Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Low Maintenance

I realized this week that I am a horrible up-keeper.  There are lots of things (mainly mechanical) that need attention on a routine basis and for some reason I can't be bothered to give them that attention they need.  For example:

cleaning out my hairbrush- simple enough task, should be doing it every week, but I can't be bothered
cleaning the filter on the hairdryer- I actually did do this last week and it was quite gratifying to see how much cleaner it was, but it had been months if not years since its last cleaning
cleaning the lent on the dryer-I know that leaving in the lent can start a fire, and increases the amount of electricity we use, but once again, can't be bothered
oil changes in my car- if my husband didn't keep up on this (he is great at upkeeping by the way) I would have blown my engine for sure
emptying the vacuum bags- I know for sure mine is about 6 months overdue but I just keep vacuuming away
cleaning fan blades-I'd just as soon buy a new fan before I did this

And now to add to the list, my sewing machine.  I should be cleaning out the dust bunnies and stray threads every month or so (according to my manual) but I have to admit, it has been years.  And what I found this week proved that.  My machine started making this high pitched shrill noise that was driving me nuts so I decided to consult the manual (I have done this only a handful of times in the 6 years I've owned it).  What happened next was a lot like a procedure in the OR.  I had to use every tool I could find to remove the lent that had worked its way into every nook and cranny of the machine. There was so much lent I could have easily knitted a sweater for a small child out of it.  But let me tell you, she works like a charm now.  So have I learned my lesson?  Will I change my ways? Can a girl go from being low maintenance to high maintenance?  Probably not overnight.

2 comments:

  1. Good question! ... which reminds me I don't think I ever cleaned the filter in my hair dryer?... btw... love the colors in the bedroom, your quilt is genius! ;-)

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  2. If you are a smart phone user, I recommend the app called "To Do Cycle" that allows you to set a schedule for routine tasks. I have cleaining toothbrushes, jewlery, drycleaning, car oil changes, mowing the lawn, and kids' haircuts in there to name a few. Of course, a lot of them are red right now, time to catch up!

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