Clean + Straighten
Mending - baby dress, Bug's overalls, darn hose
Wash blanket - sweaters
Clean rooms - windows, rugs, curtains, wash wicker chairs, pillows, bed sp.
Porches
Plan menus
Guest room - flowers, peanuts, air closet, hangers, etc
Middle room - clean + straighten
Make plenty cookies, peanuts, puffed rice candy ahead of time
Clary's study
- Annette, 1941-1944?
Most people get the Spring Cleaning bug in March/April. No matter how hard I try, I can never seem to catch that bug. Between playing gigs and getting students ready for juries and recitals, I am just barely keeping my head above water during early Spring. For me, it's all about Summer Cleaning. Students are on their summer break, and that means I finally have some time during the day to get the house in order. I know, I know, it is technically still Spring, but with temperatures in the 90s and what feels like 400% humidity, I'm going ahead and calling it Summer. Now, instead of teaching schedules, my mind is full of closet organization techniques and recipes for homemade cleaning products.
It's easy to get overwhelmed with house projects. Enter Lists!! Annette often made lists in the back of her diary, but she never wrote the date. I can only guess what event she was preparing here. It seems like company was coming, with the Guest Room and Middle Room both making the cut. Of course, she had baking on the list as well - plenty of cookies! I would be one happy house guest if my visit involved fresh flowers and puffed rice candy! Of course, there was always sewing to be done as well. In China, they did not have the luxury of getting new clothes when the old ones wore out. Every item of clothing had to last, and even when it was in tatters, Annette turned it into something new - like dolls or blankets for the kids. It was a waste-not way of living.
I feel like more and more people are turning towards self-sustainability. One of my friends has a garden that produces more green beans than they can handle. Another is re-working old t-shirts into a quilt. I have spent a few evenings darning socks, myself. Just like Annette, we can all make the most of the resources we have. Sometimes, all we need to get started is a list.