(no subject)
Aug. 25th, 2005 05:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
urocyonHaving a cleaner house is very nice. Common sense, I know, but finally getting it into a more hygienic state still brings the point home.*
I spent yesterday in a (more effective) cleaning frenzy, and the place is finally getting back into a state that doesn't make me want to shriek at the idea of people actually coming into the house. You can actually sit on the floor now, without having cat hair and assorted detritus it's better not to contemplate clinging to you when you get up. Yeah, I know frequent vaccuuming helps my allergy load tremendously--short of getting rid of carpeting--but it's all too easy to avoid doing when one has to take enough antihistamines to fell at least one ox to prevent all sorts of nasty reactions to the dust/dander raised by getting up the accumulated crud. And yes, there is a relatively simple solution to that problem (besides a dust mask, which I really need to remember to use)--now that it's cleaner, with any luck I can keep after it so it doesn't get to that point again.
Today I was slowed down a bit with the heavy cleaning, having done evil things to my back yesterday. Shifting furniture and running the vaccuum with two wonky knees can do that; interesting choice which bit can take more strain at any particular moment, from bending and lifting. I still couldn't resist doing some inadvisable things such as laundry and more tidying ("I won't be bending down that much, will I?"), which called for more codeine afterward. And the litter boxes wouldn't wait until after Ingvar got in, with the current feline load around here--after a good scooping last night.
This was not supposed to turn into a boring health update--I don't want to start sounding like my cousin Barbara, who tells you, in excruciating detail, how she's really doing, whether or not you make the obligatory polite inquiry. I'm just extremely relieved to have put such a dent in the work that needs done around here. And under the influence of codeine, though that's not necessary for veering off on tangents. ;)
It's amazing that it took me so long to think to put together a bottle of simple all-purpose cleaner: water, vinegar, a little detergent, and a couple of optional drops of essential oil. I have been using a similar mixture out of a bucket or similar, but the spray is much handier. The formula with a lesser quantity of detergent for glass seems to work just about as well on a lot of other things. I've been phasing out most commercial cleaning products, and it's far more pleasant to use and doesn't leave the house smelling like a chemical factory with attendant headaches and the like. Just like pickling liquid, at times. *g* Not to mention saving loads of money. My mom likes to use homemade cleaning products where it's just as convenient, but I've gotten more serious about it and am learning more about formulas and applications. People certainly managed to keep their houses clean--and probably had fewer icky reactions to cleaning products--before the chemical companies got into the business.
The past few days I've also semi-obsessively been keeping tabs on eBay, as will tend to happen. Keeping reloading the page will not make an item sell more quickly or for a higher price, AFAIK. I'm still slightly concerned, even with a little less than two days left, that my catnip mice have no bids yet, though there were six watchers at last check. Not intended as blatant cat toy promotion, but they are good ones. *g* It's hard to give things a rest, though I'm trying!
* No pun intended, actually. Had it been, it likely would have been even worse.
I spent yesterday in a (more effective) cleaning frenzy, and the place is finally getting back into a state that doesn't make me want to shriek at the idea of people actually coming into the house. You can actually sit on the floor now, without having cat hair and assorted detritus it's better not to contemplate clinging to you when you get up. Yeah, I know frequent vaccuuming helps my allergy load tremendously--short of getting rid of carpeting--but it's all too easy to avoid doing when one has to take enough antihistamines to fell at least one ox to prevent all sorts of nasty reactions to the dust/dander raised by getting up the accumulated crud. And yes, there is a relatively simple solution to that problem (besides a dust mask, which I really need to remember to use)--now that it's cleaner, with any luck I can keep after it so it doesn't get to that point again.
Today I was slowed down a bit with the heavy cleaning, having done evil things to my back yesterday. Shifting furniture and running the vaccuum with two wonky knees can do that; interesting choice which bit can take more strain at any particular moment, from bending and lifting. I still couldn't resist doing some inadvisable things such as laundry and more tidying ("I won't be bending down that much, will I?"), which called for more codeine afterward. And the litter boxes wouldn't wait until after Ingvar got in, with the current feline load around here--after a good scooping last night.
This was not supposed to turn into a boring health update--I don't want to start sounding like my cousin Barbara, who tells you, in excruciating detail, how she's really doing, whether or not you make the obligatory polite inquiry. I'm just extremely relieved to have put such a dent in the work that needs done around here. And under the influence of codeine, though that's not necessary for veering off on tangents. ;)
It's amazing that it took me so long to think to put together a bottle of simple all-purpose cleaner: water, vinegar, a little detergent, and a couple of optional drops of essential oil. I have been using a similar mixture out of a bucket or similar, but the spray is much handier. The formula with a lesser quantity of detergent for glass seems to work just about as well on a lot of other things. I've been phasing out most commercial cleaning products, and it's far more pleasant to use and doesn't leave the house smelling like a chemical factory with attendant headaches and the like. Just like pickling liquid, at times. *g* Not to mention saving loads of money. My mom likes to use homemade cleaning products where it's just as convenient, but I've gotten more serious about it and am learning more about formulas and applications. People certainly managed to keep their houses clean--and probably had fewer icky reactions to cleaning products--before the chemical companies got into the business.
The past few days I've also semi-obsessively been keeping tabs on eBay, as will tend to happen. Keeping reloading the page will not make an item sell more quickly or for a higher price, AFAIK. I'm still slightly concerned, even with a little less than two days left, that my catnip mice have no bids yet, though there were six watchers at last check. Not intended as blatant cat toy promotion, but they are good ones. *g* It's hard to give things a rest, though I'm trying!
* No pun intended, actually. Had it been, it likely would have been even worse.
