I love to read, as in love, Love, LOVE to read. This reading amour has led to an obnoxious library addiction. Anytime I come across a book I'm even remotely interested in I place it on reserve via the library's online system. As a consequence I have a serious stack of novels waiting to be read. Not only are these publications waiting to be read but their clocks are ticking because they are due back in three week's time.
This would be all well and good if I lived solely within my head. I could ignore the outside world and sit and read to my heart's content. However I have a slew of responsibilities external to my noggin. For example I am raising three slovenly children. Yes I said slovenly. These trash generators put Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout to shame.
No matter what I've tried my children do not clean. Lord they don't even flush the toilet. And I'm not talking if it's yellow let it mellow. No. They're more along the lines of Number Two? Let it brew!
In other words it is a full time job in and of itself merely picking up after these slobs ahem I mean my lovely progeny. And yes the failure is mine. After all it is my job to mold these people from mere globs of potential to functioning beings.
{I'd like to take this moment to apologize in advance to my childrens' future spouses. I am sorry. Really. I yelled. I cajoled. I took things away. I was red in the face and hopped on one foot. I even cried and posted on the internet! Nothing worked. So I'm sorry for the mess you've been given but must admit I'm glad to give it away.}
Anyway those who have been in the upstairs of our house (Becky, Molly) know full well I have fallen down on the job as resident maid. But today is another day to tackle the mess. Why I bother only the universe knows. The mess will return like pine cones dropping from a hundred year old tree. It is inevitable. And yet I faithfully toil on.
However today is different. Today I have company -- a book on tape. Well, okay, not on tape. On CD. Why oh why had I not thought of this before?!! I can listen to a story while peeling goop off the carpet. Brilliant! I'm halfway through Kelly Corrigan's The Middle Place and loving it!
So, without further adieu, I'm off to clean. Wish me luck!
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Addendum: Upstairs cleaning complete! Book not. Still 1/2 discs to go.
Things I'm loving today:
- Wind rustling through the trees (but not so rough as to knock them down)
- The raspy croaks of frogs who somehow find ponds in the middle of the desert
- A clean upstairs (not that anyone is going to see)
- Memories of childhood (I really should write them down)
- Handmade old fashioned bonnets
- Being pleasantly shocked when reminded I've taken a few good photos.
Things I'm hoping for today:
- A pleasant productive four nights at work
- Continued luck with jury duty (only two days left!)
- A house that stays clean beyond tomorrow (fingers and toes crossed on this one)
- Safe travels for an upcoming trip (our niece is getting married - could I possibly be old enough?!!)
- Sweet dreams on this last night before work
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4 comments:
Alternative strategy (the one I'm employing with the teenage boys... 'cause I'm NOT touchin' that mess!)-- let them live in their own filth. Tear it down to the rafters when they move out & start from scratch. Glad your day was productive, though. Your daughter's room looks very pretty. :)
I went through a period in my pre-teens in which I'd let my bedroom get so cluttered that I couldn't even see the floor. I remember having to clear a path and stepping over things. I don't remember my mother ever giving me a hard time about it! I've either blanked it out or maybe it paled in comparison to my father's study - a true warren of fascinating books and objects. These days I can't see my work table! It never ends. However, I am decluttering the house ever-so-gradually. (whoo!)
I am an unrepentantly voracious reader too. I'm always behind on returning my library books, more so with the baby in tow. I think I'm on a four-week cycle in a three-week world, and yet I persist in getting ten books at a time, most of which I read while nursing (my girl takes her time). I even forget to renew online, so I often "donate" money to the library. But meanwhile, I love reading so many interesting things!
Cleaning to a book on tape-- you're a genius! Thank you--and I believe my house thanks you, too!!
My daughter's room looks worse, and she's 16! After years of fighting, I've finally given up.
Something that might work for a little while; tell her you found a huge nest of spiders, and that they like to nest in messy places.
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