Spring Cleaning....Shoot me now, please

I have vivid memories of my mother gearing up for her annual spring cleaning extravaganza. We knew that our Saturday morning cartoons would be interrupted early that day. Mom would be up on one of the kitchen chairs, teetering precariously on tiptoes, dusting implement in hand, ready to do battle with whatever minor cobwebs had built up over the last week or so. The only difference between this weekend and any other weekend of the year was that Mom was going for the deep down allover clean...the "eat off the floors" kind. This was the only time of year the windows in the house were bare, she'd pulled the drapes down for cleaning, and the light in living room was drastically different. It was so bright!! I remember her collapsing at the end of the day with a look of exhaustion mingled with little bits of satisfaction tugging at the smile lines on her face.

Cleaning a house means taking stock of what you have, what you need, and what you probably don't want or need anymore. Cleaning and clearing out requires energy, lots of it. And, executing on decisions about what to throw out is, in it's own way, liberating and exhausting.

I love to throw things out, but the mental exercise of the process can be emotionally draining...especially when it comes to things like clothing (particularly baby clothes...keepsakes in one pile, consignment in another, everything else to Goodwill), toys (the first Easter toy we ever bought Sofia...we kept it), odds and ends picked up here and there on weekend trips during our courtship, the most expensive bathing suit purchased ten years prior (and have no hope of fitting into again)...and those damn financial records from the last twelve years! What's the rule? Isn't it seven years? Gosh, that pile would make a great bonfire! I think I hem/haw so much over these items because I'm afraid I'm going to regret throwing them out...or worse, realize I need them again. In some cases that would mean I'd have to replace them. Which means spending money on something I didn't need to. So while I'm purging my home of unnecessary clutter, I console myself by intellectualizing repeatedly that the likelihood of needing any of it again is not high. And, usually, it's true.

I enjoy having stuff, just like everybody else. Buying and owning stuff also means being responsible for taking care of that stuff. And, that takes time. The time it takes you to care for the stuff can sometimes be overwhelming. While some stuff is great to own (clothes, a television, pets), there are other types of stuff that are more enjoyable when borrowed and returned...like library books. What a novel concept!...no pun intended And, like the George Carlin skit so accurately points out (about stuff), it gets to a point where your stuff requires so much time and money to maintain it, that you have to get another job to earn enough money to care for your stuff, and so eventually your stuff starts to own you. It's a vicious cycle, isn't it?

I heard a customer who is from a long line of family mariners remark at the wine store a couple weeks back about the two happiest days of his life. The day he bought his boat...and the day he sold his boat. The point being that his boat fetish was cured after only a few years of ownership, and that his wife was grateful to have her husband back. They'd both been owned too long by their boat, and the time and financial drain it caused was not at all missed. Good to know.

So what does all this have to do with spring cleaning? Well, I guess the point is this is a great time of year to really take stock of how much you have, how much you need, and how you would rather be spending your time, money and energy. Throw the whole carbon footprint thing into this equation, and you've got plenty of motivation to take a good hard look at your attic, your basement, and every space in between, and make some room for "green space". Space that isn't cluttered with stuff gathering dust or being used as a clothes hanger. Space that is open, airy, unfettered, and completely "unstuffed".

Then, think about all the really needy people out there who would love to have your old stuff...and whether you sell it into consignment, or donate it, chances are it's going to make someone else very happy.

But lets talk about the other benefit of a major purge. Less stuff to dust! My house is a dust magnet. I have to dust every week or there is a thin white film covering every available surface. It's beyond frustrating. That's my motivation for spring cleaning this year. I have read online that several of the major causes of dust is clothing, upholstered furniture, rugs, mattresses, attic insulation and furnace filters that are not frequently cleaned or replaced. Basically, our stuff is attacking us with dust. Fortunately, I don't suffer many allergies. My husband does, but it's the typical pollen and hay fever type. Neither of the kids seem all that bothered by dust...even when it's covering a half eaten tootsie roll abandoned the week before. (I know, gross!) It doesn't matter how thorough a job I do either, it taunts me relentlessly...week after week. And I've resigned myself to having to live with it at some level. But if it gets any worse, I'm buying one of those air purifiers....one with a low carbon footprint, of course! :)

What I love about a clean house is the sense of order. I truly have difficulty functioning on any morning if the beds are not made and there are dishes in the sink. It's like some weird mental checklist I have to tick off before I can get on with the business of living that day. Neurotic you say? Sure, why not? But I know many folks with stranger rituals than that....and until someone tells me that its a sign of an untreatable condition, its not going to change. Besides, whats wrong with being organized? Not alphabetizing your movie collection organized, I mean knowing exactly where the scissors are when you need them, or stacking your bills by due date so you don't miss one, thereby decreasing your chances of racking up intolerable late fees.

You realize I don't live like this day-to-day. My house is not consistently clutter free and organized. It's more/less an ideal I strive for and am able to achieve once every three months or so. But I keep trying...and will likely keep trying until I'm able to get my kids to take an interest in it. Until then, I'll have to settle for letting them learn by osmosis...you know, watching me clean...feather duster in hand, teetering on my kitchen chair.

And because it's my other consistent habit, I'll tell you that the '05's from France and California are drinking beautifully right now. However, I have heard that the '09's are going to be stellar!! Buy 'em young and store 'em now!

Another hot tip, if you haven't tried Rose since the 70's, you're in for a whole new world! You can get Chateau de Campuget for about $12.00 a bottle right now...it's a lovely, delicate, light and only slightly fruity wine. And if you're going there anyway, grab a bottle of Volver while (in the Spain section). A relentlessly lush, fruit-forward Temperanillo with a little bite on the finish, but all together yummy!

Enjoy!!