Cleaning House

There are lots of meanings today for the term "Cleaning House" but I am going to talk about just plain old trying to keep the house clean, tidy and clutter-free.

As we get older, it gets harder and harder just to do the simple vacuuming and washing floors. We keep looking for a vacuum that is easier to use and I think right now we have at least four assorted of different shapes and sizes, with and without cords. We try to find a better mop, a better pail, better dusters. Perhaps you do too!

Sometimes, I think that if we had less stuff it would be easier. So, I give things away, give to the church garage sale, give to the thrift shop and even occasionally have our own garage sale. (Oh, how I hate having a garage sale . . . )

I read every article there is on how to "speed clean"; how to de-clutter; how to keep the house tidy.

As we get older, it just gets harder and harder to do the simplest tasks. Well, some days, the hard part is getting the equipment out into the living area . . .

So, today, we worked hard at it - both of us - and we will do that again tomorrow. Tidying and cleaning is satisfying but it also means hurting knees and backs. One friend cannot do housework because she cannot breathe well enough. And . . . no, we are not ready for an apartment yet.

In the past year, I have visited a lot of homes where people have simply given up. It is becoming more common than you would think to see homes where you can barely find a path to walk through from the entrance. It is becoming less common to be invited to peoples' homes. Gee, we used to go to someone's house to play a board game or cards on a Saturday night.

People seem to be busier than ever and what little time they do have for themselves, they certainly do not want to spend it doing housework. Some households have children but I presume the parents are afraid to ask the them to pitch in. Or perhaps they would rather their children have a more diverse life of sports and hobbies. Can't fault them on that!

When I was a kid, most wives stayed at home. Now, most women work. Not only do they work, but it takes them longer to get to their work. Surely their time at home should be spent with family. We must not forget that they also are chauffeurs, driving their children to and from practices and events. They also need to spend quality time with husbands and family.

(I have not even mentioned laundry, have I?)

About the first five years Hubby and I were married, the amazing Patty used to do all the chores around the house. Patty ultimately went to college and became a registered nurse. She stayed with us until she graduated. Now she is a supervisor at a Home Health Care Company and we gave up long ago trying to replace her.

I still think about the special courses they used to give after work at big companies to teach people how they would spend their free time when computers did everything for us and we had so much spare time. Of course, that never happened!

Most of us . . . even "retirees". . . do all of our bill paying online and balance our accounts online. If there is too much traffic on the internet, sometimes it takes us a long time to get everything done.

Computers did not make time for us . . . in fact computers are challenging us every day and less people are doing more of the work.

We live in challenging times for people of all ages, not the luxurious world we dreamed about twenty years ago!