THE CLEANING LADY CASE

GOOD MORNING WORLD

[OH MY GORRY – I JUST DISCOVERED THIS DID NOT GET POSTED ON THE 16TH AS SCHEDULED.  I HAVE NO IDEA WHY.  I AM SO TRYING TO MAKE MY GOAL OF A POST EVERYDAY AND HERE I AM DISCOVERING THAT I FAILED.  I DID NOT FAIL IN WRITING IT – I FAILED IN EXECUTION.  I HAVE NO IDEA WHY?  SO TO MAKE UP I AM POSTING IT TODAY.  SINCE JUNE 1 I SHOULD HAVE POSTED 84 TIMES FOR THE 84 DAYS – THINK THE END OF JUNE I DOUBLE POSTED…..STILL I AM BUMMED I MISSED THE 16TH – OH WELL …..there it is! and here it is!]

 

I have just spent the last half hour cleaning out my inbox on one of my email accounts.  I discovered that I missed a GROUPON for horseback riding in Upper Oxford and a notice to learn a language in ten days.  Kind of sad about the language and there is no way I would have gotten on a horse!  The thing I am irritated about is the time it takes to do all of this when you let 300+ emails build up.  I hesitate to grouse as a friend told me she liked how upbeat my posts normally are and I can see no upbeat in this.

I am behind in my ironing again.  The bathrooms need cleaning.  Pretty soon my husband will make the comment from the old commercial, “Hon, bathroom bowl sure needs cleaning” to which I will respond, “Think of the germs”.  If you do not remember the commercial take it from me it was cute!  After all this I will then feel heavy like he had just handed me an anvil to clean to add to my other workload.

The kitchen is beginning to look like elves come in during the night and leave droplets of goo everywhere.  The floor – forget it.  The saying as I have said many times is ‘dust thou art to dust returneth’ therefore I have an army coming and going in this house!  Why can’t I keep up with the things I want to do as well as the things that need doing?  That has been my hardest struggle in this life and the reason I really want a cleaning lady full time!!

I could make a real case for a cleaning lady if I could justify the luxury of having her do what I perceive is my job.  With no children at home my job now only consists of  cooking, laundry, ironing, chamber-maiding with changing our bed, correspondence (snail mail and email), writing out the bills, managing the two rentals, meal planning, grocery shopping, cleaning the bathrooms, dusting and keeping the floors clean (with which blessedly my husband helps) and keeping the kitchen clean – stove, refrig and cupboards.  Goodness that really is not much when you consider that some of it is only done once a week.  If I lifted out the floors, dusting and bathrooms maybe it would be easier for me to find time to play?

You see the thing is my husband gets up at 6 and goes to work outside the home and rarely is home before 6.  He has to listen to people who may or may not agree with him.  He has to motivate others to do what he believes is best for his company.  He has to sit at his desk and review emails and take phone calls and put up with uncomfortable situations on occasion.  He has reports to write and presentations to make.  After all this he has to come home and he has the lawn to mow each week.  When does he play?

The only difference with our two jobs that I see is he gets paid and a review every year which is usually full of praise.  I share in the money and not sure I want my ‘boss’ (the only other person in this house my husband) giving me a review!!!  If I think I am not doing well it certainly puts him in an awkward position.  Can he really be honest and let us still have a happy marriage?  Of course the answer is yes and yet it would be uncomfortable I am certain.  So the answer to the cleaning lady case?

The answer is I make my list again – or find the old one that I have not completed and begin again pledging to do better this day this week.  I put my crochet, my painting, my writing in the schedule and do it a bit at a time.  The Flylady.com says to jump in where you are and not try to change everything all at once.  She says to do things in 15 minute increments and to take time for you.  I can crochet a couple of rows in 15 minutes.  So let me begin again this day.  The laundry has been started today.  I will continue to reboot my resolve and off I go to clean the kitchen. 

…..ONWARD TO MORE MISADVENTURE…

SCRAPBOOKS

GOOD MORNING WORLD

I am a collector.  It could be borderline hoarder according to some.  I still have papers from our kid’s grade school.  In 2007 when we moved I determined to put these things in scrapbooks or throw them out.  That summer I did do a lot of tossing and organizing and putting things in scrapbooks that I had already purchased for such an effort and not yet used.  I still have more.

Thinking of this and our fun with the journals these past few days I was wondering if children keep scrapbooks anymore.  I have scrapbooks from when I was little.  I think I have every valentine I ever received in grade school.  I cannot imagine that our children will care that I got a valentine from Chuck or Duane or Val.  I did and I do.  I cannot imagine that they will care about all the birthday cards I received each year.  The exception here may be the poems Daddy wrote to me each birthday.  One day I will have to toss all this stuff too. 

Do scrapbooks make much sense today?  As I have been receiving the genealogy info from my cousin I am certain that there are some things I must save.  Maybe not valentines, certainly birth certificates etc.  While some of these can be found online today the actual copies may have been destroyed along the way.  There may just be a reason to save items.

I also am having all of our VHS tapes converted to DVDs.  I got a ‘Groupon’ for this and it started me on the journey of editing.  The good thing about this is I can take all those yards of tape and eliminate the extras and have only our children and their performances.  As I am doing this I am wondering if our daughter’s rendition of “As Long As He Needs Me” from Oliver will make much sense without the whole 5-6 grade play to show how it fits in with the whole play.  The same goes for our son’s portrayal of Merlin.  Will it make sense without the rest of ‘Camelot”?  Then there is the whole play of ‘Aladdin’ that our son’s drama class presented to one of the local schools.  The whole thing is a blur.  I can tell who the teacher and kids are despite it not being really easy to watch.  Save or not???

One of my sisters is really into Creative Memories, the scrapbook company.  I have often thought it would be fun to convert my many trip logs to creative memory scrapbooks.  The knowledge of my own self stops me.  I would go overboard and then have more ‘stuff’ then I need to do the job.  We do all have a wonderful storybook from our sister that commemorates Dad’s 90th birthday.  These things are small and lots of memories in them – maybe one day I can explore this.  Not today.

Today I am still into creating the memories.  I am watching our grandchildren interact (or fight) with each other.  I am celebrating “Tilapia Tuesday” which was a bust for the boys though they did try the fish and ate chicken.  Today we are having “Wacky Wednesday”.  Not sure what that will entail.  Since it is a ‘w’ a trip to Wendy’s was mentioned.  The latest greatest question is, “Where is the number 1 on this typewriter?”  Some memories cannot be documented – oh maybe on a blog!!!

…..ONWARD TO MORE MISADVENTURE…