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Post by sidestep on Jul 15, 2015 5:51:50 GMT -5
Jannie, I hope your refrigerator reconnaissance mission went well! Good luck getting anything used & expired out! ~~~~~ snailspace, "When In Doubt, Throw It Out" is a good safety adage to live by! I've dealt with the very old eggs hanging out in the fridge until they made it to the curb for trash day without an egg explosion too. (Mine were from Dec.--eek!) I hope you find an organizational storage solution that fits your needs for the fridge! 2 bags out is GREAT along with all that cleaning! ~~~~~ ohblondie, congrats on getting those old salad greens out, & I hope the old, anonymous brown bags & old takeout containers made it out too! ~~~~~ joyinvirginia, Congrats on getting all those storage drawers cleaned! I've always wondered why they don't print expiration dates on the crimped edges of those 'lil packets too! Congrats on getting them out of there! ~~~~~ Good work everyone! Thanks for your participation in Operation Clean Fridge!
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Post by ohblondie on Jul 15, 2015 7:40:50 GMT -5
DId not have as much time to devote to the fridge as I had hoped. But I got some stinky broccoli out and emptied some tupperware with leftovers. Trash was taken out to the trash can - and tupperware dumped in the dishwasher.
daughter came home from work with a to go container of garlic smashed potatos. UGH - there goes the empty space....(She works at a restaurant and she got to bring hte leftovers home. they were yummy)
I will try to wrap it up tonight or tomorrow
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Post by sidestep on Jul 15, 2015 8:08:04 GMT -5
Arid, thanks for the egg-cellent suggestion! (Sorry too easy for that pun!) ~~~~~ Emma, Congrats on your tiny fridge with it's glass crevice & practicing amnesty! One day I need to break my 'lil fridge down with full defrost, clean, & store. That's a ~real~ chore! ~~~~~ CaringFriend, getting those shelves & crisper done! Extra credit if you get the freezer done too this challenge! ~~~~~ sue5000, it looks like you've got Fridge Maintenance down! ~~~~~ SheCanAndWill, getting that fridge clean pre-grocery shop & I hope you can enlist DS's help! ~~~~~ Thanks again to everyone participating! We'll get there!
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Post by Emma on Jul 15, 2015 11:26:43 GMT -5
Sidestep, thank you for your kind encouragement. :) I enjoy having a tiny fridge. I like how it helps keep the realm of food compact and easier to manage.
Thanks so much for having a fridge challenge. I might have kept avoiding that crevice without your prompting.
Smiles of thanks to you. :hugs:
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Post by casper on Jul 15, 2015 11:53:59 GMT -5
OK The inside of the fridge still needs a lot more cleaning and purging and organizing but I cleaned the outside and top. Removed all the magnets holding up the calendar, phone numbers, recipes, notes and memos. Removed the stuff on top. Used a nice smelling Lysol cleaner and rag and wiped it all down, except the back.
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Post by seashell on Jul 15, 2015 16:44:26 GMT -5
I made good progress on my fridge today. I have a bad habit of putting empty bowls and casserole dishes back into the fridge when I don't want to wash them. I took all of those out today, cleaned them a bit, then ran them through the dishwasher. Also took out a bag of, well, less than fresh stuff out to the dumpster. WooHoo! I can actually see the shelves now. There's a serious lack of food in there--some cheese slices and a small bowl of grapes that I sorted through to get rid of the bad ones. They've been in there a while.
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Post by snailspace on Jul 15, 2015 20:28:48 GMT -5
Arid SheCanAndWill @sidestep Thank you! I was much calmer after reading your responses. I had jumped right to the 'I'm going to ruin the refrigerator and/or the garbage bin due to carelessness' conclusion. I'm (fairly) sure the eggs will not go up in green smoke before Fri, haha, left them in the fridge, they can go to the curb tomorrow evening for following day's pickup. Since I seem to have an issue with items drifting to the back and then I can't see/reach them very well, I made the following additions: top left shelf: put the letter tray here sideways, eggs (the new ones!) on top, the lunchmeat below. An open plastic canister of baking soda and my fridge temp gauge are now behind the eggs, out of the way, and if they fall to the back it doesn't matter right 'tall item' shelf: bought a plastic three step riser at the store today and put it in the back. Peanut butter and jelly on top riser, roll of cinnamon dough on second riser. Juice, milk, tea/water pitcher in front of it (this all fit, yay!) Nothing can go to the back past the riser to get lost here. left second shelf: plastic (lidless) storage bin with green handle, for things like yogurt cups and cottage cheese cups. Free area to the left for miscellaneous, I guess things could go to the back here, maybe I can toss something in the back like.... a couple coffee cups? Non perishable somethings or other, I don't know yet. cheese drawer: cleaned this not long ago, all cheeses known to be recently purchased! (changed brands temporarily) two lowest shelves: still have these to do. The Egg Carton From March is down here for now, lurking. crisper 1: clean and empty from a couple weeks ago when there was an optimism lettuce incident, it's ready for action crisper 2: this one is full of baking supplies in a bag that I bought when I was on a homemade cookie kick, but I think this stuff must be over a year old. Time flew. Every time I've cleaned the fridge since I've figured I'd deal with it later. I think it's partial bags of flour, sugar, and the like. Freezer: I put an open plastic bin of baking soda mixed with some lovely but rock-hard and too-old-to-eat violet mints up there. Smells lovely. The fridge gauge is freaking me out, no matter how fast I try to dive in and out of there, it keeps drifting over the line to what is ever so reassuringly called The Danger Zone. I'm trying to keep forays swift and at largely spaced intervals. I found it's better to wait til the fridge is running. I made a grocery store trip this morning, tried to buy all the usual staples so I'd know if and how everything should fit in there. Replaced a couple condiments. still to do: replace/use opened/unopened bags of frozen veg with fresh ones, switch brands until new stock deal with baking stuff in crisper (deal = cart to curb, start over AGAIN) deal with last two shelves find non-perishable things to put against back wall, so nothing goes further than I can reach/see. try AGAIN to come up with some sort of dating/labeling system for things like juice and condiments, hate markers, stickers fall off in the cold, I'm too disorganized to keep up with lists ..................................... Cheering everyone on!
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Post by snailspace on Jul 17, 2015 8:12:17 GMT -5
And with the roar of the garbage truck down the street, the eggs are gone, and this challenge has been a success! I still have the baking supplies in the left crisper to deal with, and still pondering how to set up a dating system. But everything else is back to maintenance mode. Thanks for the challenge, sidestep, and cheers for everyone on the thread! editing to add: I was thinking about my fridge while grocery shopping, before I bought anything. Will the large size fit the shelf, or better to get smaller single-serving, will I REALLY TRULY go home and make soup if I buy all these fresh vegetables? Do I really need three types of sandwich cheese going at once. I think the key to maintaining the fridge, for me, may be at the store. Which would actually start with a better list and plan at home first. editing again: I did buy the vegetables, by the way. It's the middle of the day and I have not made the soup yet, . But they're in the crisper and not wilting on the counter. If I make soup I need a big free place for leftovers, and I do have that. I still grapple with not wanting to go to the store every single day vs not being able to keep track of huge amounts of stock. Work in progress!
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Post by sidestep on Jul 18, 2015 6:50:34 GMT -5
Emma, I'm glad the small fridge is working out for you! I used my dorm-sized one for 3 years, before I got my large one. I now enjoy not being forced to shop every 3 days! When I went overboard I used to keep an ice chest going & it's certainly nice not having to buy bags of ice either! I didn't always remain vigilant on checking that ice either, so, umm, yeah, that didn't work out so well for me, . ~~~~~ casper, Congrats on getting the outside & top of your fridge cleaned off! ~~~~~ seashell, Fantastic job getting rid of the old food & washing the fridge dishes. I know I am guilty of postponing that wretched chore too! Oooh, grapes, thanks for the reminder-- mine need to go back on the shelf & out of the door so I can see them! ~~~~~ snailspace, Great job getting those old eggs carried off by the garbagemen! Did you make that soup yet?! ~~~~~ Thanks to everyone participating, & remember you still have until the 31st to get your fridges in order! Extra credit for the freezer, ! (P.S. Unrelated, but if you are having trouble tagging me or others, use this shortcut!) You must use the Reply & not Quick Reply button to see this button: takeonestepatatime.proboards.com/post/338840
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Post by Emma on Jul 18, 2015 7:38:39 GMT -5
sidestep Sidestep, I hope I did that right. I have been using Quick Reply and typing the @ sign in front of names. Thanks for the post explaining how do that "tagging" so that it works. I am in the low-tech group of the forum....
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Post by sidestep on Jul 18, 2015 7:48:10 GMT -5
No worries, Emma, some of us have different screen names than our original sign-in name & that can make it tricky. Furthermore, this lets you type just a few letters for lookup & BINGO! Yes, you did it right, & you can tell since the @ is no longer visible & my name is highlighted in blue.
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Post by Emma on Jul 18, 2015 7:53:34 GMT -5
sidestep Thank you! I am giving myself a MacGuyver Award for doing this. I belong to the manual typewriter and fill-a-fountain-pen people. I really appreciate your posting about how to do the "tagging". It is an effort for me to look to the right to use the Reply button, as I am quite left-oriented. :hugs: and thanks! :) I chuckled at your changing from a tiny fridge to a larger one. I gave away a large, fancy fridge so that I could have a tiny one. Choices are great!
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Post by sidestep on Jul 18, 2015 8:05:04 GMT -5
Emma, I only went with a tiny one 'cuz I was so mad that my full-size fridge died after only 8 yrs, & I didn't want to/couldn't have anyone in here to deliver the replacement. However, that did try my stubborn streak. It took me at least 20 minutes of trying to safely get that fridge out of my trunk & safely lowered onto the dolly & pull/push that dorm sized fridge on its dolly over the river gravel driveway, thru a gate, over a step & into the house! Pant, pant, pant! Furthermore, I didn't like having to nearly stand on my head to see what was in that dorm sized fridge. Ideally it would have been much better if it had a pedestal to put it at a manageable height. My new fridge (well, it's 4 yrs old, but still feels new ) has the freezer on the bottom which puts the everyday refrigerated stuff at eye level & it is PERFECT-- Looooove It!
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Post by needmorecoffee on Jul 18, 2015 9:06:01 GMT -5
I'm in too! My fridge needs a full work over.
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Post by dtesposito on Jul 18, 2015 9:38:43 GMT -5
Good work all you fridge-cleaners! I hope to join you this weekend to do a purge and reorganization. I won't be washing any shelves but I know there are a few foods that need to be thrown out. Diane
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