Being a diligent and disciplined sort of fellow means things around me are in good order; that extends to my vehicles, workshop, storage and vehicle garages, my home and work office, even myself. Of course, it means I like to keep a spotless home as well...and I do.
I think maintaining a high level of presentation in the spaces around me, and from my own personal presentation perspective, is a reflection of who I am as a person and while it doesn't mean I don't know how to relax and be a little more casual, I think it promotes a better standard of living, of life, and I believe that to be important physically and emotionally.
There's times when I'm less stringent and thankfully I have someone to help on those occasions, my girlfriend who picks up my slack, but generally we clean and tidy as we go and together and have a few routine things we do in the house daily that helps to keep things in order. Here's a few of those things that happen daily...almost daily, that help us maintain a clean, clutter-free and tidy home which improves our personal headspace at the same time.
- Clothes are not left laying around, they are put away when removed, put in the wash, the wardrobe or drawers.
- Quick wipe-downs of mirrors and sinks. These are highly visible areas so keeping them wiped down daily gives a nice feeling of cleanliness.
- We clean as we cook meaning there's less clutter and chance for things to lay about the place. It takes a little more orchestrating but it works really nicely and even makes things easier after the meal is complete. When we cook together it's like a finely-tuned machine at work. I've been known to break out and grab her boob now and then, but she doesn't mind...unless I have a sharp knife in my hand and then she goes nuts.
- Wiping down the showers after use is a big one; who doesn't like glistening glass and spotless tiles in the shower? It took some time for my girlfriend to get me on board with this one but it's ingrained now.
- Kitchen counters and the stainless steel fridge are wiped down daily, sometimes more often depending if it's a work day or not. We also use antibacterial wipes which keeps things germ free.
- We make the bed every day, and when I saw we make the bed, I mean my girlfriend makes the bed with no help from me. I refuse to put all those cushions back on when that night they all need to be removed again. We have an ongoing battle of wills around cushions...a battle I usually lose.
- The two minute rule is always applied. Two minutes to dust something, put something away, wipe, swiffer part of the floor...it's a small amount of time but has a big impact.
I don't think it matters where small efforts like this are used, they have value. Cleaning out the vehicles, washing them, organising my workshop, home office, a couple minutes of dusting or neatening up my wardrobes...it all adds up and makes "housework days" take less time. It's all about small amounts of effort often I guess.
Applying discipline is something that comes easily to me, habit I suppose, and it happens across all areas of my life and I benefit greatly from it; I don't even see it as an effort to be honest, it's just a part of who I am. I also love organisation, neatness, a lack of clutter and a home that feels comfortable, clean and tidy.
What about you? Do you have a regime that helps you keep your home, vehicle, workspaces, garden or other parts of your life clean, tidy and clutter-free? Let me know in the comments below if you'd like to.
Design and create your ideal life, tomorrow isn't promised - galenkp
[Original and AI free]
Image(s) in this post are my own
Knives and boobs are rarely a good mix :O)
What a splendid looking home. I would like to say the same but I am a cluttery bastart much to the Good Lady's eternal dismay!
There's a boob for every occasion...or is it an occasion for every boob?
Thanks mate, we work at it a little...plus, you have kids and I do not...those buggers are messy!
lol your girl's got smarts! She goes nuts with knives around her boobs just like you would go nuts with knives around your....nuts! The living is good when you can cook together. That's the ultimate test to see if you're a good fit, and you two go together like a glove and a hand. I would love to say I am as organized as you, but no...no I am not. I do make my bed every morning and do my dish washing as I go, general tidying and such. Windows, walls and such stretch out longer.
We seem to make things work mostly and have a pretty good life. She doesn't like to cook much, meaning she sees it as a chore that needs to be done rather than something she does for enjoyment, but she cooks quite a lot and we cook well together...although, when I'm in the kitchen I'm the boss and she's the gopher. Lol.
Our lives are often hectic so we do what we can when we can. We don't obsess over the cleaning and tidying though; the secret is we do it as we go and do it together. Works better.
(Windows. I don't like cleaning them but it's so much nicer when they're done.)
lol And you've never seen a more beautiful 'gopher' I'll wager...as it should be. The team works and that's what matters most.
Indeed, a pretty gopher.
Wiping down the shower tile is a good one. We do the glass but I never considered wiping the tiles. Good idea!
I do several of yours also. My more unique one is foam cutouts in drawers and my car console to keep everything in place.
I'm diggin' that console organiser. (I keep my guns in the same way...not in my console though.)
I think there's many areas of our lives we can organise a little better and once the work is done things become easier right?
That one was a work drawer; this is my car console. (older picture)
Stop it.
Now I know you're legit.
It's true, a little bit of work up front and everything becomes easier later. "Life is easy if you work hard and it's hard if you work easy" kinda thing.
Yep, lift heavy shit, as Jocko Willink would say. Do the work and look for more.
I never understood the thing about having many cushions. I have an extra in under the bed, and a thick blanket, too, so I can quickly build a back support to watch movies upright (though we usually snuggle and don't need that, anyway). I get that it looks cool but it's just not efficient.
The cooking-together part made me chuckle. I know that too well. Not necessarily while cooking, but in any given and usually inappropriate and surprising moment. Those are the best, as the can't help it but laugh.
Enjoying a littl boob whilst cooking with the lady is never a bad thing. In fact, it's known to make the entire cooking experience much more enjoyable indeed.
And yeah, the cushions look good but are an inefficiency...still, she seems to like it so I tolerate it...and it gives me an excuse to not make the bed.
The interior of the car is always spotless. No one ever eats in my car. If they do, well, I'm afraid they'll have to walk. Perhaps with one broken leg, and one broken arm, for symmetry.
I don't like anyone in my cars except my partner let alone some asshole eating...Nope, it just doesn't happen.
Will you be bringing your car to the meet up tomorrow night? Will be good to see you again!
Ah man, I forgot about that. If I come I'll definitely bring a car, not sure which one, probably my truck I guess. Where and what time?
Duke of Brunswick, Gilbert St. From 6PM onwards :) Don't bring the truck, I need somewhere to park my wagon :P
Lol...Ok, I'll see what I can do. I think I'll probably make it for a time at least. They got burgers?
Yep, and pretty good steak.
Your house is gorgeous, it seems came out from the shops dépliants, the cups on the books, the glasses at the feet of the bed, all intriguing details
We used to keep our house clean, not as much as yours of course, but since when we got the kid it became way and way harder, there is no time since he always requires attention and I can't split myself... If I was maybe the triple then could do... As for the dishes it's a pain in the arse, gotta do them manually, no washing machine since the apartment owner's kitchen didn't have it...
Thank buddy, I like it. We have areas set up for various times of the day or things we do and it all just works quite nicely. My girlfriend likes interior design, actually has qualifications in interior design, so I leave it all to her and she never disappoints.
Kids make it very difficult to keep things really tidy, the same way big kids with Lego (me) sometimes do. 😆
No dishwasher? Ye gods, that must drive you bonkers.
Ahh interior designer! You are in safe hands then, no wonder it looks so cool
Yep, the owner said that kitchen is worth 5000€, but no dishwasher... So funny do them manually daily...
I'd be lost without my dishwasher.
Daily cleaning and maintaining a tidy home requires a clear discipline. My wife sweeps and mops our house about five times a day. On weekends, I sweep the inside of the house and the garden. I clean the dressing table and sink regularly. I usually wash the clothes I wear the same day, and I clean the utensils I use for cooking within an hour. I don't do the work myself because I have a maid in my office. I only clean the car every Sunday because it is night when I get home.
You have a very organised and intentional system, I like it!
What's your best tip on keeping a house clean?
The best advice I can give for keeping a house clean is to not put off cleaning until later.
Well said.
On weekends, when we don't leave our city, we usually use Saturday morning to tidy up the apartment.
My partner dusts as soon as I finish vacuuming. After that, I wipe the floors with a wet cloth.
Once or twice a month (depending on the amount of rainfall and the angle at which the raindrops hit our windows), I wipe the windows. At that moment, the apartment seemed to see through us. once a month I take down the curtain and hang it again after washing.
Every weekend I devote some time to the flowers on the terrace, which I am in charge of - watering, pruning, removing dry leaves...
You mentioned the pillow fight in the bedroom.
We also make our bed every morning, and a few months ago, we gave the pillows we had (the decorative, unnecessary ones) to a friend who needed them for a corner sofa in the living room. Pillows solved.
For the shower cabin, I raised the maintenance to a higher level. So that the cloth with which we wipe the glass would not be very wet after each wipe, I first wipe the glass with a window rubber. Apart from glass, tiles also have the same treatment.
The kitchen and the dishes are my responsibility, and when I prepare food, I wash and dispose of the used juices at the same time, so that after the end of cooking, a pile of dishes is not in the sink, but is being drained or packed in a display case. Unlike my partner, who makes a mess after herself 🙂 When she cooks, I sneak up behind her and do the dishes to help her 🙂
Giving away the pillows is a good idea...but if I did that I'd probably be suffocated to death with one the following night.
You have a very organised approach to the chores and I'd say your place feels better for it, nicer to live in. Some people are so lazy and allow their homes to fall into a poor state. I don't know how they can live in situations like that.
My wife is pretty religious about cleaning the house. I didn't quite get it when we were first married, but now I fully understand it takes so little time as long as you keep up with it. We can have the majority of the house cleaned in less than half an hour on a Saturday morning because we keep up on it so much. We don't make the bed every day though!
It's the best way to go for sure.
As for bed making...it makes no sense to make it considering we're getting back into it but I'll admit it looks nice and it makes my girlfriend happy to make it so...I just go with it.
Yes, I will concede that, it does look nice when it is all made up. We do make up the bed each morning in our travel trailer when we are camping. I'm not sure what the difference is :)
Haha, well that's interesting.
Those few minutes of tidying and cleaning every day are what prevent a mess from accumulating that needs to be tidied and cleaned up later, which would be even harder work. I usually do those things first thing in the morning and then tidy up anything that needs it in the evening, so there is balance in the house. I like order and I hate clothes lying around. I believe that the house vibrates with your energy, and if there is no harmony, it is bad for us.
I can give you an example: when I cook, I clean everything as I go along, so that when I finish cooking, everything is spotless. I hate having a mountain of things to wash and tidy up afterwards. My mother is the complete opposite, but neither of us interferes with the other when we cook.
I like the cooking top, we do that too, as I mentioned.
Me too! And I love cooking and inventing delicious things, it's quite an art!
I like eating the delicious things other people love cooking.
That's a good point. I like cooking on my own, with no one else in the kitchen. I like cooking... but... I eat very little, I think my stomach is very small.🤣
My stomach is too...well, except for my rippling, rock hard, abdominal muscles.
But nothing upsets me... I eat little, small amounts, but nothing upsets me, which is good!
You have a strong stomach!
It's a beautiful home and I'm a little surprised you're so open about your personal space, I thought they're AI generated 😉
I'm not so good at cleaning, that's my worst department but my decluttering department makes up for it. I try to make sure there's never bits and pieces on the dining table apart from plants or fruit bowls which are supposed to be there. Likewise on the kitchen worktop, everything needs to be cleared away after meals.
One thing that I do not like, like you, are cushions on the bed. They look nice but really serve no purpose apart from gathering dust. I hate it when I enter a hotel room and there's tonnes of cushion on the bed. For all I know, they've probably been there for ages, unwashed, thrown about by guests and the cleaners on the floor then put back on a freshly made bed. Urggghhhh!
I don't use AI, it's for losers.
There's a constant battle of wills over cushions on the bed. My girl likes to pile them on and I do not...I lose every single time. 🫤
Losing the cushion battle, and other minor battles at home leads to a happy, healthy and stable relationship ☺️
I think so...it's somewhat of a joke between us really...although she's rather focused on her cushions. It's ok though, she's a good girl and the better part of me, so I focus on her and deal with the abundance of cushions.
well i'm not going to argue with that. You're home photos look like the ones that they would feature on a store's website to try to sell the pillows and other accessories in it. I do ok on an organizational front but you guys have taken it to another level. Nice work.
That's a great effort being invested. Discipline only can build and guide individuals to do the right thing regardless of whether it's convenient for them or not.
I also hate leaving things undone especially when I have a bulk load of work to do. I hate disorganisation alot even in my house and I prefer things to be left neatly and well arranged the way I left them.
I guess your discipline has grown into your habit and lifestyle.
Thank you for sharing @galenkp
What organisation tips do you want to share?
Much to clean for me 🤣
@tipu curate
Some like things to be clean, some do not. Choice is what makes a person themselves.
Wow! Nice! If I try to keep the house clean at that level, I may start getting called OCD. No no. not the OCD curator - obsessive compulsive disorder
Minimalistic design of Home. I like it. I must say, you did't loose. Losing is winning when it's with your girlfriend / wife 🤣
with hReplier