this week we're killing (dust) bunnies
It’s Tuesday, friend, and did you know…
Cleaning your house is easier when it’s not full of piles.
Tackling the piles is ominous: what will you find? Won’t it take an age and a half? What about those dust bunnies? Wouldn’t it be safer just to let them live their dusty lives in peace?
Here’s what I want you to do: nix the dust bunnies by removing their source. The reason there are dust bunnies is because the piles are in the way of cleaning, which is often quite simple once you have a clear path for the vacuum cleaner.
If “the piles” seems an unwieldy task, then start small. Here is a short list of places you can declutter in a short amount of time and then vacuum, dust, or clean with no trouble afterwards:
the floor at the foot of your bed
your kitchen countertops
the floor of your closet
the pile of shoes and bags near your entryway or wherever your family drops All The Things
the half-finished project that’s lying on your dining room table but could be put away until you gain more momentum
Hit reply and let me know which piles you’re going after today!
Love,
Amy
p.s. What I’m Reading
This week I read Equal Rites, a Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett. The plot revolves around an eighth daughter of an eighth son who is accidentally admitted to the (all male) brotherhood of wizards. After her interesting journey to the wizards’ University, she gains entrance only by becoming a maid (Good Will Hunting, anyone?). But she doesn’t do very much cleaning - her magic staff does it for her while she listens in on lectures and tries to convince someone to teach her how to read.
The lessons for tidying are two-fold: First, if you need to ask for help, you totally can. The Lazy Genius has a great podcast episode on how to hire a housecleaner, which she sticks with her usual balance of grace and low nonsense tolerance. Second, tidying isn’t The Most Important Thing. Keeping a clean house doesn’t have any moral value on its own. Having a clean house only has value insofar as a clean house serves you and your family. If, instead, you need to be listening in on lectures and learning how to read so that you can dismantle The Patriarchy, you do that. Please.