housework

Growing up, we had chores. We had dishes to wash (dishwasher to load) every night and we had to clean one room every Saturday. We got $.50 for an allowance. I can remember cleaning the bathroom and washing the tile floor on my hands & knees. I hated all the hair on the floor (especially since no one had ever told me to sweep first so the hair got wet and disgusting.)

Things changed in the early 70s. My brothers are quite a few years older than me and my sister and they had after school jobs so I don't remember them being around the house too much. The housework fell mostly to Nancy & I. Things changed even more when we got the cottage. We started spending most weekends there which meant we didn't clean at home. We did hardly any housework at the cottage except washing the dishes.

Spring cleaning to me meant taking off the storm windows and storing them, getting out the screens and washing them in the yard, and the smell of Murphy's Oil Soap while washing the walls on stairway. Every few months, mom would wash the kitchen floor. It was not a regular occurrence.

What is all this about? My point is just this, I didn't have a very good model for housework. Sure, I learned to keep my stuff controlled so it wouldn't get moved and lost. But for cleaning, not so much. There always seemed to be something better to do and it didn't get done until it was necessary, like before holidays and birthdays.

OK, so now I know why I don't do housework very well. But that doesn't let me off the hook. Now I have to overcome my laissez faire attitude and buckle down. Or find a job and hire a maid.