I bought this thing at a garage sale, new in the package, about three years ago. Maybe longer. I took it out of the package this morning. And now I’ll either throw it away or let my kids use it for a . . . platypus puppet.
It’s a ceiling fan blade cleaning vacuum cleaner attachment.
The only real problem with it is that . . . it doesn’t work. Perhaps I didn’t do it right, but it clamped on so tight to the blade that it just pushed off the dust in a big clump and didn’t suck it down at all. Maybe they don’t think people will wait until the dust is visible from the next room to use it.
I decided that it was easier to just stand on the ladder and dust the fan, rather than stand on the ladder and use this crazy corded thing attached to a quite heavy vacuum cleaner.
I have an obsession with gadgets. I can’t tell you how many things I have bought that would solve all my cleaning problems. Turns out the problem was me.
Last night I did a lightning fast run through the house to pick up and get ready for home groups since our group had decided that we DID want to meet on the Sunday after Thanksgiving so we wouldn’t lose momentum. The only problem? No one but my husband and I remembered. I’m thinking we remembered because it meant cleaning the house. But really, I’m not complaining because now I’m able to do detail cleaning today and tomorrow in preparation for my husband’s office party tomorrow night.
I must also say that although I’m sad that hubby went back to work and the boys went back to school today, it felt really good to get back into the routine of my daily tasks.
Today I:
Made bed (including the pretty pillows that I unearthed during this weekend’s master bedroom excavation)
Cleaned kitchen.
Swept kitchen.
Started a load of laundry.
Checked bathrooms for clutter.
Windexed everything I could find that was windexable. My crystal candlesticks look great!
Cleaned ceiling fan blades.
Cleaned the hideously ugly light fixture in my entryway. (I’ve been punishing it for years for its ugliness by not cleaning it.)
Last night I wiped down the bathrooms, made lunches and put out clothes. I also hung up our clothes, and took dirty clothes to the laundry room, my new non-negotiable for the week. I didn’t get the laundry ready because I was in the middle of a load. I did, however, fold and put away the huge laundry mountain of clothes that had I had done over the weekend while working on the master.
Heather says
Here I go posting on your super old entries again, but- I did ceiling fan blades yesterday, too! I have bought so many gadgets to try and help with it and nothing has ever worked without getting the room more dirty in the process. Yesterday I had an epiphany! I got an old pillow case, stood on my step stool, clamped the pillowcase around each blade with my hands and pulled. All the mess fell in the case. It was spectacular! I sent my husband to do the rest of the fans in the house. Ours get REALLY bad, really fast. I can’t even imagine what people would think if they looked up and saw. Luckily, I hardly ever let anyone in 😉
Erin says
OK, I just laughed out loud at your ‘punishing’ your light fixture for its ugliness comment. I’ve never put it into words before, but I totally do this! Girl, I so get you. I found your blog a couple of weeks ago and have been following your ‘read it from the beginning’ advice. I have to budget my readin,g or I would spend my day on here. Thank you for putting your journey into words for the rest of us to read and find encouragement. I absolutely respect your discipline.
Susan K. says
Pinterest says you can use a pillow case to dust your fan blades. Works pretty well we tried it on the second fan we turned on for year. Can you guess what happened with the first??
Nony says
I can definitely guess!!!
Lisa says
I think that is something all of us unorganized people do…cling on to gadgets that promise to make our lives easier to clean the houses that we let take us over. Then we just add to the clutter issues because we’ve bought items to use for detailed cleaning chores. I have more pampered chef items that have never been used, not to mention other kitchen gadgets I bought because it would make cooking quicker and easier. I have sold and given away at least 3 George Foremans that were hardly ever used and the later ones were never used, because if I am going to grill…I will grill on one of the two grills I have outside. I not long ago put my toaster in storage because again, I typically just cook toast once in a blue moon and the oven can be used and cook more toast at one time..rather than a clunky appliance just to sit on my counters. I suppose if we ate more toast, that would not be a waste but for us it is. I don’t know why I own a microwave, other than to use to pop popcorn, but my kids will once in a while heat up something to eat in it but seriously for the amount of room and clutter it causes..I don’t use it enough and I have never cooked with a microwave.. gadget lovers, we are our own worst enemies.
Sarah says
The pillowcase works GREAT for dusting the fan blades. I always hated doin it because I always wound up w dust in my face. No more!
Tabitha says
I’ve been reading your blog in order, like you suggest, and I’m about 2 months into my own journaling. It really does help! I gotta say, though…every time I read something about your kids going back to school, I have this twinge of jealousy. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be like that. I’m just really tired. I homeschool. I love teaching them so much, but it’s like the messes are never ending. I don’t have times where I’m alone and can devote time to catching up on chores. And I desperately need it. What do you do with your Little while you’re cleaning? I have four from 2 months to 11 years. What would you suggest?
Dana White says
I understand what you’re saying!
Two things I would say are: It is harder when they’re home all the time. So it may never get to the point where you dream of it being. But the main thing that has helped me has been to establish those routines for myself. Once a task is a routine, it takes so much less time than when it was a project. (Hope that makes sense.) And being part of the routine, the kids learn how things work. There’s a routine to your day already with homeschooling (and even for those who aren’t honeschooling), and the kids know what to expect. Like, “we always do this at this time.” For me, pre-blog, cleaning routines just weren’t part of that routine. They were always “let’s stop everything and CLEAN” which doesn’t work well with kids. Once I developed routines, then bringing the kids in on those routines was possible. Here’s a post about similar things with my husband that might help: https://www.aslobcomesclean.com/2012/12/hubby-did-the-laundry/
Tabitha says
Thank you, Dana! I wish I could say my homeschool was more organized, but it’s not. That’s part of our problem. There’s always something changing and I can’t seem to grab a routine fast enough before a new change comes my way. Sometimes it’s something big, like a new baby or a move, and sometimes it’s something small, say a toddler is potty training or a holiday-but changes are coming at me like waves and I don’t know how to handle them well. Thank you so much for your reply! -Tabitha
Dana White says
Just go small! You know what I’m about to say, right? . . . Do the dishes!!! Small things make such a huge difference and help you gain traction!
Tabitha says
That made me smile. Starting small is something I’ve never done! I’ll try that, Dana! Thank you. -Tabitha
Linda W says
I have thrown a lot of useless gadgets into the goodwill box and garbage. If it doesn’t work, why keep it?
AHopefulSlob says
“I have an obsession with gadgets. I can’t tell you how many things I have bought that would solve all my cleaning problems. Turns out the problem was me.” — This is me.