A New Morning Routine

One of the problems of people with messy homes is we get overwhelmed.  Where do we start?  What should we work on?  That’s one reason FlyLady is so helpful.  She tells you where to start.  (It’s the kitchen sink.)

For the past several weeks I’ve been very sluggish in body and complacent in mind.  It’s a vicious cycle.  Physical clutter leads to mental clutter.

Once in awhile I’ll get motivated in the kitchen to load and run the dishwasher.   But I tend not to empty it right away.  Dishes pile up in the sink, spill over onto the counters.

Combine that with an elderly, hyper-thyroid cat who’s a messy eater.  The vet said “Give her anything she wants to eat.”  She’s always hungry, but routinely turns up her nose at whatever I give her.  Exceptionally frustrating is the fact that she sometimes refuses food she’s liked in the past.  I end up with two or three opened cans, several bowls of unfinished food, and a very messy eating area.  (The picture was taken a few years ago, but she’s now 19 years old—that’s 93 in people years.)

I finally had enough!  I spent today cleaning the kitchen.  I emptied the dishwasher, filled it up and ran it again (and emptied it shortly thereafter), washed the pots and pans by hand, cleaned the counters and floor, and finished the day by cleaning out the kitty water fountain. There’s still clutter to clear out, but that wasn’t on today’s agenda.

In looking over the not quite spotless kitchen (FlyLady says housework done imperfectly still blesses me), I wondered how to keep the kitchen manageable so I can focus on other areas of the house.  I had a moment of clarity, stimulated, I’m sure, by the orderly kitchen—a new morning routine.  Every morning I shall empty the dishwasher (if it’s been run, since I don’t need to run it every day); fill the pets’ dry food bowls, and give them fresh water.  I know it sounds minimal, but when you’ve been doing nothing for weeks, minimal is an improvement.