I don't know if anyone else does this, but every night I put my water on for bedtime tea and walk around the house and pick up every piece of clutter (mail, hairbrushes, nail clippers, nail polish, empty glasses, dog toys, newspapers, rubberbands, shoes, etc) and put it back where it belongs. I like waking to a house with no clutter, and that 5 minutes at night clearing stuff up is a really helpful little ritual. When the water for tea is ready, I pour it in a mug. Then, while the tea is steeping, I set my coffee up for the morning. And I finish any dishes that are in the sink, or if there are a lot of them, I run the dishwasher.

I have found the single most helpful thing to keeping up on the clutter and cleanliness is identifying a location for each item in your house, and always putting things back.

the single most helpful thing to keeping up on the clutter and cleanliness is identifying a location for each item in your house, and always putting things back.

You mean, "it was on sale and cool and I can do something with it, and there was that spot on the couch to put it and I'll find somewhere else for it" isn't a mantra in your house?

I'm learning to dread when Hubby says "I went to a surplus sale today! It was great!"

After hearing the encouragement I'm going to apply for the job. I'll work on a cover letter.

Also the more I think about my previous jobs the more different responsibilities come up that I think show that I was given a high level of responsibility and trust. Like the dental reimbursement stuff I did or the fact I was the one at the Airport typing (and slightly editing) performance evaluations and disciplinary action forms. I just need to spin that into HIRE ME.

Good Personal News - Dad is coming up to visit me! I'll only get him for 3 full days, it's a kinda tacked on trip. One of his good friends (who is also a fishing and hunting buddy) always rents a cabin in Maine and drives up from Florida but this year his friend's wife didn't want to make the trip and didn't want to go alone and asked Dad. So Dad's going up to Maine and then will come down next weekend to see me.

I was really missing my family over the 4th, they were all at the beach and I was told several times my nephew kept wanting to go to walk on the beach with his Lala.

You mean, "it was on sale and cool and I can do something with it, and there was that spot on the couch to put it and I'll find somewhere else for it" isn't a mantra in your house?

It is in mine.

I'm learning to dread when Hubby says "I went to a surplus sale today! It was great!"

Ah, I see we got the same make and model.

Ah, I see we got the same make and model.

"there's clean space on the floor! I can put something there!"

"It's horizontal; I can put something there!"

"Oh, were you going to SIT there?"

"It's under the cat."

Heh.

Some of you know my friend (and ex-housemate Charlie). I've been helping him unpack and set up his cute little Alameda bungalow. It's been helpful because I have tons of nervous energy and am in total nesting mode, but I don't want to do a single thing on my house until escrow closes. So.

I learned a lot from: [link]

One of the things I've been asking Charlie as we go through boxes that he hasn't opened since 1978 (not exaggerating) is "is this meaningful to you? If it is, let's get it out of this box and display it. If it's not worth displaying, then are you honoring the memory by keeping it wrapped in 30 year old newspaper and not even knowing it's in this box?" I've learned to be really gentle and respectful during these discussions. I used to just be annoyed and pissed at the detritus but it's amazing how if I differ my approach slightly, Charlie has a chance evaluate and make his own decisions. Basically, I've learned to back the fuck off and still be helpful.

"It's horizontal; I can put something there!"

And if it's a book, it's still horizontal!

"It's under the cat."

I have an image of it affixed to the cat's undercarriage through the magic of Velcro.

I like waking to a house with no clutter, and that 5 minutes at night clearing stuff up is a really helpful little ritual.

I do this and truly enjoy the quiet consistency of it. I find it calming.

Yay for dad visit! For all I don't love being separated from the SO right now, I am enjoying extra time with my folks.

I skyped with the SO, though, so that was helpful. Don't know why it didn't occur to us earlier. Guess we don't normally have the bandwidth available.

So! After you guys talked about it, I checked for grey today and...I totally have a lot! It's all in the classic guy grey spots, at the temples, etc, so it's normally kinda hidden. But seriously, I have way more than I realized. I've had grey hair since I was sixteen, but not noticeably more than that ever, but I do have now!