K.I.S.S.

I woke up with this phrase on my mind, Keep It Simple Stupid.  Don't ask me why. I don't know how my brain works. If you ask me, I think the brain is an amazing organ. I've been wondering a lot lately how I can remember some stupid detail of my life from many years ago but can't remember if I fed the dog this morning or not. That kind of stuff just bugs the crap out of me. It's the reason I have to have repetition and order in a lot of the things I do.  

For instance, I iron every single morning. When I'm done with the iron, I am compelled to wrap the cord up and place the iron back up on the shelf in my closet before I do anything else. It stands alone on that closet shelf so I know the house won't burn down by catching something on fire. For far too many years, I would race off to work and it would bug me all day long whether or not I unplugged the iron. I was known to turn around mid-way to work to check whether or not I had unplugged it, causing me to be late to work. Please tell me I'm not the only one who does that. 

Well, this post is not about my iron. Ha! You didn't know where I was going with this, did you! Yesterday, I left a nice "to do" for my husband. I've learned that if I keep the list short & simple, he likes it better that way. My The drain has been really slow lately, hence the note you see here.  Notice I used the magic words, please and thank you. About 3 o'clock yesterday afternoon I got a rare e-mail from Gene and, boy, was I glad I was at work. The essence of the instant message was that when he went to clean the trap out, it was more than just sludge, it was a build-up of "whatever" over the 66 years the plumbing has been in place in this house and it was hard, black and yucky. When I arrived home, everything I throw under the sink was out on the floor and he was just finishing placing a "T" thingy under the sink and the job was done.  He only cussed once after I got home and he swears it's the only time he cursed. Which begs the question, if the wife isn't home to hear the string of profanity while doing a plumbing job, does that mean it didn't happen?  I seriously doubt it. (giggles here)

Which leads me to the title of this post, Keep It Simple Stupid.  I have no idea what's under my sink. When I saw it all sitting on the kitchen floor, I avoided that room as if there was a plague in there. I know that whenever I have an empty jar of green olives or plastic container of marshmellow creme, I wash it out and throw it under the sink to either a) recycle the glass or b) pour leftover grease into before it goes in the garbage.


When my good friend, Shari, came over just before Christmas to clean my oven & fridge (she's the best housecleaner ever!), she asked if I had oven cleaner and I just had to say, "maybe". Turns out I did have an old can of it that must have been at least 9 years old. I say been because she used it up. Shari, if you're listening, I'll try to wipe my oven out occasionally this year.


I really need to get under that sink and make things more simple under there. Over the years, I've tried different cleaning products and the problem is that I don't use one up before I buy a new one. I like to try different things and sometimes I don't like the smell of a product or how it works but I never seem to get rid of it.  I also spot a couple of bowls I have used in the past for water dishes for the animals.  I've gone to using glass bowls because I think plastic is just icky and I have this notion that it might make their water taste bad. I could probably just put those bowls in my yard sale stuff, perhaps in a "free" box.  I also spy a container of Amway product that is true to its reputation. It works great and is very concentrated. I have had that product longer than Gene. My newest, favorite product that I used a long, long time ago but had forgotten works well for everything in the house is Scrub Bubbles.  Love that stuff! I have two cans ~ one in the kitchen, one in the bathroom.


If you've read this far, I hope you've found something to relate to here. I am not a domestic Goddess, never have been, never wanted to be and never gonna be. I'm okay with that.  Showing you a picture of the underbelly of my sink doesn't embarrass me like it once would have.  I do the best I can with what has been given to me. I like the idea of keeping it simple but sometimes stuff just piles up and it gets complicated. I think I'm going to take 20 minutes and clean up underneath that sink just in case the drain gets slow again.

Thank you to my favorite plumber! You're the best!

love, susan