Speed Cleaning 101 . . .

[Bucky]

This morning I do my normal routine - get son up for school, breakfast, surf on the computer for a bit.  I'm not feeling well today - have a darn cold.     So, I go lay down in the recliner for a bit.  When I get up, go to check something on the computer . . . . can't connect to the internet.  Keep trying . . . nothing.  Shut the computer down, wait . . . restart it . . . still nothing.  Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Unplug the internet box . . . wait . . replug . . . nothing.  Call the internet provider and ask if the system is down.  They check our connection from their office  . . . nothing.  They will send a technician out today . . . he'll be here in 45 minutes!!     YIKES!!

So, I put it in high gear to straighten the house up before he gets here.  Here's what I did:

*  put toilet bowl cleaner in toilet
*  run the swiffer around the bathroom, hallway, dining room (where our computer is)
*  put away extra towels in bathroom (translates, hide them in linen closet)
*  cleaned toilet
*  cleaned bathroom mirror & sink
*  closed the bedroom doors
*  unloaded the dishwasher
*  reloaded the dishwasher with dishes that were all over the counter
*  hide some Christmas paper, and misc. "stuff" in the bedroom that was in the dining room
*  take some of son's stuff he had laying around in the living room to his bedroom
*  clean off the dining room table so the technician will have somewhere to put his stuff
*  take the calendar & pictures off the refrigerator, stuff them in a drawer
*  clean off the counter next to the stove where hubby dumps all his stuff - hide it in cabinet underneath counter.
*  hang up some coats in the coat closet that have been sitting on the back of the kitchen chairs
*  take empty pop cans to the garage
*  put some blush on so I don't look half dead, fluff up hair, put in some earrings
*  put a bowl with some water and cinnamon sprinkled in it in the microwave, turn it on so it will smell good in here
*  wipe off the window behind the kitchen sink that the boys got spots all over
*  cleaned both sides of the kitchen sink
*  put up a clean towel in the kitchen
*  35 minutes later . . . HE'S HERE!!!!!!    

Well, now that I have my cleaning done for the week . . .    I hate when I have to clean fast like that .  You never know when you call for service when they will come - you take whatever time slot they can fit you in. 

Obviously, my internet is up and running now . . .     And . . . my house is clean . . . at least the surface stuff is clean . . . the vacuuming, and all that other stuff can wait.   

Wouldn't you know it . . . he didn't ask to use the bathroom.  Sure as tootin', if I didn't clean in there, they'd ask to use it.  Better safe than sorry.

Is it nap time yet?

Bucky

[Cheryl]

This is hilarious, and we've all been there!  I hope you're enjoying your clutter-free, sweet smelling house.   
Cheryl

[newhorizons]

Bucky, And what did you do for the plumber that came?   

[Shani]

  Bucky, you remind me of my mom.

Whenever someone has to come to our house to fix something or anything else-
She just HAS to clean the whole house untill it's stunning clean and no more dust is laying around.

I tell her it's already clean enough and it's not like The Queen/King is coming to visit us.

But oh well, not that I mind though.
I love the smell of a nice, just cleaned house.

[Crymeariver]

ROFL!!!  Now that we have a child Nana and Papa just love to call up before they leave the house to come for a visit. We get an hour.  One day they showed up without calling and I just hid upstairs and told them later we were busy potty training.  Now they always call!

[Joe S.]

OMG what you did in 35 min takes me a couple of days. Now I figure if people are coming to  see me the house does not matter that much.

[Catilee2]

Bucky,
   You are a whiz kid. 35 minutes??  It takes me that long to clean 1 &1/2 bathrooms!!!!  How tired are you this evening?  I'd be exhausted for days if I worked that fast.  Thank you for the smile your post put on my face.  Now I can go back to correcting minutes for 3 meetings (I am the Rec. Secretary for an organization) that need some changes.
Have a good evening.  I need to make our evening meal. We eat our big meal earlier in the day.

Catilee 2

[Bucky]

Newjoy - still waiting on the plumber.     I'll probably go into the same mode if he calls and wants to come the same day!   

Catilee 2 -   Believe it or not, I'm not very tired this evening.  And . . . I DIDN'T even take a nap after the guy left!!     In fact, I even made some muffins.  Mmmmm, blueberry and chocolate chip . . . the house smells soooooo good.

Prior to making the phone call, I was sluggish and just feeling blah.  After that quick 35 minute workout . . . I was actually feeling better.  So, this evening I am feeling better than I did this morning and the only thing I did different was my 35 minute speed cleaning.

Oh, one more thing to add to my list . . . got a stupid telemarketer phone call inbetween all that.  Grrrrrrrrr

And just in case anybody wants to know . . . NO, I am not available to come do any cleaning at your house!!   

Bucky

[Meld256]

Wow! Am I impressed  Bucky

I'm like Joe. All that would take me 2 days. When I started down this Sjs road, I'd have a good day and wear my own butt out doing everything I wanted or I thought needed done.  I slowly learned the hard way. 

My husband laughed a little, but now I have a daily list I try to keep up with just to get the house cleaned. It takes me all week, and we have a small place!
If I have a bad day, and I can't do much on the list, it just goes to the next day. Sometimes it gets behind a whole week, but it helps me remember what needs done. With the brain fog, I couldn't remember if the sheets got changed last week, or the week before, etc. (eewwh)

So...you're not available to come to all our houses..well..

[eyeamdry]

I am so very impressed.  I wonder how many of us could do this if/when the same/similar situation happened at our house.  I haven't done this in a long time, but I can remember having company coming in 1/2 hour or the like.  Hubby would usually be there to help.

I wonder if I really pushed myself for 30 minutes a day to go as fast (within reason) as possible at cleaning and that would mean no checking on the internet, making phone calls, picking up a magazine, not sitting down or laying down on the couch. how much I could get done.  I could manage it physically most days I think.  Sometimes I know I should push myself more than I do.  Hooray for quickie cleaning!

[JannaLee]

I love this post!  Bucky you are a darling!

[Bucky]

Lucy - you know, I find I work better under pressure.  We hardly ever have anyone come over to our house.  We've been married almost 19 yrs. and if I counted how many times we've had company come, I would guess less than 20 times!  Actually, that part makes me sad - but, that's another story.  (My family lives out-of-state, and hubby's family just doesn't do "family" type stuff except at Thanksgiving and Christmas.)

I am so thankful for totes, closets, a basement and bedrooms with doors!        I have even resorted to hiding stuff in the car if someone is coming on short notice.  LOL

My main stumbling block is that I put things off.  Why do it today when I can do it tomorrow . . or the day after, or the day after?!     I don't have to account to anyone - as long as my family has clean clothes, and food in their stomachs, I'm good to go.

I know for a fact, if I would cut down on my computer time I could get a lot accomplished around the house.  Maybe that should be one of our group challenges for a week?

It's the clutter around my house that drives me bonkers.  Papers everywhere . . mail, newspapers, school papers, doctor papers, hubbies work papers . . . we're drowning in a sea of papers and magazines.  Just the other day I was looking through the stack of newspapers on the living room floor . . . I hate to admit this, but some were from November!!     I have decided not to renew any of my magazines subscriptions - if I want to see any of them, I can go to the library and borrow them.

Some of you may remember a thread of mine from a few years back - A New Leaf Club.  I did real well with that for a while . . . then, back to my old habits.     Maybe we need a Goal of the Week thread?  Something to motivate us and keep us accountable.

Okay - off my soap box.   

Bucky

[JannaLee]

NOOOOOOooooooo not the computer!!  I simply cannot do it!!

[Bucky]

In moderation Janna . . . in moderation.  How 'bout 1/2 hr. to an hour a day versus half the day or all day?!   

Bucky

[Meld256]

Bucky,

You may have heard of the "FlyLady". She's an awesome person whose website gives you encouragement to get those little pesky chores out of the way. She's a converted clutter-bug.    She's not for everyone, but some of her ideas have really helped me. 
Our house (this was BEFORE I became ill) was a cluttered mess all the time. I am a little on the perfectionist side, and would start something and if I couldn't do it perfectly, it didn't get finished or even started sometimes. So silly...   I couldn't motivate myself to just do a little every day. I'd try to do it all at once and not get anywhere.
Now, things are not beautiful and clean at our house constantly, but it's a whole lot better even with me being ill. It takes time to incorporate a new habit, so babysteps. 

For instance, now I get up, take my meds and make coffee.  (And get a feel for how achey I am today)   
I do NOT turn on the TV or computer or make any calls, because I'll get side-tracked.
I eat a little something while I make a short list of what needs done.
Then, I check laundry; needs done? throw in a load now.

Go to bedroom. Make up bed, or at least straighten it.
Swing by bathroom, squirt some cleaner in the john and let it soak. Get any towels for the washer.
Take a break and look at any mail that needs to go out, bills to pay, etc.  Toss any junk mail the minute it comes in the door. Don't even lay it down.
These are just examples of what I start every day. After a while, I rest and then I can sit down to the computer or stretch out if I need to.  I just do things in little blocks and it seems to work. Hope this helps!  It also helps to get old clutter tossed. That way cleaning is so much easier. Maybe a good Goal of the Week thread would be something like "clean out one closet, or cabinet"?