Jumping The Gun

I don’t know what the weather is doing in all y’allses neck of the woods, but here in Texas it’s schizophrenic! One morning, I’m wrapped up in long johns and sweaters — by that afternoon I’ve stripped down to shorts and a “wife beater” shirt.

It’s probably not politically correct to call those sleeveless shirts (like the undershirts my Granddaddy wore) a “wife beater.” I promise that I have never in my life hit anybody’s wife — well, I did hit Debbie V. in the third grade and she was probably somebody’s wife eventually. Sometimes those shirts are called “muscle shirts,” but I don’t have any muscles to speak of, either.

I digress.

Anyway the weather is wreaking havoc upon my internal clock … or maybe it’s my internal calendar. Just the other day when it was so hot, the crickets were chirping and the buds were opening on the trees, I was fooled into believing it was spring. I started my spring ritual: cleaning. Well, not so much “cleaning” as “re-arranging.

Actually, I get the fever to change up the house as every season changes. Do y’all do that? It must be some kind of “nesting instinct.” I call it “nidifying,” because a spider’s nest is it’s “nidus” and when it’s building it’s nest it is “nidifying.” That’s not really very accurate though …does a pig build a nest? THAT would describe it, because sometimes we seem to be wallowing in “stuff.” This place gets cluttered in a heartbeat.

Many months ago, I had bookmarked a page from CNN called “Stylist’s tips for a company-ready kitchen” and I decided to peruse it to see if it would give me any tips. Y’all can read it for yourself if you want.

The main thing I took from that was this:

“peruse your countertops with a merciless eye, sentencing ugly gadgets, ratty cookbooks and mismatched utensils to confinement in a cabinet. Put away anything that isn’t pretty: knife sharpeners, phone chargers, cooking magazines, bread boxes, food processors, even the coffeemaker should all go into hiding.”

They were, of course, talking about hiding the coffeemaker if company is coming, and then pulling it out again the next morning. I left it on the counter, because I couldn’t see the point in putting it away — but I was ruthless in taking out all the unnecessary stuff. Well, except for my lovely KitchenAid mixer. I don’t use it often, but I couldn’t put that away! It makes me look like I’m a cook, and it’s lime green! Good thing I cleaned the closets out awhile back. I filled them up quicker than a baseball player spits!

That might not look un-cluttered to you, but then I wouldn’t show you a “before” picture, would I?

Here is a closeup of the kitchen, and it might give you a better idea.

At least, Mr. Tucker seemed to like it better.

I jumped the gun on my spring cleaning, but I got it done — just in time for winter to come right back. Tonight, we have stuffed ourselves with goulash (definitely a “cold weather” dish) and are lounging by the crackling fire. It feels so wonderful to be in a tidy space. If I could just keep it that way!

Do any of y’all have any “magical tips” you want to share to help me keep from living in a pig stye?

This journey began on a separate blog (you can click here to read About Out Of Chaos), but that wasn’t really simplifying was it? I moved all of the posts to This Eclectic Life under the category Out Of Chaos. I’ll be adding more from time to time. I hope you join me.

Other posts you might enjoy:

1. Nesting Guest
2. Jumped The Gun Again. Will I Never Learn?
3. Jelly Vendor
4. Isn’t It Fun To Have Houseplants?
5. Taken To The Cleaners

Tagged as: de-clutter, spring cleaning