Bigger type? Housecleanin', y' say?

Stella here.
Harvey thinks I oughta use bigger type. How's this?
Confound... if I don't think this blog thing's gonna swallow up half o' my day if I don't get a handle on it!


Friend o' ours wrote me askin' about Spring cleanin', seein's how I mentioned in the start-up page how I shoulda been washin' curtains 'stead o' jawin' away online.
Well... didn't that just give me some pause!
Imagine, somebody thinkin' I might have tips on cleanin'!


Pat G's made some mention o' th' time I got riled up after bein' married t' Harvey f'r fifteen years an' we fin'lly cleaned out th' cellar. That story's called "Emma's Bouquet" if y' ever get a chance t' hear her tell it.
Th' time I washed Harvey's ma's old curtains is in one called "Dr. Spock".


But y' gotta know that I never got taught how t' clean house. Mostly 'twas a simple matter o' figure it out f'r myself, or else ask a friend. Y' know, deah, that ever'body's got their own favorite methods o' cleanin'. An' I ain't no exception.
But here's th' simple truth... livin' with Harvey, y' just gotta keep as ahead as y' can 'cause sure as anything if y' don't y'll be swamped an' buried in piles o' stuff 'fore y' know what hit ya.
That man is a savin' fool! He's got more stuff'n Carter's got Little Liver Pills!
An' when th' girls was livin' at home 'twas twice as bad.


I was just 18 when Harvey an' I got married. An' one year later we had twin baby girls.
Housekeepin'? You have GOT t' be jokin'! If t'warnt f'r Molly Eldredge bailin' me out times when things was completely outta control, I'da never o' made it t' th' twins' first birthday!


'Course I got better at it. Y' got to! Here's maybe one 'r two things I c'n suggest, f'r whatever they're worth.
1. Th' more room y' got, th' more stuff y'll accumulate.
2. Don't save th' whole magazine; just tear out what y' want an' toss th' rest.
3. Learn t' file, it saves a whole lotta wear an' tear when y' gotta find bills 'r articles y've saved 'r recipes 'r th' instructions f'r th' new laptop y'r kids gave ya. An' don't let nobody "help" ya file either. 'Specially y'r husband.
4. That ol' "wash on Monday, iron on Tuesday" rule ain't such a bad idea. 'Course half th' time it RAINS on Monday, an' then y're up th' creek - unless y' got a dryer. I purely hate dryers! They use up too much energy an' they beat hell outta y'r clothes. 5. But if y' can make y'rself some kinda plan... like on th' day y' wash, dry an' fold, don't do nothin' else till that's finished. That multi-taskin' stuff folks try t' do nowdays'll kill ya in th' end! Cook a big pot o' somethin' ever'body likes when y' know y're gonna be extra busy. Y' can't manufacture no gourmet meals when y'r tryin' t' shampoo th' rugs 'r put down new linoleum squares in th' kitchen.
6. Teach y'r kids t' pull their own weight. My girls washed their own school blouses an' undies from th' time they was ten 'r eleven. They learned how t' iron, too... although I guess nobody does that anymore. Chores ain't gonna kill a kid - even if they let on like it is.
7. Some men is trainable t' help with th' housework, an' some isn't. Y' got t' know which kind y' have. If y' got th' kind that's not trainable, then just make sure they ain't under foot when you're scrubbin' an' straightenin'.
8. An' here's a trick... t' clean up in a hurry, say like y' just found out th' minister's comin' over f'r a chat about th' Alliance bake sale... toss ever'thing that's lyin' around in one o' them big plastic trash bags an' stuff it under th' bed. If nobody asks f'r whatever's in th' bag f'r two 'r three weeks, y' c'n pretty safely assume they ain't gonna need it an' it c'n go bye-bye t' th' Salvation Army.
9. As f'r vacuumim' lamp shades an' dustin' lightbulbs, an' polishin' th' undersides o' things... if folks is that worried about such an' the like, they ain't nobody y' need t' have come visit in th' first place.

There y' go, deah. I hope some o' that's helpful.
It's been nice chattin' with ya.
Love,
Stella