L O O O N G P O S T S ahead - I'm just warnin' ya'
I keep wondering if this will stick when the going gets tough.
I just might have my answer.
First, some background.
Yesterday morning, I jumped back on the BACKLOG bandwagon with a vengeance. I had missed Saturday, Sunday and Monday "backlogging" and I knew I was this close (insert fingers about half an inch apart) to conquering the dish backlog. So........................I washed my 5. And then I washed the rest that were on top of the microwave. And then I pre-washed and began the soaking process of that thing that I had been working around and avoiding since I had started.
And then........................I looked around.........................and THERE WERE NO MORE BACKLOG DISHES TO WASH.
N O N E.
I had done it.
(save for "that thing" sitting on the countertop soaking - which I knew I would finish Wednesday morning - I had effectively conquered the BACKLOG MOUNTAIN and I would be able to log in here and shout it loud and proud.............I HAD DONE IT!!!!)
And I am feeling pret-tee good about myself. So I decide to ride this wave and I say to myself..........."I'll clean the microwave".
And so I do. Inside and out. Top to bottom. When I finish, it's lovely. No dirties piled on top - clean and shiny.
And then I say to myself................"I'll clean the other half of the sink".
(Way back at the beginning of this dishwashing journey I had scrubbed the left side of the sink and every morning since then, when I come to the kitchen it sparkles and smiles at me. And the right side. Well, let's just say it doesn't - AT ALL - it's been way past 3 months since it's been scrubbed and I have had a mental roadbloack about cleaning it but today's the day and I'm feelin' it.................)
And so I do it. Scouring powder and de-limer and toothbrush scrubbing in the nasty cracks. And rinsing. And more scrubbing. And more rinsing. And the final wipe down.
And then. It - sparkles - and - smiles - at - me. And I am happy.
And the wave's still coming so I decide to start on my stovetop.
Lots of baked on food bits around the electric burners that just won't come off at this point with regular wiping. (that's why they are there in the first place - there DEFINITELY was no regular wiping) And so it never really looks clean. I begin the process. Remove the heating elements - paper towels soaked in ammonia placed around the rim of the opening then cover them with plastic wrap so they stay moist. Soak overnight - wipe (and scrub) clean in the morning. Take drip pans and put them in a bag with a bowl of ammonia and close tightly - place on porch. Lift entire cooktop and place ammonia-soaked paper towels (where all the excess spillage from the drip pans lands) and cover with plastic wrap because I'm on a roll and I'm feelin' it and well, you get the picture. Keep in mind - I give myself credit for not doing all 4 burners at once but I clearly did not think ahead to the preparation of supper.
And I look around and I am pretty pleased with myself.
No backlog save for the "soaker".
Shiny microwave.
Shiny smiling sink. Both sides.
Left half of stove gettin' shiny.
Pretty......darn.......proud.
Let me be clear. Absolutely NO ONE in America would label my kitchen as clean, functional or beautiful (there are MANY piles of papers (important and otherwise) sitting on the counters - there is a printer sitting in the floor - the cupboard doors are SERIOUSLY in need of cleaning, etc., etc., etc.) - BUT I knew where I had started and I could clearly see the progress I had made.
This feeling of "I-can-do-it / you-go-girl" continued into other areas of my life yesterday afternoon.
A very important phone call I had been procrastinating about (for 2 months) was made. The project was moving again.
Very important papers were located, signed and mailed. Long before the deadline of September 15.
A preemptive phone call was made to transfer monies in anticipation of upcoming expenditures.
I felt in charge.
And all because of washing dishes.
Then somewhere on the way to the Post Office to mail the letters I made the decision to cook supper.You see, when I started this dishwashing adventure I gave myself amnesty from cooking. Real cooking. I knew myself well enough to know that I would not cook a full meal every night, do all of those dishes AND work on the backlog. Those were way too many habits to change all at once so I made my life super simple in the cooking area so I could concentrate on THE BACKLOG. Plus, it's really difficult to cook when dirty dishes are occupying the stove, the counters, the sink, everywhere. Supper has been canned soup or sandwiches or fast food, etc. Not much at all to wash. So when I have written "Today's dishes - DONE" in my daily check-in, there really haven't been many at all. But whatever amount, I DID THEM.
So this decision to cook supper was BIG.
An acknowledgement that I hoped I had changed.
I could handle preparation AND cleanup of a full meal. IN THE SAME EVENING. Which hadn't happened in the past. Which was one of the reasons there had been such a ginormous BACKLOG.
Now, as they say, the rest of the story.