precariously perched

Okay, other than Saturday when I was very productive getting a lot of outdoor stuff done, I haven’t really done a lot of major unfucking in months and I am barely even maintaining some semblance of clean.

BUT—I did 2 projects a few months back that I think I have maintained pretty well. Like I unfucked it and it has stayed that way more or less.

Let’s see. Here is a post from January 20th when I unfucked my living room corner and even pulled up the carpet back there. There are before and after photos on there. The first picture here is the end result.

The second picture I took this morning.

not too bad, huh? Didn’t gather too much crap and it’s still fairly neat.

Here is a post from January 7th when I unfucked my bathroom closet.

The 3rd photo is of the shelving on the door after I was done in January.

The 4th one I took this morning (May 14)

The 5th is of the closet in January, and #6 is from this morning.

Not too terribly different. It makes me feel a little better knowing I’ve been able to keep something unfucked for this long even though the rest of my house is a disaster. I know that once I actually get rid of stuff and get organized I can keep it organized and the unfucking is much easier to do (I haven’t been this bad all my life because I didn’t always have all this crap). My problem is that I can’t seem to make a lot of headway getting rid of stuff because a) there is so much and b) I have so much going on.

Tags: ufyh unfuck your habitat team unfuck Before and After after and after maintenance update

Holy crap peoples.

I’m tired, and sweaty and probably stinky and I earned this Yuengling like a motherfucker.

After I got back from the bank and hardware store I mowed my lawn (it’s a small yard but I have one of those manual reel mowers and my grass was long). Because it was not as early as I usually do it, it was almost full sun back there. It was in the high 70s today.

After that I brought out my outdoor table and then potted some flowers. Then I washed down the table, brought out the 2 chairs and washed them down.

Then I decided it was time to put the cushions on the front porch furniture for the neighbors’ kitties to enjoy. So I pulled out the 4 cushions, brushed the dirt and cat hair off of them with a dry scrub brush, then I got a bucket of water & borax and scrubbed the mofos down. Of course as soon as I started the dog walked across the wet one and lay down on on of the dry ones but I hollered at him and he growled and moved. They were filthy, about 8 years of accumulated dirt and cat hair. After I scrubbed them I dumped some clean water on them to rinse and set them out to dry (see photo).

I also put out my 2 lawn flamingos. If you look closely to the photo you will see one by the garage.

Then I went out front to my car and put the new windshield wipers on.

Putting clean(ish) cushions on filthy dirty furniture is kind of dumb so I got my buckets out again and put some simple green in there with some water and scrubbed down a loveseat, 2 chairs, and a table. And the mailbox. AND MY FRONT DOOR. And rinsed it all. And I swept the porch off too. I kept thinking, my god, you would think the President was stopping by. I wish. My front porch will probably never be this clean again.

Then I walked (scuzzy and all) down to the end of the next street over to the pizza place and got me a 6-pack of Yuengling and a Powerade.

I wrote a short list of stuff I was going to do and I did none of it I don’t think.

Last week I also pulled some weeds and trimmed my tree and cut down some errant trees that are growing in inconvenient places.

So the front of my house is looking decent.

So is the back!

I’m pooped. I’d take a hot bath but a shower is going to have to suffice because I’d have to clean the tub first and that is not happenning today.

I do think I will change my sheets this evening, and I will try to vacuum the downstairs.

Yoga will be much needed tomorrow morning so I better get my ass out of bed early enough to get there because I have Mother’s Day stuff after that to do with my mom & sister.

Tags: unfuck your habitat ufyh team unfuck house stuff beer
3 notes

Day 2 of the 20 minute freestyle challenge. Living room again. It’s getting there!

I included the first before pictures so yesterday’s after pictures became today’s befores. Anyway, #3 and #6 are the afters! (kinda crappy pics because I was in a rush to go to spin class.)

There’s that darn dog again!

I cleaned off some stuff from the sofa, finally got rid of the laundry basket (folded and put away the remaining kitchen towels away) got rid of some stuff on the table, broke down another box, yadda yadda…

Starting to look less embarraskin!

Tags: Before and After and after ufyh team unfuck unfuck your habitat
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20 minute freestyle challenge B&As

This is embarrassing, my living room is a disgrace. It’s still a disgrace but it’s a little less of a disgrace now.

Mostly I just broke down boxes, removed the address labels, and put all that junk mail shit into the Big Box Of Recycling (under the rest of the boxes in front of what you may or may not be able to tell is the fireplace.

I tied up the trash bag (it’s now by the front door to go out to the Outside Garbage Can) and replaced the bag, and put away a few things. Also, the boxes by the coffee table magically turned into a sleeping dog!

Twenty minutes. Not too bad. Now I am going to the movies.

Tags: ufyh unfuck your habitat Before and After team unfuck coffee helped the dog did not
4 notes

Okay my house is getting ridiculous and I am beyond lazy.

I am going to try to get into better habits during the week especially.

Today, tomorrow, and Thursday, I am going to do a 20 minute freestyle unfucking wherever it’s needed. Just to get started. I have a little over an hour before I leave for the movie to drink this coffee and get something done so I think I will start with the pile of empty cardboard boxes in my living room. It’s bad y’all.

So maybe if I try the 20 min/day 3x a week it will start to become a habit, and it will make it easier to start on the weekends.

Tags: ufyh team unfuck
2 notes

up at 7!

Well a little after 7. To let the dog out. Then I went back to bed, read for a little while, and never got back to sleep due to open windows and water company equipment in front of my house digging up the road. (I’m not complaining, they have been quick about it and minimally intrusive…and they are on the other side of the street anyway, plus when I was walking my dog the other day one of the guys helped me with an escaped black lab that Elvis was trying to eat…my wingspan is only so long)

So now I am drinking coffee and soon I will make my breakfast (oooh the house is vibrating), clean up, make my bed (I forgot when I first got up!), and get started on The Unfuckening. I may have to mow the lawn first. But that could hamper the rest of my day since my back is already sore from FIGHT/Haganah class last night. I’ll mow tomorrow.

I started reading Volume I of an Eleanor Roosevelt biography. It’s over 500 pages. Sooooo, I’ll probably get behind on my reading goal again. But I am ready for this, and if I read the 20-page introduction with interest (I hate long introductions!) then I think I shouldn’t get too stuck, not like the 3 months it took for me to read The Brothers Karamazov or Moby Dick (both of which I liked but were rather dry in spots).

Ugh….my whole house is an Invisible Corner. (Anyone who follows Unfuck Your Habitat knows what that means). But I am going to work on it this weekend, starting after breakfast which I will start making as soon as I post this sucka.

Also if you want to hear my accent meme, I posted it yesterday. I’ll be taking it down one of these days if I remember. Probably within the week. Like anyone cares but whatever.

Okay, good breakfast and then UNFUCK FRIDAY!

Tags: ramblings ufyh team unfuck decluttering house stuff random crap blah blah blah
2 notes

today’s my friday!

And since I took tomorrow off from work to clean I have to devise a game plan to make the most of it.

Up by 9 (hopefully at least a half hour earlier but I’m trying to be realistic here)
MAKE BED
coffee/breakfast
minimal internetting
wash breakfast dishes
bring laundry to basement
throw in a load
1 hour in attic (gotta pick a spot to unfuck)
I may have to sort some boxes for donations…
finish laundry/PUT AWAY/Put away stuff from *cough* weeks ago
unfuck bedroom flat surfaces—bookcase & dresser, including dusting
unfuck the rest of the bedroom (shouldn’t be too bad) including swiffering the floor and vacuuming
walk dog
eat some lunch at some point
take breaks throughout
shower
dog therapy at 5

If there is any extra time in there before 5 (knowing me there won’t be) or after dinner I’ll do 15 minute circuits (15 minutes doing anything productive in a room) depending on how much time and energy I have left, then I will spend the evening vegging in front of the tv or laptop watching movies or tv.

And making a Saturday plan.

Oh I may mow the lawn tomorrow too…But it has to be done one day this weekend.

Tags: ufyh unfuck your habitat team unfuck decluttering house stuff I HAVE TOO MUCH STUFF
1 note

This is for Unfuck Your Habitat and all her minions

(of which I am one)

Tags: team unfuck ufyh unfuck your habitat anne taintor
41 notes

all before noon!

Unfuck Your Habitat gave me the nudge I needed to get started on my to-do list.

Ate breakfast, drank coffee, perused the interwebs….

Stripped the bed
put on clean sheets
put all dirty laundry into basket
piled up clothes onto bed to be folded/hung/put away
folded/hung/put away clothes
washed face, put in contacts
drain volcanoes in bathroom sink!
scrubbed sink
got dressed
brought laundry to basement
sorted laundry, started a load
took out trash.

Now it is time to walk the dog and take a break.

Tags: team unfuck unfuck your habitat ufyh getting shit done
3 notes

Unfuck Your Habitat: Unfuck Your Weekend: Challenge 1

unfuckyourhabitat:

Get out of your bed and pay it some attention. Throw your bedding in the washer before you start today’s adventures (and then add detergent and start the washer, smartasses). Be honest, your sheets need washing, don’t they? If not, or if you don’t have access to a washing machine right now, MAKE…

Okay—changing my sheets was not a top priority this weekend but I needed to get myself to the bedroom to straighten up anyway, and who is going to complain about clean sheets? Not me. I don’t really need to wash sheets either since I have a couple extra sets, so I may not do a load of sheets. But, I may….

Stripped the bed, put on clean sheets (and it always takes me extra long because a pet peeve of mine is all the hair that gets stuck to the clean sheets in the dryer and I have to try to get every one off) and put dirty laundry in the basket.

Laundry, period, was not really on my list of things to do this weekend, but I can always do laundry, I have so much. And I think I have jeans that need to be washed so I will at least do that.

Next up: unfucking the clothing that is strewn all over the bedroom.

20 minutes!

Starting….

NOW!

Tags: ufyh team unfuck unfuck your habitat weekend challenge
11 notes

reblogged via

TRY THIS AGAIN…I think a goddam windows update ate my other post….

As often happens, I start some cleaning in my house which needs so much work and turn it into a bit of a project.

I was just going to clean out this corner of my living room but once I wiped down the bench I decided to get rid of some more carpet.

I started removing the ugly red carpet in the living room and dining room years ago, like maybe 2008, and got the dining room done but left some around the perimeter of the living room, due to heavy furniture I couldn’t move and other factors. And of course once the carpet comes out, quarter round needs to go down to cover the gap between the baseboard and the floor. So it’s a job.

Anyway, I cleared off the bench, wiped it down, moved the step stool and recyclable bags, all the stuff under the bench, got rid of a load of phone books (I know, I know…) moved the bench and then pulled up the carpet, padding, and tack strips. Then pulled up the staples from the padding, vacuumed, and wiped the floor with a damp rag and wood soap. Actually took out the trash in the teal can that has been sitting there since the first time I removed the carpet, along with the newly removed carpet, padding, and tack strips. Put back what I wanted there, and now I have to do something with the stuff I took out of there. Oh and I put my roof rack bag for my car into the storage bench, which I’d discovered was empty this whole time.

Still have a long way to go on the living room, but it’s progress!

All this took me about an hour or so. Not bad.

But my god, I have such nice stuff, WHY IS IT HIDDEN BY ALL THIS CRAP?!!

Tags: unfuck your habitat ufyh team unfuck house stuff decluttering
4 notes

(trying this again, for some reason the photos posted the wrong way…)

Hey look I unfucked my purse (LAST WEEK)

It’s probably re-fucked by now but I did get rid of some papers and stuff.

note the sleeping dog in the 2nd picture.

I DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THE PICTURES ARE POSTING SIDEWAYS

Tags: ufyh unfuck your habitat purse team unfuck
6 notes

I have yet to really get anything done today but I took the dog to therapy at 9, came back and went grocery shopping.

I bought

a gallon of white vinegar and
a gi-mambo box of baking soda (drain volcanoes!)
pack of Mr. Clean Magic Erasers
rubber gloves
wax paper
plastic food containers

Then I went to a smaller market and picked up stuff for a beef stew (I got a hankering Friday night at 10pm, and it’s going to have to wait till tomorrow anyway now that it’s 2pm) and I came home and made some breakfast sandwiches to freeze. I figured it out and a whole wheat english muffin with 1 egg and some of that pre-cooked packaged bacon is about 220 calories and costs $.65. It would probably be better with some cheese but I opted to go without.

I think I will walk the dog now and then….

unfuck the hallway (which I fucked while unfucking my bathroom last weekend)
unfuck the back bedroom, which I unfucked about a month ago but through Christmas and other unfuckings, it has gotten pretty fucked
1 load of laundry, probably sheets, since I changed them last night
bathroom sink drain volcano!

That’s for today. If I have time/energy/no major back issues I may do some work in my living room which is disgraceful. If not, tomorrow I shall:

Unfuck my living room, at least the Dreaded Coffee Table and the bench rack corner and the boxes for recycling in front of the fireplace
maybe spend an hour in the attic if it’s a tolerable temperature up there.
maybe a half hour in the Middle Bedroom of Ungodliness, just to get started.

Tonight and/or tomorrow I have to do about an hour on my LiveMocha Spanish lessons, going to try to get at least 2 days a week in.

I also need to read more than 10 pages at a time and get a large chunk of The Trial read. Not for any reason other than I hate reading 5-10 pages as I am falling asleep and nothing more all week.

And now for a dog walk.

Tags: unfuck your habitat ufyh team unfuck to-do lists list
23 notes

hour 1 of unfucking recap

Basically I needed to unfuck stuff from the last week or so. I have Major Decluttering in all my rooms yet to do but I needed some maintenance performed so I could do the Major Decluttering later (most likely after New Year’s).

A few years ago my sister as a joke*hint*joke gave me a book she found on the clearance table somewhere called The One Minute Organizer. (or five minute…i forget) It’s actually been quite helpful to me, and got me to think about things in smaller portions rather than as an overwhelming whole of fuckery. (I suspect the UFYH guru may have read this book because I see similar tips in both.) Pick up 5 pieces of paper as you are going through a room and throw out or file, empty out a drawer and organize it,etc.

One that has stuck over the years is the one I employed just now:

15 minutes in a room, doing whatever you can get done, then move on. Set a timer. When the timer rings I finish what I am doing so it usually ends up 20 minutes total (more if I am really on a roll and don’t have plans for any other rooms)

Kitchen: 15 minutes really only got the dishes done but I also scrubbed the sink itself. I’ll come back to this later, since the kitchen for me is one of the easier rooms for me to unfuck and another 15 minutes will get me far.
Dining room: Over the last couple weeks I have been making my 12 Drinks of Christmas in there and also it’s where I wrapped gifts (the recently-acquired liquor cabinet being the only unfucked surface on which to do this). 15 minutes got the cabinet cleaned off, the wrapping paper moved to the stairs to be brought upstairs, and a few things moved off the dining table and put away.
Living room: Cleared off, cleaned off, & put away the tv tray that has been next to my recliner. Cleaned off the stool next to the recliner on the other side. Filed some vet bills (oh the endless vet bills), recycled junk mail, Christmas card envelopes, various other papers. Hung up some coats. Folded some throw blankets.
Then I vacuumed the living room and dining room.

So really it wasn’t all that much but it’s already so much better.

Next up: Bring all the crap on the steps upstairs & put away, put away the clothes in my bedroom, then probably back to the kitchen table to clean that off (especially since stuff from the LR & DR ended up back in there. Then maybe a load of laundry. Then yoga, then who knows. Probably movie, reading.

Tags: ufyh team unfuck
4 notes

precariously perched

2012 Reading Challenge

up at 7!

today’s my friday!

all before noon!

hour 1 of unfucking recap

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