one difference between cleaning and tidying
It can get too late to clean. Vacuums are loud, and apartment walls can be thin.
But you can tidy around the clock! (Wheeeee.)
Marie Kondo talks about tidying, and that is part of the cleaning process. What do I want to keep? What can I discard? What no longer has any use? What am I scared I'll need again someday and don't want to let go of? What we own and where we put it is tidying.
But we shed skin and hair and we stomp them into the carpet, we spill and sneeze, cats track litter in between their toes, dental floss flings tooth goop onto the bathroom mirror, and soap scums up the shower. Taking care of that is cleaning.
I've spent hours today gathering stuff and sitting with a recycling bin, trash can, and shred bin, and I decide what to keep-or-recycle-trash-shred. This is the verb I invented: KoRTS. I will continue to korts the bedroom until I am sleepy, but quiet hours are 9 pm to 9 am. My mess is big enough that I don't think I'll korts enough to be able to flop out of bed and turn on the vacuum in the morning, but I can still get a lot done tonight.
I have mentioned raking my carpet before. When I complained to a colleague about how two humans and three cats clogged my vacuum in less than two minutes, she recommended a rake. I had no idea such a thing existed. I wish I could remember where I got mine from, because it's simple and sturdy, and I love it. This friend has three longhair cats and a varying number of Pembroke Welsh Corgis (she breeds them), and her own hair is waist length, so she knows a few things about hair clogs. So the rake is awesome, and I would recommend one to anyone.
Whereas my Bissell Cleanview Rewind, which was recommended online because of its ability to handle pet hair, can only handle a few minutes before one of the tubes chokes and needs unclogging. Three shorthair cats and two shorthair adult women are more than a match for this thing, even when I vacuum weekly. But with a sweep around the edges of the walls and furniture and a thorough rake, I only need to unclog the vacuum once or twice per room. Plus the rake lifts up the fibers of the carpet, helps the vacuum work better, and makes the room look nicer when everything is done. (If I sound grumpy about this, IT'S BECAUSE I AM.)
To offset the grumpy, here is a crappy cell phone photo of Babe in a cat trap. It held hanging file folders in a previous life; today it holds sweet Babe, who loves to be in the middle of everything I'm doing.
But you can tidy around the clock! (Wheeeee.)
Marie Kondo talks about tidying, and that is part of the cleaning process. What do I want to keep? What can I discard? What no longer has any use? What am I scared I'll need again someday and don't want to let go of? What we own and where we put it is tidying.
But we shed skin and hair and we stomp them into the carpet, we spill and sneeze, cats track litter in between their toes, dental floss flings tooth goop onto the bathroom mirror, and soap scums up the shower. Taking care of that is cleaning.
I've spent hours today gathering stuff and sitting with a recycling bin, trash can, and shred bin, and I decide what to keep-or-recycle-trash-shred. This is the verb I invented: KoRTS. I will continue to korts the bedroom until I am sleepy, but quiet hours are 9 pm to 9 am. My mess is big enough that I don't think I'll korts enough to be able to flop out of bed and turn on the vacuum in the morning, but I can still get a lot done tonight.
I have mentioned raking my carpet before. When I complained to a colleague about how two humans and three cats clogged my vacuum in less than two minutes, she recommended a rake. I had no idea such a thing existed. I wish I could remember where I got mine from, because it's simple and sturdy, and I love it. This friend has three longhair cats and a varying number of Pembroke Welsh Corgis (she breeds them), and her own hair is waist length, so she knows a few things about hair clogs. So the rake is awesome, and I would recommend one to anyone.
Whereas my Bissell Cleanview Rewind, which was recommended online because of its ability to handle pet hair, can only handle a few minutes before one of the tubes chokes and needs unclogging. Three shorthair cats and two shorthair adult women are more than a match for this thing, even when I vacuum weekly. But with a sweep around the edges of the walls and furniture and a thorough rake, I only need to unclog the vacuum once or twice per room. Plus the rake lifts up the fibers of the carpet, helps the vacuum work better, and makes the room look nicer when everything is done. (If I sound grumpy about this, IT'S BECAUSE I AM.)
To offset the grumpy, here is a crappy cell phone photo of Babe in a cat trap. It held hanging file folders in a previous life; today it holds sweet Babe, who loves to be in the middle of everything I'm doing.
Comments
Post a Comment