing cost anyway? I actually have a really neat idea:

I am thinking about putting out an ad for a roommate: no rent, no utilities, just keep my house clean and live here for free. Who am I kidding? No one would go for that. (or would they?)

shur-Lord, if you throw cooking and certain other requirements into the mix...your roommate ad begins to resemble a cynical and thoroughly unromantic sort of proposal.

I like to keep things somewhat tidied, which is at odds with the way Magickmaker likes to live. She's been pretty good about keeping her junk in her room, except for one thing: the dining room table. She doesn't have a desk, so she's been using half the table for her laptop, etc. Of course, her stuff spreads out. I have to keep shoving it back onto "her" half of the table, or we'd have nowhere to sit and eat. ("Get back!" )

BTW, "tidied" doesn't mean "dusted and vacuumed." I just can't stand living in clutter. My mom was a genius at covering every available flat surface with stuff and it just makes me crazy to live that way. And I do feel like my thoughts are clearer and more organized when my surroundings are neat.

shur-Lord Gudatetris wrote:I am thinking about putting out an ad for a roommate: no rent, no utilities, just keep my house clean and live here for free. Who am I kidding? No one would go for that. (or would they?)

See... I would never be worried that nobody would go for that; I'd be worried about who would go for that!

It sounds like you've identified this as something that's "major" for you personally feeling cared-for and valuable.
(unlike a couple of other ppl who've are apparently happy-go-lucky messies! hey, I can see that could work for some people...)

Entrusting something that important to someone you don't know?
And sharing your living space with that person?

I think your idea of paying for cleaning is waaaaayy lower risk.
Actually, when my sister told me she paid for cleaning a couple times a month, my first thought was, "Well I'm glad I didn't 'give up' and do that like she did!"
But actually... it makes sense for some people... it's like delegating.

Hmmmm, this thread reminds me of somebody...

(click image at your own risk...)

Regarding my roommate idea, I figured I could kill two birds with one stone. Cleaner house plus having another human being around. But that is a rather sad and pathetic approach to life. I figure it could only end badly if I were to go through with it. But then again, maybe there is someone out there who needs a leg up and such an arrangement might be just what they need to get where they want to be (free living could be a substancial financial benefit for someone who is struggling with money). I am afraid of getting a drug addict or a serial killer tho

I feel like I am on the *cusp* of getting my butt in gear and cleaning up.

But I might put an ad on craiglsist just to see what kind of response I get

i straightened up my desk, had to kneel in my chair to do it. so upgrade from hovel to unkempt.