Thursday, December 31, 2009

New Year's Clean-solution


It's New Year's Eve. Looking back on the years I've celebrated in California, New York and Europe have shown me that I have been to some of the most kick-ass parties in the world, and you know what? I'm tired. Tired of spending time on the hair, make-up, dress and shoes to be the Diva who shows up at the party at 11:30pm and rings in the New Year until 7am+ at the expense of my feet, sobriety, wallet and sanity. Don't get me wrong, I have had A LOT of fun and regret none of those moments, as they will keep me smiling tonight while I try something a little different.

Anyone who knows me, knows how I love to use the excuse, "I'm an artist, so it's not in my nature" when it comes to cleaning house. This is really a load of crap I use to justify my behavior to myself. I hate doing it. I hate laundry, ironing, vacuuming and most of all....the dishes. I have not had an apartment with a dishwasher since I lived in Long Beach, CA in 1998. That is seriously inconceivable on some levels. I really shouldn't whine about it, because if my grandmothers were alive they would shame me with stories of how they used to have to go down to the creek with a washboard and bar of lye (lard) soap to do the laundry. In fact, my Granny used to say, "Good ol' days?? Good ol' days my eye! There is nothing good about being without a washer, dryer and indoor plumbing!" However....Gran stories aside, what I would give for the ability to just rinse a dish and push a button. The end! I am so envious of other people's dishwashers, that I even relish the activity of doing their dishes; neatly organizing all of the coffee cups to point in one direction, separating silverware, sorting all the plates from large to small....sigh.....but, I digress. Maybe I was royalty in my last life which is why cleaning eludes me. It's not that I don't know how, in fact when I really get into cleaning mode it becomes obsessive. Where is the middle ground? At least I've finally gotten to a point where I prefer the irritation of housework to living in a pig sty (a term my mother used fondly when referring to my childhood bedroom).
For those that don't know, I live in a chambre de bonne. Literally it translates to "room of good one" but is more commonly known as a "maid's room." For a more comprehensive definition:
Essentially I live in a 12 square meter studio (40 sq feet for the non-metrics out there). It is easily soiled, but a much more managable space for me to deal with daily chores.

To slowly get to my point, I am not one for New Year's resolutions. I won't bore you with my philosophy because well...it's boring, but I've decided that whatever activity I happen to be doing to ring in the new year is going to be how I set the tone for the days, weeks and possibly year(s) to follow. So, I decided to stay in, be calm, sober and clean! (verb not noun) I am heading out of town for a few days to visit a friend of mine in Le Pouliguen and when I return I want to walk into a clean home. I realize there are plenty of people who have always operated on the cleanliness/godliness philosophy, but some of us take a little longer to learn certain things. Granted, I don't want to do those damn dishes, but I can't just throw them out the window and buy new ones so, I'd better get crackin'!

I did ring in the Paris New Year with some friendly faces on skype and called the friend who was hosting the party where all the rest of my NYC friends were to ring in their new year. I'm sorry I won't be there to join in their bathtub of fun! ;-)

Good night, much love and blah blah blah!

K
p.s. To all those who have endured my mess over the years....I'm sorry this didn't happen sooner.

8 comments:

  1. Was is our place on Obispo or Argonne that had the dishwasher?

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  2. Love your blog, and you, too, of course! I'm glad you're getting your house in order, not that I ever thought it was out of order. Best wishes for the new year and for your new life in Paris.

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  3. Mandy it was Argonne....Jim...are you my cousin Jim? My uncle Jim? Or one of my 3 friends named Jim? :-D

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  4. In am none of them and all of them. I am neither the begining nor the end, nor anything in-between. I am simply . . . Jim. And I like vodka.

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  5. Oh, I meant to say, "I am, not In am. (That's embarrassing.) Still love you. And I'm embarrassed. Must be the vodka.

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  6. And I forgot the close quotation mark. Jeez.

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  7. Oh, the double r is still a problem.

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  8. I miss you Jimbo. Feel free to fix any punctuation/grammar errors for me.

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