You will never get rich or famous doing housework.……

Sometimes there are words that go together naturally, like “clean and tidy”, but if you turn this phrase around and make it “tidy but not clean”, then that puts a whole new perspective on the gentle art of doing housework.

I used to berate myself for not doing all of the housework to my critical satisfaction, fretting about dust that could have come from Mars.  However, as I grow older and my eyesight dims, I realise that what my eye doesn’t see clearly, my mind doesn’t fret about.  So, with that mind shift firmly in place, I now make a big effort to be “tidy” and don’t worry too much about being “clean”. After all, if your house is tidy then it is performing an optical illusion, as people just cant separate out the term “clean and tidy”  If they see tidiness, they naturally assume that it’s also clean.  It would be nice if this was always true, but there you are, I am old, I can make excuses!!!

However, you need to be consistently tidy and I do this every morning under the guise of “self maintenance”.  I put on the timer for, say, twenty minutes, and go at it.  So, stop worrying about the dreaded housework, which, left unchecked, will expand to fill every minute of your day.   Use my version of the turn of phrase “clean and tidy” and enjoy all of the extra time you will have, and the compliments on the order of your house.

After all, no one would be cheeky enough to run their finger along the windowsill, would they dare?