Big Kitchen Clean-Out - Part 1

I've had a roach problem; not a big one, but it's there.  And it's only been around since the 2010 floods.... the little buggers!  So, I decided to make a move on my kitchen today and clean it up to keep those little disgusting, filthy critters away from my kitchen as much as possible.  The first quick clean-up I did, I had to replace my knife block as they were hiding in that... and I thought that was it.

But I was wrong!

Today, as I started on my kitchen, I found I had things I didn't want anymore.  So, this cleaning out of my cupboards had more than two meanings... I was cleaning out the items in them as well!  I washed down the kitchen sink and put away the strainer, the kettle and made room for all of the things that are in the cupboards to be placed while I clean inside; then I was away and cleaning out those dirty areas with hot water, washing up liquid and Dettol.  After I wiped it all down with a towel, I then sprayed the areas with Glen-20.  Okay, that won't kill the roaches, but it'll kill any germs left behind.  Then, there was the organising of the cupboards.  I didn't want to put them back the way they were, I needed order, I needed to be able to find things at a glance... I needed to be able to open the doors and know what was there if the lights were out.  And I found it all very refreshing to be able to throw out things I don't want and don't need and give them away to a charity.

However, I also found another nest of roaches in the most unlikely place.  I have an old set of kitchen scales of Grandma's.  They're white and work well - as they're in pounds and kilograms - and so I kept them to use.  But when I was cleaning up the area where the glasses sat, I saw the evidence of a nest... the massive amount of old roach skins and poop!  It was gut-turning!  I took the scales outside and hit the base of them on the concrete hard and had around half a dozen of the creatures fall out of the bum of the thing!  Yuk!  I ran around squashing them all!  Then, I sprayed Glen-20 up inside that (yes, I know that won't kill them, but it will tick them all off and make the whole thing slippery).  I cleaned up their crap and mess and sprayed the Glen-20 on that surface just to make myself feel better because of how much of their poo was everywhere!  

Before long, and after I had cleaned out all the lower cupboards below the counter and sink and the area where the glasses sit, I looked at my watch and found it was almost 3pm. I had started this at 1pm.  Wow!  Two hours zoom by when you're working hard and playing 'Moonflower' by Santana, doesn't it?  And his music is great to work by; very inspirational.

By the time I put everything back, I found preparing dinner a lot easier.  I wasn't fighting to get dishes out of the cupboards, having problems finding a mixing bowl or trying to work on getting things to rinse properly.  Everything in my kitchen worked, fitted and was organised properly and I wasn't feeling like I was fighting with my kitchen; instead the room and I worked like a well-oiled machine... it was great.  Why hadn't I cleaned this place out before?  I'll never know; and I now wish I had done it earlier.

Well, that's all for now.  It's getting late and I've yet to wash up from dinner.  Until my next post, take care, keep safe and warm and remember, I'm always here.

Being Brutally Honest

Have you ever looked around your house and thought that it was time to really get in and do a good, brutally honest toss-out?  Well, as a lot of you who have been following me for a while now know I have been cleaning out my house for a while.  And now, I'm up to a stage where I'm about to attack the wardrobes.  Yep, I've begun going through my clothes and tossing out what I don't need, doesn't fit me and letting it go to the charity bins.

Yesterday was the day it all began.  I opened the wardrobe where my skirts, shirts and jeans lived and I pulled it all out, dumped them onto the bed and checked the sizes.  Anything that wasn't a size 12 went into the charity garbage bag; and there was a lot that didn't fit me.  There were some jeans that looked like it did, but then, when I tried them on, they didn't (I had to make sure they weren't a large fit).  

Yes, that's a Sherryn Footy you can see in the centre.  I'm an AFL fan. :)

While I was putting my clothes away, I also sorted through my vintage t-shirts and thought it would do them a world of good to put them through the wash today.  And on the way through sorting them, I found a t-shirt I thought I had binned years ago.  It was my Pride Fair Day T-shirt from 2000.  Why I hadn't tossed it out is beyond me, and I didn't think twice about throwing it out, it just went straight into the charity bag unwashed and unfolded.  This is a win for me to throw out something from my past as I no longer have any connection to it - and fortunately - don't feel guilt in throwing it out.  

After around forty-five minutes, I had replaced the draw-lining, put all the jeans and shorts back.  The Winter t-shirts were in the wardrobe along with the skirts.  My Summer shirts were in the duchess and most of the laundry was put away.  I had a rubbish bag full of clothes to give away, the bath towels to fold and put away and I was done.  I was very pleased with myself; as this wasn't the only thing I had gotten done yesterday.

I had also vacuumed the bathroom floor and scrubbed the shower cubicle within an inch of its life.  That was a good part of an hour before I attacked my wardrobe.

However, today, I'm hoping to sort through all my hanging space in the other two-door wardrobe.  I have far too many dressing gowns; with about eight of them in there, I only need three really.  So, I'm going to look at them and keep the ones I want and give away the others after washing them.  Then, it'll be time to go through all my other clothes and jackets.  Now, that's going to be painful!  I do love my jackets; they all serve a purpose.  Until my next post, take care, keep warm and safe and remember I'm always here. 

Changes

Since the beginning of the year, I've noticed a lot of things going on, a lot of changes happening and plenty of unusual occurrences.  It's the Year of the Dragon and it's also the year the Mayan Calendar finishes; thus meaning many things - spiritual and otherwise - are going to either come to an end, begin or reborn themselves in some way or another.  

I've met a wonderful man and we both like each other immensely.  However, as we've gotten to know each other, we have admitted that we don't wish to have a relationship this year as it doesn't feel right; and we don't want to hurt each other.  I know this sounds really strange and unlike me, but we both have this feeling we should both wait until next year.  And so, we are.  I suggested to him that we should get to know each other as friends this year and work on being as close as we can as human beings instead of being lovers; and he loved that idea.  This means we'll find out a lot more about ourselves as well as each other in twelve months than most people.  How cool is that?

Another thing I've been noticing is that I've been finding things around my house that I've 'put in a safe place for future reference'.  I'll tear the house apart looking for one thing and find another that I have looked for before and it'll just show up, with me needing it right now.  It's amazing.  A few years back, I was in a pagan shop and I bought a hard leather pouch for no real reason.  And - seeing I didn't know why I had it - I put it away and left it in with my other magic gear until last month when I pulled it out and looked at it; knowing it was this year I had to use it.  I also found a Smoky Quartz that I bought about five years ago and put away for the same reason... just to keep it safe... and once I found it, I knew exactly why I put it away.  It was because it wasn't time to use it yet.  Now, I'm finding things all over my house that I've stored in boxes and drawers where I'm suddenly in great need of them; like my Tibetan Singing Bell which has been sitting on the window sill of my computer room - behind the tower of my computer - for the last eight years.  I picked it up on Monday, went outside and made it sing for no real reason.  The whole neighbourhood went quiet for a full ten minutes!  I was amazed.  However, the moment I put it back on the kitchen table, everyone outside my back door started up fighting again like they were before.

Another change I've been noticing lately is of where I live here in Logan City; of a name change.  Now, this is something that has been bounced around for a while now.  Every few years, the politicians get this weird idea of changing Logan City's name to something else, can't think of anything and then drop the subject.  This year, they're on this soapbox more than ever.  They really want this change and I'm really wondering if it's the right thing to do.  I mean, Inala nearly had a name change because it was a crap suburb of Brisbane, and once they figured out why it didn't have a good reputation, it turned out okay.  However, Logan City is much bigger than Inala and it's got this horrible reputation where nobody will even mention the City's name on the news (oh, yes, don't you love it when the anchorpeople say:  '...and there was a fatal stabbing, (mumbles) south of Brisbane...' and you wait until the report comes up with Slacks Creek, Woodridge or Kingston when all they have to say at the beginning was Logan City.  What?  Are they terrified that we're going to come knocking on their doors or something?).  So, why change the name of Logan City when it's the reputation of this placed that needs changing, not the name.  And people wouldn't be calling it Bogan Logan - or any other such name - if some famous Bogan hadn't said it first; pointing out the elephant in the room.  Weird but true.

So, what changes have you noticed - spiritual or otherwise - have you noticed going on around you in this world this year so far?  Or haven't you noticed anything at all?  For me, they have been pretty big and obvious.  Well, until my next post, take care, keep warm and safe and remember, I'm always here.