Roll Up Your Sleeves....It's Time for Fall Cleaning!

     It’s November and if you’ve read this blog before, then you know this is when I begin my annual fall cleaning. I’m talking everything here...walls, windows, blinds….you name it, it gets cleaned and the house smells so lovely.

     I’m generally a Saturday cleaner. That’s when I do my dusting (I live in Arizona, dusting could be a daily chore…heck, it could be an hourly chore), vacuuming, mopping, etc, but fall (and spring)….yeah, those are a big deal.
      Don’t get me wrong. I don’t enjoy doing this kind of deep cleaning (it takes away from my writing time), but it’s an old habit and it’s hard to kick (growing up back east, this is just what one did). I do get a lot of satisfaction out of it. That being said, I’m much older than I use to be and my body doesn’t “bounce” back as quickly as it used to. I still do it all because I don’t know the word quit (and I’m a bit stubborn…ask anyone).
      I used to do everything the weekend before Thanksgiving but I’m learning to live within my limitations (I’m old now, remember?). The mistress of this blog, the fabulous Lexi Post, suggested I tackle one room a weekend and by the time Thanksgiving rolls around and company comes, everything is done and I can relax and visit. I’ve taken her advice (she’s a smart woman!) and you know, the task just doesn’t seem to be as difficult (and I’m not as wiped out!)
      Which makes me realize I would have made a terrible servant in the huge mansions I love to read about in historical romances. Can you imagine having to clean all those rooms? From the time the sun comes up to the time the sun goes down? Ugh! Nope, just wouldn’t work for me. Doing laundry? Now, we just toss our clothes in the washing machine, add detergent, push a few buttons and just like that, we are done. Not so easy in days past. Laundry was an all day adventure—hauling the water and heating it then scrubbing the clothes against a washboard, scraping one's knuckles and making one's hands chapped and raw then hanging everything up to dry. Worse yet, washing ones clothes in a river or stream! Just thinking about it makes me shiver.
     Maybe that’s why all the heroines in the books we love to read have maids and housekeepers and so forth. Suits me just fine. What about you?

As always, happy reading!

Marie