tiredofit
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Joined: June 2009
Posts: 47
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Post by tiredofit on Jul 3, 2009 19:22:29 GMT -5
While pretty much all the rooms in my house are cluttered and dirty, the kitchen is the room that needs immediate attention. Some of you may know that I worked on my bathroom first, as it was a small area to clean and the results would have inspired and motivated me to keep working on the rest of the house. I tried, during the week, to tackle the kitchen a little bit at the time, but I just don't seem to be able to go the extra mile. I had a day off yesterday and today, and sure enough, I found other stuff to do. Today I started working on the main entrance and I still have a lot to do. I went and did something in the kitchen, but I was hoping that, with extra time in my hands, I would have attacked and won that monster. Nope, that was not the case and I'm kinda disappointed with myself
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Post by Arid on Jul 3, 2009 19:50:22 GMT -5
Hey! You said that you DID do something in the kitchen! I consider that a victory!!
Think of it as Michelangelo releasing the statue from the marble--just keep chipping away at it. You'll get there--if you don't give up!
Congratulations on what you DID do.
Arid
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Post by Peach on Jul 3, 2009 20:17:05 GMT -5
Hi tiredofit Most of us on this site suffer from an extreme difficulty with getting started. I was in that frame of mind yesterday. Saying to myself: What is wrong with me? Why can't I just DO SOMETHING? But, then I remembered that it is not me consciously making the decision to not do anything. It is a quirk in the brain. I have no control over that. But, I do know that I want to clean my house. I can clean my house. I will clean my house. I can make that choice. Today I started in the LR and removed two bags of trash. Tomorrow I will vacuum that area and then move on to the rest of the LR. Baby steps. 15 minutes at a time. You are not alone in this struggle. You have gotten up and done some things. Hurray for you I am proud of you and of me. We did something today. Maybe not much but we must remember to not look at the whole house at once. That is just overwhelming. Go back to your kitchen tomorrow and start back up where you left off. Forget about inside cabinets/ovens for now. Work on what is visible when you walk into that room so you can see your progress and feel good about yourself. Good luck and happy "baby step" cleaning tomorrow!
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Post by grungygeorgie on Jul 3, 2009 20:18:26 GMT -5
Don't despair,one day on,one day off.No good if you over exhaust yourself.Didn't get dirty in a day, right.beating yourself up does not help the matter.One thing a day,baby steps to success.I am describing everything I am working on "mentally" as I try to clear out my house too!We can all do it,then have the life we deserve!I check in to sos periodically during the day for a boost of inspiration,then go tackle something small or where/what ever the mood takes me!Good luck!gg
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Post by serenitynow on Jul 3, 2009 21:42:32 GMT -5
Humm...is that an echo I hear? I just asked (actually wailed) that to my SO just yesterday after petering out when I was on such a roll-for me that is. And someone said something on this board which really made a dent. That is to rotate the rooms throughout the day. 15 minutes, or 10, or 5 or no I won't go there! It helped me to break a deadlock and to stop hyper focusing on one room. Congratulations on your bathroom! Wendy
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pookie
New Member
Joined: July 2009
Posts: 21
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Post by pookie on Jul 4, 2009 4:14:49 GMT -5
I think you did wonderfully! Yay you!
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Post by theroyaldump on Jul 4, 2009 6:46:31 GMT -5
You say that you started with the bathroom because it was small and easier. Right there is your answer. You see your kitchen a s a big messy kitchen which is overwhelming. So, look at your kitchen as a number of bathrooms. Break it down into, say, 4 areas. Today thoroughly work on area 1. Pretend that the other areas don't exist for the moment. Don't even look at them. Do area 1 till it is just the way you want it to be. Then go rest or take the rest of the day off or treast yourself to your favorite drink and glow in how well you did in area 1. Tomorrow do area 2 again ingnoring area 3 and 4.
Now think about this .... your kitchen will be done and all spic and pan sparkley in just 4 DAYS!!!!! Not nearly so overwhelming this way! You can do it. Let us know your progress!
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Post by marigold on Jul 4, 2009 7:14:18 GMT -5
Dear tiredofit, please stop beating yourself up. Everybody has days when time goes by and when there are other things that grab our attention so we don't manage doing what we intended to do. Still, you DID something in the kitchen - YAY! Now, go to your bathroom, look yourself in the mirror, put a big smile on your face and say "I am WONDERFUL and I CAN CLEAN UP MY KITCHEN" and really mean it. Next, clean up the cats' litter box in the basement so it doesn't smell so much, as that seems to bother you while you're in the kitchen. Now, to the actual cleaning of the kitchen. I studied your pictures for a bit, and there seem to be three major things that I would tackle first: 1. The floor 2. The sink 3. The stove 1. The floor - I'd declutter the floor first (but no washing at this point), so that there are no obstacles in walking around the kitchen. There is that green plastic box in the middle of your floor, which looks like it's full of recyclables. Deal with it so it doesn't stand in the middle of the floor any longer. Either just move it to some corner, or ask your hubby or kids to empty it into your recycling cans outside of house, or take it to the dump or put it into car for taking it to the dump later or put it into trash can - whatever is most appropriate for you. Then collect all the papers from the floor and see if some are important to you. If yes, take them to their place (or to their room). If not, trash them or put them into a basket where you collect paper for recycling. Do the same with any other plastic wrapping that you no longer need. After you have moved all the things that belong on the floor, just straighten the rugs a bit. At this point don't waste time on sweeping or mopping the floor, because chances are there'll be more crumbs and spills soon 2. The sink - you need an empty sink for much cleaning that is going to happen and for washing veggies in the meantime for meals. Therefore I'd first check the dishwasher: if there are clean dishes inside, take them out and put to their places in the kitchen cabinets. If the dishwasher is full of dirty dishes, start it. If it's not full, start loading it with dirty dishes from your sink. When it's full, start it. After that, if there are still dirty dishes in your sink, clear and clean the area on the counter left from your sink, put a clean kitchen towel there and start washing the dishes in your sink. Put the clean dishes to get dry on that kitchen towel on the left. Stack carefully You can leave them until they are dry, or employ a little help from a family member and ask him/her to dry them with a clean and dry kitchen towel and put them where they belong into kitchen cabinets. The end goal is an empty sink. 3. The stove - you need it for daily cooking. Remove all the flamable things from the top like anything made of plastic or paper or wood. Put dirty dishes into your sink or dishwasher for the next round of washing. You can clean the top of the stove, but I'd say it's at this stage totally optional. So that to me are three major starting points. They don't need to happen all on the same day. After that, there are several more things to do. You can focus on food, and see that you put all your food to where it belongs in the cabinets or pantry or a fruit basket. Then junk - throw all the obvious junk into trash bags (get rid of trash bags the same evening if possible). When all of the above is done, you'll have much more counter space. Then you can clean counters, mop floors... Best wishes and may the force be with you!
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Post by marigold on Jul 4, 2009 7:18:27 GMT -5
theroyaldump posted at the same time as me, and yes, that was the basic idea - break it into smaller chunks.
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tiredofit
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Joined: June 2009
Posts: 47
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Post by tiredofit on Jul 4, 2009 9:17:32 GMT -5
Thanks, again, for the encouragement. Marigold, I love the way you analyze pictures and then give good advice. Today is a very warm and sunny day and I had to make an "executive" decision. I'm taking one of the rugs that is cluttering my floor kitchen (it doesn't belong to the kitchen but it was so dirty that hubby decided to throw it in there, wonder why ... gotta love men!) outside and actually scrub it and wash it with gentle detergent (woolite) and water. I hope I can be successful doing that, as this is my first time washing a large rug like that.
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Post by marigold on Jul 4, 2009 9:52:30 GMT -5
Dear tiredofit, I understand that you would like to use the occasion of sunny weather for washing the rug. STILL, washing the rug that doesn't even belong to the kitchen is something I would tackle AFTER all the counters are decluttered. You said you would really like to declutter your kitchen, and I see it's a priority to you. I wouldn't want you to spend several hours on something which would produce less visible change than decluttering of sink and counters. For now, I would simply roll that rug, and leave it on a porch (if it's protected from rain), or in a garage (if you have one), or in a room where it would eventually go. And then tackle the kitchen. However, please totally ignore this advice if you think that washing the rug would give you incentive for more tidying, or would give you a sense of accomplishment. Something done is better than nothing!
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Post by ivorytower on Jul 4, 2009 9:59:21 GMT -5
I had a day off yesterday and today, and sure enough, I found other stuff to do. Today I started working on the main entrance and I still have a lot to do. I went and did something in the kitchen, but I was hoping that, with extra time in my hands, I would have attacked and won that monster. Nope, that was not the case and I'm kinda disappointed with myself I can see myself in this. I'm often disappointed in the same way. I had a day off earlier this week and planned to spend an hour each in kitchen, living room, bathroom&hallway, bedroom. Then, I thought I could spend another hour in each and finally get some minor repairs done and make progress with decorating. I had the time. I had the energy. I wanted to do it. However, instead of putting in 8 hours work I did 2 - one hour in the kitchen and one in the living room and that was it. My bedroom is level 2 because of stuff on the floor but kitchen is level 0, yet it's the kitchen i always start with and the bedroom I leave till last, if I ever get round to it. The important thing, as others have said, is to do something.
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tiredofit
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Joined: June 2009
Posts: 47
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Post by tiredofit on Jul 4, 2009 12:58:55 GMT -5
However, please totally ignore this advice if you think that washing the rug would give you incentive for more tidying, or would give you a sense of accomplishment. Something done is better than nothing! When i read your reply, I was already in the middle of the rug cleaning process. I have been giving "dirty looks" to that rug forever and I'm happy I've managed to do what I did today. I have another rug that needs the same treatment, but I won't touch it until this one is dry. Of course, I have not done much in the kitchen. I have done a dishwasher and I'll probably empty it at the end of the day. Hubby is at home from work today and I already see his "signature" on the stove . I have done something else today that I could have very well ignored, but again, one of those things that have been on the back of my mind for quite a while. I scrubbed and cleaned the barbecue grill. It's a huge grill (we spent way too much money on it) and it's been unused for too long. I'm yearning for some grilled food. The day is not over yet, but I doubt I'll do much more. I hope tomorrow I'll find the mental energy to apply Marigold's advice about the kitchen.
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Post by marigold on Jul 4, 2009 13:51:10 GMT -5
YAY for the clean rug! YAY for the clean barbecue grill! Keep on the good work
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Post by Bizzy on Jul 4, 2009 22:59:51 GMT -5
I understand about the rug- just want to do SOMETHING that makes a difference. Something a normal person would do. I washed the stupid rubber car mats the other day. My car is a sty but it seemed important to me to get the food and boogers off of them.. Put a ratty towel down where the rug went. I have the same problem- 2 steps forward one step back. And then sometimes all I do is just- tread water. In rough seas waving wildly to search planes overhead! Sometimes that is all I can do.I wish I had a wife.
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