Last night Matt and I decided that it was time to tackle the mountain of undifferentiated laundry that had gone to our bedroom to die. Or, he decided it was time, and I would have felt ashamed if I didn't go along. We have a major problem with laundry. Every member of the family has too much clothing, despite the fact that I feel like we personally keep the Goodwill stocked with hand-me-downs. And while I'm fine with the washing, the drying, and even with the folding, I suck at the putting-away. The typical scenario is, there will be a load of clean clothes downstairs, waiting for me to fold it, and then when someone is coming over, I say, "Matt, quick, take those upstairs to our room!" And there it will sit, awaiting, I suppose, the sounding of the final trumpet, when all unsorted clothing shall rise up and fly into its proper drawer.
So last night we went up there and got cray-zay on the laundry situation, sorting and folding and cleaning the bathroom. Then Matt vacuumed the carpet, even moving the bed to vacuum under the bed. (Like, whoa, that's a little too tidy.) In that pile of laundry, we found $36 in loose bills. And Matt's wallet. Which had been missing for three days.
When we were finished, Matt brought up a pitcher of cosmos, and we reclined on the bed so we could bask in the fruits of our labors, as he put it. I was beat. But we soaked in the sight of our clean bedroom like it was Lake Como. The $36, and not having to cancel credit cards and go to the DMV, that was just a bonus.
I don't know a lot about feng shui or any of that stuff, but really I think there's something to the way a cluttered room, anywhere in your house, can kind of mess with your head. Do you feel that? But now the laundry is put away, and my chi is flowing, I guess. Here's hoping we keep it that way. Have a happy Friday, and I hope your chakras are wide open.
Friday, May 15, 2009
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18 comments:
My house is ready for The Last Trumpet, if it comes with laundry folding services. Very little feng shui here.
We used to live in NYC, where you can send your laundry OUT. It comes back folded, even the undies. Very civilized.
a problem for me too... I think the problem is I wear the same things all the time, wash and fold them, but then have no room in my drawers b/c I have things in there already that I don't wear. Time for another Good will trip for me I guess!
ps: have you noticed your favorite t-shirts from past years are all short? Those are the ones I need to get rid of!
my veri word is: harping, how appropriate
my bedroom is a hotbed for clutter. which is funny because the rest of my house is not at all cluttered. my dresser is the worst. does yours get stacked with stuff too? if not, how do you manage to keep it clear and clean?
Amen, sistah! Just blow the flippin trumpet already so I can quit getting dressed out of the dryer.
I'm with Bex. The bedrooms all look like trash at our house, but the rest of the house stays clean. Why?
Indeed a little buzz has been helpful to us during laundry chores. Picture my unmotivated laziness reclined on the bed while Mark stands at the closet door holding up each piece for my thumbs up or thumbs down.
So that was bags of clothes *again* donated to Goodwill, but we're still awash in a sea of excess clothing.
If you figure that one out please let me know.
there is nothing i hate more than putting away laundry, but like you, I can't stand clutter. it drives me nuts.
Glad to hear you finally got that chi going again! Man, what a pain when it gets all backed up!
I agree--I actually kind of like folding laundry but putting it away takes serious motivation. Probably because it's not as urgent as washing, so easier to put off. But I find if I leave folded stuff in an annoying place--like the living room floor, then I am more prone to put it away.
Bex, I am with you on the dresser thing! Mine has jewelery, loose change, Ava's drawings, old receipts and Lord knows what else there. Oy! It is a serious hotspot, as flylady would say.
Oh My God. I feel as if I am amoung kindred spirits. I always always have a pile of laundry to fold left in the chair in the family room. Right now it is really bad. Both chairs have laundry in it. Good thing we have a couch or Chris and I wouldn't have a place to sit! When guests come over the laundry gets thrown upstairs on the guest bed. It eventually gets folded and put on the kids bureaus. I can't wait until they learn how to put it away. I have them help me sometimes. Figure it is good training. But I must admit it sits on our bureaus for some time as I don't want to wake them and the only free time I have is when they are sleeping. I took out their summer clothes last weekend and their winter clothes are all on the guest bed waiting to be sorted - clothes that don't fit anymore need to be bagged for younger cousin. And clothes that may fit next winter or K's clothes that will fit Abby in two years need to go in bins. One of the many things to tackle this weekend. Have a great weekend ladies!
Since, I'm a huge feng shui advocate I don't do clutter. The people in my office hate me. It helps that the husband does all the laundry, folding and putting away because I juct couldn't take but I really can't be expected to do it. LOL
Okay Michele, on the feng shui: teach me. Does it contain principles that help you feel better? If so, I'm into it.
Yes, SJN! The problem with our "oh we'll sort as we fold and fill a bag for Goodwill," is that all the stuff that needs to go to Goodwill is already in the drawers where it stays, always. So I'm gonna tackle it one drawer at a time. And I should be finished, oh, before the next presidential election. Sending laundry out sounds like a huge luxury. How much did that cost, Leaf?
Because Robin, the terrible truth is that there were winter clothes in our pile too. Shame! And Laura is terrible at putting her clothes away unless I stand over her and harp. Might as well do it myself at that point.
And Bex, the only way I keep my dresser tops clear is that there is nothing that's "supposed" to be there. Like, I love to decorate, but I've left them bare. No pictures or tchotchkes. Just empty space. So somehow that keeps me from letting things come to rest. Why can't that work for my kitchen counter?
I agree, having a messy house can make or break your day. I literally can not clean at all during the day. The kids just won't let me, they get into whatever I'm doing and double the size of the mess so it's just not worth it. I've had to give up on cleaning until after they're in bed and then who wants to do it then? We tackle "laundry center" about once a week, one of us will watch the kids while the other one does the laundry. It's just easier that way. If you ever feel the need to clean somewhere else, you know, for a change of scenery, come on down. The kids can go swimming!
It doesn't help that laundry is a constant. It's not like a once a year deal. And I'd much rather be blogging than thinning out my closet.
Oddball over here with the laundry confessions. Make no mistake--about 10 loads are done a week, and it helps that we have the front load machines for the 5 of us. I do a "Wednesday Wash" because 2 sons like to wear the same clothes a lot. I put it in at night and then put in dryer at night and then more dry time in the a.m. Then I fold it right out of the dryer with a cup of coffee. I go ballistic with wrinkled clothes in dryer. After school the boys put their stuff away (with hounding). They have to match and roll up their own socks. Husband does his own laundry and he does not touch mine. It is very annoying that he woke me up today by getting up early doing his laundry and cleaning the kitchen.....
The boys have a basket in their rooms for dirty clothes and another for dirty whites (2 sons share room, the other had his own baskets). In our bathroom we have 4 baskets: for dry cleaning, for hubs, for whites and for me.
My bad area: my closet and messy dresser top. I spend much time going through what the boys outgrow that my closet is in a rut.
My goal for today is to clean our bedroom...however, here I sit, reading blogs instead! Right now I'm in the middle of putting away 12 month and 18 month clothes and getting out the 24 month clothes for Emmy. What a pain! I always have too much clutter on my dresser, usually things I've confiscated from my children because I don't want them to have them.
This post certainly opened my chakra. And open it will stay as long as I don't look under Mr. M's bed or find clean clothes in his laundry hamper.
I'm off now, to sound the cocktail trumpet.
I meant to add that I could see that scene in a movie: hubs bringing up a pitcher of cocktails, and looking out at the orderliness. Bring sexy back in the suburbs. I love it!
Ugh...laundry. I have no problem doing it, and I even, quite often, fold it. And then un-fold it all unceremoniously the first time I need something that's at the bottom of the basket, because I hate putting it away too.
I wish hubby would bring ME booze afterwards.
LOL Michele R, if I can bring sexy back to the 'burbs, then my work on this earth is finished.
Some of y'all sound like you've got the laundry thing figured out. And I've got the booze part figured out. So together, we get it done.
drawers are the ultimate obstacle to putting away laundry. don't ask me why. shelves in the closet make it a lot easier.
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