This sud's for you...

I am a person who loves immediate gratification. If I can get it RIGHTNOW, I'm good to go. If I come up with an idea, I'm already three steps ahead on how to get it done. At work, I prefer soft-tissue surgery and dental procedures to orthopedics because you can get results in a day. I don't even like the word patience.

With that little detail about me, it might comes as a less shocking blow to you when I say I enjoy cleaning. Particularly, I enjoy washing dishes.  Yep, I am a person who cleans for (gasp!) fun. Organizing is right there with it.  It's taken me while to be comfortable with the concept that on my days off, I don't mind doing laundry and putting away clothes and cleaning the kitchen. The more organized, the better.

Yet, there are parts of cleaning I can not stand. I don't like to "pick up" and tidy. I think it's because it's another step I have to go through that is involved before I can clean. For example, the flip flops have to go in my daughter's room, the cups to the kitchen, the dog toys into the dog basket, the remote from under the couch and into the holder, the papers that need to go to the filing basket, the socks go to the boy's dirty clothes, and the husbands 3 pairs of shoes and belt need to go to our room (there's more, you know). All this running around sure does interfere with a clean room! But then, I can wipe down and dust and vacuum and WALA! The room is clean.

I also am too obsessive-compulsive to sweep or mop well.  When I am using the vacuum to clean our floors, I can not just do the main areas. If I'm going to do it, I have to do it like I'm doing a deep cleaning equivalent of sell-the-house, show-ready. That means move the couch, the love seat, pull out attachments to get nooks and crannies. Literally, no corner is safe. Then come back with a mop? You must be kidding! There is always a hair that has been floating around that lands on the floor and then there are spots that need more and when you add moisture, it becomes a sponge for all the other "dirt". So then I need to go back and vacuum again. So, it's best if I don't do floors. I can see the floor is dirty and acknowledge that it's dirty, but if I clean it then it will be an all-out battle with the dirt and I can't quit until it's o.v.e.r.

I also don't like to put the food away. I don't like to cook in a dirty kitchen. I don't like to garden. I don't like to do anything tedious. But give me a semi-clean slate and let me make it shine and I am fulfilled on another level.

I was thinking about this at work the other day. We have a small kitchen area for breaks, lunch, etc. I had brought my dirty dishes in that morning (I eat breakfast in my car every day no matter what time I get up and no matter when I have to be at work) and had brought my lunch. The sink was full of mostly my dishes.

The end-of-day checklist requires someone clean the kitchen. I was washing my dishes when one of the technicians said, "You didn't go to school for all those years to wash dishes in the break room at work and do tech work." I replied that they were mostly my dishes and I really don't mind! It's funny because what may be torture for one is enjoyment for another and if it helps them get off work 3 minutes earlier AND I don't mind, why not?

So, the next time you see me elbow deep in suds or sorting piles of laundry, just know that we can both sit back and enjoy the rewards of my behavior. And, if I do offer to do the dishes while you put the food away then I'm not just being polite. You are helping me do something I enjoy. Prune hands and all : )