|
Post by angela on Feb 23, 2015 15:51:17 GMT -5
Thanks imamess! Back at it again today.
|
|
|
Post by reb on Feb 24, 2015 17:24:50 GMT -5
Last 2 cupboards de-mousified. Still creep me out and I can't work up the nerve to put anything back in them.
|
|
|
Post by angela on Feb 24, 2015 17:27:38 GMT -5
Oh reb! What an amazing job you have done!
|
|
|
Post by angela on Feb 24, 2015 17:28:32 GMT -5
I went back into the fridge last night and threw out slimed Good Intentions, also known as "vegetables."
|
|
|
Post by reb on Feb 24, 2015 18:11:27 GMT -5
angelaGood job on chucking out the ruined science experiments Now I get to go back through the kitchen steaming and de-roachifying. Does this madness EVER end?
|
|
|
Post by kirakira on Feb 24, 2015 18:34:06 GMT -5
angela 'Slimed good intentions' made me laugh out loud. I've had a lot of those. Great job on the fridge! reb Thank you for the voice of reason on mousified stuff. I have an active imagination and was trying to figure out if/how to sanitize the whole property. You're doing so well on your efforts! Are you going to put anything out to prevent the mice from taking back over?
|
|
|
Post by reb on Feb 24, 2015 18:50:30 GMT -5
kirakiraI adopted a tiny semi-feral cat that hates everyone. Wild thing she was, she was here 5 minutes and started hunting. Whatever was left of the mice, they ran for the hills after I trapped 10 of them and she killed 4 of them. The rest ran away and didn't return. She's so tiny she can hunt in 1 1/2 inches of space between a wall and a cupboard. I figured the cost of keeping a wild cat was cheaper than the amount of art supplies, clothes etc. that the mice were destroying. Because they are right in the walls of the building and it's old, friends helped me stop up some holes but it is impossible to get them all. The cat patrols all night! She terrorizes the dog and he loves her to death. It's quite funny, really!
|
|
|
Post by cyn on Feb 25, 2015 10:12:47 GMT -5
Great work, you guys! Angela you're in my thoughts. I know you're facing *much more* than just tossing, and it must be so awfully hard to have to push your way though all the emotional stuff that goes with it. I'm very proud of you for facing this toughest challenge! WTG! Big congrats for all the demousifying work getting done! It's a yucky, icky, most miserable task! Especially when you clean something up, only to find that those little $%#@ers marched right back in and soiled it up while you were sleeping - that's been my problem. Big kudos to you, and *especially* your awesome killing machine, reb. ETA: (rofl)I forgot to add my ick for today: I am 100% committed to cleaning my dusty figurines - I have running water, and an empty dishwasher to rest them in while they dry = no excuses! I'm also going to move the plant stand away from the other window, and clean the mold out of the track, ewwww. What a disgusting mess this bedroom is. Not for long, though. I've almost conquered it!
|
|
|
Post by cyn on Feb 27, 2015 11:46:12 GMT -5
Ok, this is a funny story that any hoarders will appreciate:
So I'd finally finished cleaning the dog figurines, and was taking a break when DH walked in the door. He had a bag, handed it to me, and said it was a belated valentine's gift. How sweet! Inside the bag were 4 beautiful bird figurines. Now, this is really something because not only was it a sweet thing to do, but it signifies something *much* bigger: DH sort of cuts me off, discourages me, from going into thrift stores and tries to steer me away from acquiring more treasures. I try too, but sometimes I can be stubborn and bratty. It was nice, it says he knows how much work I'm putting into this. And I guess it's nice for him too, to be able to give me something and have me use it, instead of adding it to the hoard.
But the birds: they were really odd colours. The blue jay was sort of greenish, the goldfinch a weird grey, the roses and flowers and everything - they all had a strange sepia tone to them. They weren't dusty, they seemed very clean. I washed them anyhow, and wow they were covered in maybe decades worth of nicotine grime - it washed right off! Now they're bright and gorgeous, but it occurred to me that the lady that owned them (he got them from a private seller) must have dusted relentlessly, to have them so "clean" looking. Too funny that I might not have known their real colours if I hadn't been washing (aggressively scrubbing with hot water!) my own figurines just 20 minutes before.
|
|
|
Post by reb on Feb 27, 2015 12:22:44 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by reb on Feb 27, 2015 12:23:53 GMT -5
Ok, this is a funny story that any hoarders will appreciate: So I'd finally finished cleaning the dog figurines, and was taking a break when DH walked in the door. He had a bag, handed it to me, and said it was a belated valentine's gift. How sweet! Inside the bag were 4 beautiful bird figurines. Now, this is really something because not only was it a sweet thing to do, but it signifies something *much* bigger: DH sort of cuts me off, discourages me, from going into thrift stores and tries to steer me away from acquiring more treasures. I try too, but sometimes I can be stubborn and bratty. It was nice, it says he knows how much work I'm putting into this. And I guess it's nice for him too, to be able to give me something and have me use it, instead of adding it to the hoard. But the birds: they were really odd colours. The blue jay was sort of greenish, the goldfinch a weird grey, the roses and flowers and everything - they all had a strange sepia tone to them. They weren't dusty, they seemed very clean. I washed them anyhow, and wow they were covered in maybe decades worth of nicotine grime - it washed right off! Now they're bright and gorgeous, but it occurred to me that the lady that owned them (he got them from a private seller) must have dusted relentlessly, to have them so "clean" looking. Too funny that I might not have known their real colours if I hadn't been washing (aggressively scrubbing with hot water!) my own figurines just 20 minutes before. Awwww that's lovely!
|
|
|
Post by cyn on Feb 27, 2015 12:47:32 GMT -5
Turns out I missed one and there is a honking HUGE DEAD MOUSE in there. Reb, look on the bright side: it was dead! Lucky duck! All I find are the poops, argh. Plus, if it was big, then maybe it was pregnant - extra *super* lucky duck there, eh?
|
|
|
Post by reb on Feb 27, 2015 12:55:47 GMT -5
cyn, thanks for the encouragement cuz I am in tears. Clearly the cat was stalking, she had that stalky look she gets last night before I gave her dinner and she's been very bouncy.. What most folks don't know about cats is that they don't have to kill a mouse straight up--their saliva is so septic that if they even bite a mouse and lose it, chances are, it will crawl off to die. That looks like what happened, unless the neighbours poisoned it and it crawled in under there--in which case that's highly dangerous to my pets if they'd found it. There was no new poop in my de-mousified spaces. That's what makes me think the neighbours poisoned it and it crawled through the wall to escape or for water. I suggest a small feral cat. That little beggar can get in a 1 1/2 inch space when she's on the prowl! She is the bane of mice everywhere
|
|
|
Post by creativechaos on Feb 28, 2015 18:04:43 GMT -5
oh reb - i am glad that mouse is DEAD and congratulations on no more mouse poo! but can you ask the neighbors if they are using poison? 'cause if your dear little ferocious feral gets into a poisonend rodent, that would be horrible! i didn't know about cats' saliva, BTW! that is fascinating.
OK - i have an ICK question. i never used to have hard water scale (that grey black stain in the toilet.) since my cleaning in the past couple of years went all to h*ll, now i have a lot of it in there. How do i get rid of those calcified hard water stains? That is my ick for today. pm me if you don't want this hijacking this thread! THANKS in advance!
cc
|
|
|
Post by sue5000 on Mar 1, 2015 11:57:27 GMT -5
creativechaos, you need a strong acid to remove the hardened mineral buildup. I buy a gallon of CLR type acid at my local farm supply store for about $11 or $12. The jug lasts me more than a year. I use it for other things, too. You can dilute it and clean mineral deposits around faucets, etc. In my opinion, it's cheaper per oz. and works better than 'The Works' or Lime-Away. Pour in a cup or 2, let it soak, brush it around, let soak some more, brush again, flush! (Repeat if needed) Don't forget to scrub under the rim... the water from those little holes is important for good flushing. The acid is orange in color and does not smell real strong, and it works great!
|
|