Springtime in the Tropics

We don't really have spring here. Of course technically we do have spring, but the change is not what most people would recognize. We have the rainy season and the dry season. Generally the rainy season goes from mid May or early June to late December. And the dry season goes from early January to mid or late May. We have coolish nights from October to February or March. Our temperature ranges are super mild, so we note the changing seasons in other ways, mostly the coming and going of the rains.

Always a little concerning when the puddles on the road get so close to the river.

Still I feel the change this time of year. I can feel the spring, and I'm ready to institute a few changes and get things cleaned up and organized. If you read my post about the Chinese and Tibetan New Years, this is closely tied to the energetic shift that happened for me there.

Time to Get Clean and Organized!

Getting clean and organized are very closely interrelated. Organization facilitates infinitely easier cleaning. I have a strong desire for organization and also experience anxiety in the absence of organization. Unfortunately I came into adulthood with almost no organizational skills and a pretty strong inclination for procrastination. I am also a bit of a perfectionist, so I resist cleaning if I don't have time to do it "properly." It is a bad combo. I spent much of my young adult years very frustrated. A former boyfriend once told me that outer organization leaves space for your mind to be free and do what it needs to do. I got it but didn't know how to make it happen.

Growing up my mom just always handled everything. She was of the mind that my job was school. I had a few chores but not much. My mom is also super particular about how things are done and where things go. She wouldn't allow us to put away groceries as a fun example. When I went to college I had to call her the first time I went to do laundry in the basement of the dorm because I had no clue how to operate a washing machine. So, I got to the adult world and had a child at 23, but I had almost no skills at running a house. I basically lived in chaos for a long time. I tried a host of different schedules and managed to get the basics taken care of, but it didn't really click that I could make my life so much easier.

Then someone came along and changed my life. Do you know about the FLY Lady? Holy peel heels. The woman is a genius. I'll summarize here what works for me, but I strongly suggest you check her out and figure out what works for you!

So, if you're a procrastinator or just don't have good cleaning and organizational skills but really don't function well in mess, let me cut some years from your learning curve. I truly believe this was another piece that helped lift me out of my depression. If you have the issue of not wanting to clean because you are a perfectionist, then this is super duper for you. Even if you function well in chaos, it's spring, so a good yearly organization, decluttering, and cleaning session is in order!

It's time to end this.

The first key to making it easy is decluttering. You have to get rid of things you don't need. Say it with me! I own my stuff. It does not own me! Now here's the hard part for some of us.

You can't do it all at one time!

I'm serious. I know I'm here talking about the spring fever, but if you spend a whole day clearing out, you won't do it again until next spring. Now is the time to set yourself in a pattern that will make your whole life easier. I promise. Take ten minutes each day to get rid of the clutter. Ten minutes. That's it. Set a timer, and make yourself stop. Start with the obvious stuff. Piles of papers, old magazines, and mail. Recycle that mess! If you really need it - and we're talking about for something like filing taxes or dealing with government bs - then file it, but chances are you don't need it.

Then it's time to move on to knick knacks and decorations. Do you love them? If not, ditch them. Send it all to the thrift store. Your home should be decorated with things that bring you joy! What about clothes and shoes? And oh lord, if you have kids, I know you have stuff you don't need. Trim that fat! There are two camps in regards to kids' stuff. I believe in letting my kids help me. It takes longer, but I think it's a good lesson. I tell them that we will be giving away clothes and toys we no longer need and that the toys will go to homes where they will be loved and played with, usually in our case by kids who don't have as many toys as they do. I totally understand the other camp, though, which is to just go in the room when they're not there and get rid of stuff they don't play with or have outgrown. Most of the time they don't notice, and it definitely goes faster, but this method can also bite you in the butt. Now you can dig in to the deep stuff - a spare bedroom, crafting things you aren't ever going to get around to, the garage, the basement. Ten minutes at a time, you can absolutely trim down your stuff. Cleaning is so much easier when you have less crap!

Little bits every day is actually a central theme to this system. Each morning I spend five minutes on a quick clean of the bathroom. I wipe the sink and the tub and do a brief scrub of the toilet. This habit alone has totally changed the game for me. The bathroom just never really gets dirty. Once a week I take a magic eraser to any ring around the bathtub that didn't come off with my quick swipes, and I wipe down the toilet seat. It only takes a few minutes because I have been keeping it clean. It also means I use less cleaning product. Even though I use all natural stuff, less is still better. This is such a habit for me now that I do it when I stay over with other people. I really can't recommend it enough.

So, my bathroom's not this clean, and I've never actually owned anything this white, but there's no gross rings in the toilet or tub, and there's no layer of guck around the faucet, and that's good enough for me.

Laundry is another big one. No more laundry day. Never again! I do laundry every day that I have a full load and think there will be sufficient sunshine to get it dry. We live in subtropical rainforest with no dryer, so I know you can do this! It's so much easier than trying to do 3 or 4 loads in one day. I make the bed each morning. I don't know that this is necessary for everyone. I started it because I live in the sand, and sand in my bed makes me nuts, so making it keeps it clean. It's nice to have a made bed, though. I never did it before we moved here, but I like it. I also check my calendar each morning so I don't forget things like immigration or car registration.

In the afternoons I spend a few minutes sweeping the stairs because we live in a sandbox. My daughter sweeps inside every day as well. I take 10-15 minutes each afternoon and clean something. I rotate between something in the kitchen, the weekly bathroom cleaning, dusting, and the mirrors, doors, and trash. Again, only 10-15 minutes, and I set a timer. On days I have to fold laundry, I don't do any cleaning other than sweeping. This still usually gives me one day each week where I only have to sweep. Another gift from the fly lady is the "hotspot." We all have those places in our house where we stack stuff: dresser, bedside table, table by the door, etc. Every day I spend 5 minutes cleaning off one or more of these so they don't get crazy. I add the toy box to my hotspot list because my kids throw crazy shit in the toy box.

The FLY lady has some other things that I don't do, mostly because I have little kids and spend a good chunk of time each day writing. I'd like to get back to them though. Essentially there is a task each day that takes anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes. She rotates through the house so everything gets done as often as it needs to. For example, once every couple months, it's time to clean crap out from under the bed. Isn't it glorious?! Just 10 minutes a day, and you can keep everything clean and organized. It's so, so freeing, and I'm looking forward to getting back to this part of it. She's pretty adamant about solid morning and evening routines, and that has helped me. Working from home it's easy to walk around half naked all day, but I feel more productive when I'm dressed and have brushed my teeth and stuff. It's also easier when people stop by, which happens here regularly. Her nightly routine includes setting out clothes and everything you need in the morning to get out the door, and when we have somewhere to go, I always do this. I also check the calendar each night to make sure I don't have anything pressing the following day. She also believes in wiping down the sink each night, but the dishes aren't my chore, so I let this go. Pretty sure I'll never convince my husband to do this.

So, what is the time commitment daily? I will also include my spiritual practices in the schedule here.

• 10-15 minutes chanting or drumming
• 20 minutes meditation
• 5 minutes bathroom
• 5 minutes make the bed
• 15 minutes start and hang up laundry

That's an hour or less each morning. In the afternoon:

• 10 minutes sweeping
• 15 minutes daily clean or laundry fold
• 5 minutes hotspot clearing
• 10 minutes decluttering

That's 40 minutes each evening in addition to however long it takes me to put food away and clean up the cooking mess (my daughter cooks dinner, and my husband does dishes). All told, well under two hours each day, and when you just look at the cleaning, it's a little over an hour.

This way I don't live in chaos, and I don't spend an entire day every week or two cleaning the house. My stove and fridge get cleaned regularly, and my house isn't dusty anymore. I can't tell you how much this does for my mental state. Now I know some of you totally don't need this, but for those who do, I hope it's as much a blessing for you as it has been for me.

Pictures are mine or Pixabay

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