Everyday adventures
I decided to bring in the new year by cleaning some of the spots in the house that have been bothering me.
Now, some of my urge to clean came as a result of the beautiful day we're having. It's crisp and clear outside, but not freezing. The sun is out, sparkling up window sections that are clean and exposing those that I desperately need to determine how to reach. I can safely open the door and throw out some of the dust, can go to the garbage can without getting frostbite, etc. It's something about days like this that inspires me to fix the inside of the house...
Add to this beautiful day the fact that I'm pretty congested and indoor allergies are some of my worst, and you get the need to clean. Yes, general housekeeping gets me congested. Since I was already there, I figured cleaning was necessary and couldn't make things worse. (Well, let's say I wasn't thinking the clearest there. Kicking my immune system while it's down seems to be a trademark of mine.)
It apparently was not a day I was supposed to tackle the floors in my home though. I pulled out several pieces of living room furniture to sweep and mop behind them - eliminating the dust which is my #1 allergy. In the process, I had some interesting (to me) adventures.
Picture this:
I've got the loveseat, recliner, and chair table pulled into the middle of the room. I'm tackling the floor back there by sweeping it. I get it all swept - a ridiculous amount of it piled up there in the past few months then I start mopping. I notice that the mop end is shoving some dirt around, so I step back and let the floor dry a little, planning to go back after that dust/dirt with the broom. About 3 minutes later the floor appears dry. I step on it with my running shoes and "AAAAH!!!....BOOM". I've gone careening across the still damp floor and landed on part of my butt bone - not my ample padded arse, but the bone of course. I'm okay, thankfully, just a little bruised in a weird part of my behind. My DH came out of another room where he'd been playing a board game but once he assessed that I was not dying and nothing was broken, he retreated (wisely). I laid down on my chest for awhile letting my body recover from the fall and giving the floor the time it needed to dry fully.
Once I'd finally gotten the dust that I'd been battle-scarred for, I proceeded to try to vacuum under the couch cushions. This is normally a pretty easy job despite the crumbs and surprises that are typically found under couch cushions (no money this time, unfortunately). However, the vacuum cleaner decided I hadn't had enough adventure. I must've pulled it too tight across the room, for as I sat in front of my couch working on getting the dirt off the toe guard, the vacuum proceeded to start pecking on my head. Naturally, I wasn't smart enough the first time this happened to unwind the taught cord, so it proceeded to peck me with each movement. I got to #3 before I realized why my head was getting bashed in. Did I mention I'm not a genius and was under the influence of cold medicine? :)
Additional Comments/Asides:
Never wear shoes when cleaning. I'm just not cut out for it. I have to wear shoes while working in my kitchen due to its being tile on top of cement (a bad combination for someone with bad feet). However, I've always swept and mopped in bare feet declaring it's easier to step on wet stuff without getting socks soaked or risking a slip...like the one I just had!
Why on earth was I wearing shoes? Well, I was giving the FLYLady's "Get dressed to shoes" mandate a chance. I do feel more productive in shoes in general, but I will stick to the rule that I don't wear them when sweeping or mopping in the future. I'm much more stable in bare feet than in any pair of shoes I own (except maybe my hiking boots, but they are too clompy for cleaning in).
The Libman Freedom Spray Mop is awesome, I should add. I used it for the first time today and it got my laminate floors clean very quickly. It's basically a Swiffer but allows you to use whatever cleaner you like (PineSol is a staple for me), and you can take the pad off and wash it with your laundry instead of creating a landfill all your own with disposable pads. It got my floors shining. I don't think they've done that since we've owned it! Regular mopping was leaving too much water in the cracks of the laminate floorboards - and apparently will cause the floor to warp over time, thank you internet - so I only really did it twice and that didn't cause the floor to shine, it left it kinda water-spotted. (Yes, folks, I'm a dirty person who doesn't mop her floors obsessively. There are also 2 of us and a lot of floor that we essentially never use.) This Libman mop created a sheen and shine that I expect of a clean floor. It's also really easy to use, so I'll probably do this more often. :)
Now, some of my urge to clean came as a result of the beautiful day we're having. It's crisp and clear outside, but not freezing. The sun is out, sparkling up window sections that are clean and exposing those that I desperately need to determine how to reach. I can safely open the door and throw out some of the dust, can go to the garbage can without getting frostbite, etc. It's something about days like this that inspires me to fix the inside of the house...
Add to this beautiful day the fact that I'm pretty congested and indoor allergies are some of my worst, and you get the need to clean. Yes, general housekeeping gets me congested. Since I was already there, I figured cleaning was necessary and couldn't make things worse. (Well, let's say I wasn't thinking the clearest there. Kicking my immune system while it's down seems to be a trademark of mine.)
It apparently was not a day I was supposed to tackle the floors in my home though. I pulled out several pieces of living room furniture to sweep and mop behind them - eliminating the dust which is my #1 allergy. In the process, I had some interesting (to me) adventures.
Picture this:
I've got the loveseat, recliner, and chair table pulled into the middle of the room. I'm tackling the floor back there by sweeping it. I get it all swept - a ridiculous amount of it piled up there in the past few months then I start mopping. I notice that the mop end is shoving some dirt around, so I step back and let the floor dry a little, planning to go back after that dust/dirt with the broom. About 3 minutes later the floor appears dry. I step on it with my running shoes and "AAAAH!!!....BOOM". I've gone careening across the still damp floor and landed on part of my butt bone - not my ample padded arse, but the bone of course. I'm okay, thankfully, just a little bruised in a weird part of my behind. My DH came out of another room where he'd been playing a board game but once he assessed that I was not dying and nothing was broken, he retreated (wisely). I laid down on my chest for awhile letting my body recover from the fall and giving the floor the time it needed to dry fully.
Once I'd finally gotten the dust that I'd been battle-scarred for, I proceeded to try to vacuum under the couch cushions. This is normally a pretty easy job despite the crumbs and surprises that are typically found under couch cushions (no money this time, unfortunately). However, the vacuum cleaner decided I hadn't had enough adventure. I must've pulled it too tight across the room, for as I sat in front of my couch working on getting the dirt off the toe guard, the vacuum proceeded to start pecking on my head. Naturally, I wasn't smart enough the first time this happened to unwind the taught cord, so it proceeded to peck me with each movement. I got to #3 before I realized why my head was getting bashed in. Did I mention I'm not a genius and was under the influence of cold medicine? :)
Additional Comments/Asides:
Never wear shoes when cleaning. I'm just not cut out for it. I have to wear shoes while working in my kitchen due to its being tile on top of cement (a bad combination for someone with bad feet). However, I've always swept and mopped in bare feet declaring it's easier to step on wet stuff without getting socks soaked or risking a slip...like the one I just had!
Why on earth was I wearing shoes? Well, I was giving the FLYLady's "Get dressed to shoes" mandate a chance. I do feel more productive in shoes in general, but I will stick to the rule that I don't wear them when sweeping or mopping in the future. I'm much more stable in bare feet than in any pair of shoes I own (except maybe my hiking boots, but they are too clompy for cleaning in).
The Libman Freedom Spray Mop is awesome, I should add. I used it for the first time today and it got my laminate floors clean very quickly. It's basically a Swiffer but allows you to use whatever cleaner you like (PineSol is a staple for me), and you can take the pad off and wash it with your laundry instead of creating a landfill all your own with disposable pads. It got my floors shining. I don't think they've done that since we've owned it! Regular mopping was leaving too much water in the cracks of the laminate floorboards - and apparently will cause the floor to warp over time, thank you internet - so I only really did it twice and that didn't cause the floor to shine, it left it kinda water-spotted. (Yes, folks, I'm a dirty person who doesn't mop her floors obsessively. There are also 2 of us and a lot of floor that we essentially never use.) This Libman mop created a sheen and shine that I expect of a clean floor. It's also really easy to use, so I'll probably do this more often. :)