I've been honest about how bad I've been about cleaning for these past few years. Ever since my hip went rogue. Brian had heard that someone told someone he knew that they knew someone who had problems and didn't take it easy until the problem could be taken care of and by the time it could, the problem had gotten so bad that it couldn't be fixed. The pain was so bad, I had a hard time getting in and out of the passenger seat in the car, let alone drive anywhere. My right leg had this thing where it would just wet noodle and all muscle tone was gone. Not something you want happening when you needed to step on a pedal, be it gas or brake.
So, I spent years sitting in my spot on the sofa. Years.
Then I got surgery and the pain went away. But the mental crap of just sitting on the sofa did not. Then COVID hit and Brian didn't want us getting sick, so why should we both take a chance out shopping? He'll do it. Okay.
So, more time spent sitting on my spot on the sofa.
I guess my mind is finally getting over it. I've gradually picked up the pace on cleaning. Getting back to that place where I couldn't sit still if something that needed doing caught my eye.
One of the things I've been joking about for a very long time is the state of the floors. (No carpeting.) They're so bad with just normal use, then the cats tracking grass and stuff in, that I took to wearing socks indoors. Because I didn't like the feel of the grit on my feet. And those socks would get dirtier inside than out. I'm not proud of it, it's just how things were.
Over the past year, I've gotten some new vacuuming equipment. And I started using it. And it's not big and bulky like my original vacuums were. A lot easier to maneuver. The old vacuums went to the recycler and the new ones are a utility closet. I pretty much gave up on the robot vacuums (I have a couple) because I had to move too much furniture for them to do the job. And then pull them out of situations where they were stuck. It was just quicker to vacuum.
Then we come to cleaning. I have a couple of floor cleaners, Floormates, two different flavors. They do a fair job but are just a hassle to use. So, the stars have to be aligned perfectly before I'll even consider floor cleaning.
A couple of weeks ago I saw an ad for a steam cleaner. I have a Shark steam cleaner, but it just uses pads and with these floors, I'd be using a lot of pads for one cleaning. But this one was different. It had a tank for water. It had a tank for dirty water. I was intrigued. Especially after I saw that besides the cordless cleaners, they did have a cleaner with a cord. A twenty-six foot cord, so you could do a big area without having to move to a new outlet.
And I bought one. It got here last weekend and I put it together on Tuesday. I ran the Shark cordless vacuum (btw, one of the other things I got was this accessory for the Shark last month and it works like a dream! years of cat hair gone from the cat trees in a flash) to pick up most of the grass, litter, and dirt in preparation for the steam cleaner. Yesterday, I took it for a test run in the kitchen.
Oh. My. Gawd.
I love this thing. It did a great job on a very dirty floor. Kitchen, right? I used it again this morning in the hallways. The hallways that had old cat gack on them (you know, when a cat pukes and up comes grass and foam and you don't catch it when it happens, only see it when it's dried out and the light hits it just right and you think to yourself "I'll get to that later"). Not even an hour and both hallways were done. They're clean!
Tomorrow I'll be doing the bedroom. The tile in there is light colored and really shows dirt. Then maybe the dining room and family room on Sunday. (With any luck, it will have cooled down by then and I can get more done, it's hard to work in the heat.)
So, what is this amazing machine? Let me show you. (This is a link to Amazon, but I got the machine cheaper on their website, so if you're interested, check for pricing before you buy). It's a Tineco Floor One S5 Steam cleaner. It's fairly quiet, easy to push and easy to clean. I did think there was something wrong with mine this morning, it was making a really weird noise. Turned out it was out of clean water. Filled the tank and I was back in business.
I'm limiting myself because I know what will happen if I don't. I will overdo and end up on my spot on the sofa and I really don't want to do that.
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