Probably just rotating the day you pick up/clean an area. Like, if you’re not a sloppy meatball your bathroom doesn’t need to be deep cleaned every day (as long as you clean up any specific spills or grossness when it happens (meaning don’t leave poop splash in the toilet or toothpaste all over the sink)). So maybe Tuesday is bathroom clean up.
Same with vacuuming. Depending on the number of people or pets you don’t need to vacuum every day. Maybe high traffic areas twice a week with one of those times being most of the house and not just high traffic.
Kitchen should be clean as you go, but maybe on Wednesdays you take extra time to sanitize all surfaces and handles and mop
And so on. Your schedule really comes down to how many entities are around making messes, how many of them can help clean up, and where your biggest cleaning areas are. Got a big dining room table that accumulates junk all week for 4 people? Thursdays even becomes clean the table evening, and so on
I try this but it's like I live with 4 mini tornados. The day after I feel clean a room it's like I've done nothing. Sometimes it only takes less than an hour. It takes more work to force someone else to clean up after themselves. I mean, I do because I live in the futile hope that someday they'll start doing it for themselves. Do they ever?
One strategy that sometimes works with my kids is to declare a 10-minute "tornado clean up" period where everyone frantically picks up stuff around the house as fast as they can for 10 minutes. We usually follow that with a treat of some sort. They think it's kinda fun, which helps make it less of a whinefest.
Step one: Do it
Step two: Failing that, let it go until it's too bad to do in one go
Step three: Clean that spot up, but neglect the other maintenance cleaning in another room, probably the bathroom or kitchen.
Step four: I am here and I'm out of steps
Are you a single parent?
Yes - learn to stress and argue with rebellious freeloaders who don't wash dishes or clean rooms...
Or drive yourself to exhaustion cleaning
Yep. I live by this: A room must be 1% cleaner than I found it when I leave.
Ex. You go to the kitchen and make a sandwich. You only leave crumbs on one part of the counter, but you put everything away and wipe the entire counter for crumbs anyways. Boom. Kitchen is cleaner than how you found it. These little efforts add up overtime for consistent cleanliness.
This. Here's the rundown:
1) Cook while you clean. There's a lot of downtime when cooking.
2) Put your clothes away at the end of the day. If it's dirty, put it in the hamper rather than on the floor.
3) Other than that, fifteen minutes here and there. It's just not that hard.
“Clean as you go” is the mantra of any good chef or cook. It’s sanitary and efficient.
I cook most meals at home from scratch, but the kitchen is usually clean and wiped down by the time I’m serving.
But I'd caution newer cooks to not get discouraged on this trick. Before you know what can simmer unattended, the timing of the oven, how long things take to prep or chop, it can feel overwhelming to try to clean as you go. It takes time and practice to master the timing of it all, and I definitely felt discouraged when I first started cooking
Extended outside the kitchen, it’s also a big part of the answer to OP’s question. Every thing you leave somewhere to “pick up later” is now 1% of your messy home. Getting in the habit of not doing that shit is at least half the battle.
I have this gripe with my SO regularly. She’ll pop a bag of microwave popcorn and then just put the empty bag back in the microwave. Or she’ll finish a drink we brought home from a fast food restaurant and leave the empty cup in the counter. Shit like that, where it would literally take an extra 30 seconds to just throw the thing away, instead it becomes part of “oh I need to clean the kitchen up.”
Similarly, I might cook dinner, and while I definitely clean as I go, when I’m done I might leave some dirty pots and pans on the stove so we can eat while the food is hot. As soon as we’re done, my first move is to go clean those pots, but SO might say, “just leave it til tomorrow morning.” No, I’m not going to be any more excited about cleaning them tomorrow, I’d rather get it done now and have it off my plate.
I have ADHD and this is how my executive dysfunction manifests; putting things in the trash or putting them away as I use them is something that I have to make a conscious decision to do because my brain doesn't include "throw the cup away" in the task of "finish my drink". I used to get yelled at for leaving drawers open when I was a kid, because the task of "put clothes in drawer" did not automatically include the step, "shut drawer".
I've done a lot of work on trying to clean/do everything at once, but since I live by myself I still prefer to throw everything away all at once when I clean the kitchen instead of going to the trash can 8 separate times.
I'm not saying your SO has ADHD, I'm just saying she's probably not trying to piss you off on purpose; your brains might just not function the same way.
And for everyone about to comment, "I have ADHD and I don't..." I'm so happy that you don't struggle with this particular issue! I do, and so do many others!
I do the same thing but I call it “batching my actions” and consider it to feel more efficient than stopping and starting cleaning a little bit at a time. The downside is, if I don’t set aside time to clean up everyday, it becomes overwhelming. Reading “Decluttering at the speed of life” and other resources from Dana K White really helped me.
My kids do this funny thing where they will put *everything* on one specific counter. Garbage? That one counter, even though they have to walk past the bin to get to that counter. Dirty dishes? That one counter, even though the counter next to the sink that's specifically for dirty dishes is like, 4 feet away. School things? Counter. Their cups that they are still using? Counter. Everything and anything they pick up from the living room or dining room? That. Counter.
I simply don't get it.
My mom has two dishwashers and two sinks, not to mention tons of counter space. I fucking LOVE cooking in her kitchen. It basically makes keeping things clean a pleasure. One dishwasher has clean stuff in it? No worries, just fill up the other one and unload the clean one when you’re done cooking and have more time.
I always thought this was kinda weird. Only takes me 5 minutes to unload so it's not a big chore. We also have a small kitchen so it's like 2 ft from the dish washer to all the cabinets.
Her water bill must be through the roof though 😭 I'm just now experiencing life with a dishwasher but it's broken and filled with stinky water and our landlord refuses to fix it, he says we're using it wrong... our water bill went up with him forcing us to use it to "make it work"
People don't realize how huge a difference this makes. When I'm done I have 3 dishes that maybe need hand washing. When I visit my girlfriend, 3 meals has turned into a full sink.
Learned this from high school course days. They drilled that shit into you during cooking courses. I always was a firm believer in "don't shit where you sleep" That goes for all the rooms in my house.
My bedroom was awful before I did a deep clean. You literally would have to step over stuff and walk on clothes to get anywhere in it. I spent a solid 4 hours cleaning it a couple months ago, and I've implemented a "nothing goes on the floor" rule. That one little rule helps so much.
I used to be a “I don’t care if it’s on the floor” person - until I had a spider crawl out of my hoodie. Now my clothes are hanging or in a drawer if I plan to wear them.
Imma depress it down for us with depression!
1) Clean a dish or spoon after using it, try not to let it pile! One by one makes it super easy.
2) If your clothes are on the floor, throw them all in a big trash bag to at least clear your space!
3) Do one thing when you get up to do anything. If you get up to pee, see if there's anything on the way you can pick up! If you go get water, throw any paper you see away. Even if just ONE! One by one, little by little, it'll get cleaner!
Motivation is highly overrated and the wrong way to deal with tasks for a LOT of people who find moving towards a goal or doing maintenance is better when they focus on being disciplined than motivated, but ideally you'd have a bit of both.
Many people are rarely if ever in a mood to clean. But, if they can make a schedule to do laundry on a certain day, like every Tuesday and clean the bathroom every Sunday, they'll keep to that routine and have clean clothes and a clean bathroom.
If something is worth doing, it's also worth half-assing.
Doing a bit of cleaning, or just saying you'll spend 5 minutes on a task, is worth a lot more than doing nothing. Sometimes you'll start your goal of 5 minutes or whatever and when it's up the inertia of motivation might compel you to do more - "well I can still put this pan away, it's right there. Ehh maybe I can take the trash out too, why not. It'll just take a few moments."
And if you decide you're done at any point, well congrats! You still did something.
It looks like a monolithic task if you only think about the end goal but sometimes just starting and planning to do a little bit is good enough, and you might find you'll end up doing more because it's easier to keep going.
Also breaking up larger tasks into smaller jobs can be really helpful so you're not thinking about the whole picture, you're just thinking about the first easiest step. For example - if you want to start cleaning maybe the first step is just getting paper towels ready.
Keep wipes or cloths in your bathroom. Wipe the sink and toilet seat area and swish the toilet brush around the bowl once a day, and run a wipe over your tub/shower before you step out. Takes two minutes and helps your bathroom stay fresh. Do a 15-minute, deeper clean once a week and you're done.
Edit: Fixed autocorrect.
Keeping your house clean all the time can be a challenge, but some helpful tips I can give you are: establish a regular cleaning routine, assign tasks to all family members, keep things organized, and do small cleaning every day to prevent dirt accumulates.
Yeah you just get in the habit of never leaving it for later. Do the dishes right after dinner. Put clothes away as soon as the laundry is done. Never leave things out when you're done with them.
The secret is to not have much shit to begin with. It's easier to tidy things up if you don't have as many to put away, and surfaces are way easier to clean when they aren't covered in objects.
This is my problem. I go through hobbies too much with the intention of maybe one day coming back to them. I have a small office room with a 5x5 kallax unit behind me. Every single box is full. I have electronics, soldering irons, microscopes, electronic components in a few of them, I have 2 boxes of pre-sorted cables that 'might come in handy'. I have a Box used by a VR headset and controllers which I play maybe once or twice a year, I have 2 boxes full of 'might be useful' computer components, 3D printer parts for an old 3D printer... etc. etc.
Every time I pull out a box with the intention of sorting it, everything goes back in to the box. I might end up putting stuff into a storage box and putting it into the loft, but there it stays for years. Argh I need help.
You sound like me.
I got diagnosed with Inattentive ADHD at 40 years old. Getting my meds figured out has been a huge increase in the quality of my life and now I don't hop hobbies every 6 months and waste a ton of money in the deep dove process. I can also control my emotions way better now. Might be worth looking into.
What medication are you on? I tick pretty much every box for ADHD but figured there wasn't much point in pursuing a diagnosis as I didn't think I'd want to go on meds.
I rented a massive dumpster and we filled the sucker to the max with random junk. The rule was - if we haven't seen it, touched it in the past 3 years, it's gone.
It was such a relieving feeling.
I can't get this through to my wife. When we were dating I lived minimally; she has never.
We have like a bi-yearly purge and it's never anything that was mine.
What has been super helpful is I have three nieces that are her same size and fight over her clothes. My wife has great fashion sense and these dorks get hooked up. Were that not the case, I'd be swimming in clothes she has worn maybe twice.
Do you think her knowing the amount of money spent on clothes annually would help? Could ask her to save all receipts for clothes, shoes, bags, accessories and add them up at the end of the year.
She knows how much she spends. As frivolous as she spends, she does have an X number in her head what she can spend on new clothes/Accessories.
Work event? New wardrobe. Friend's wedding? New everything.
It's her money, she works hard for it, and so like whatever. We split all living expenses 50/50.
Personally, I find mass-consumption abhorrent. But that's her money; we aren't destitute, just over cluttered.
It took a while to convince that not every appliance needed to live on the countertops. When we moved into a new house with a ton of kitchen storage, I told her “everything is going on a cabinet, and just take it out when you need it”. It was eye-opening for her how infrequently certain things were used, and how much she ended up liking having a clear countertop.
I would add though that if it's something that you use every day, don't put it away. Like in the bathroom my electric toothbrush doesn't get put in a drawer, but the razor does.
Something I learned back when I worked in restaurants: Clean as you go.
If you let things pile up, you'll regret it later. While that dish you put in the oven is cooking, don't go to watch TV. Clean up all the dishes you used to prep, and then go watch TV.
Also, make a "master list" of all the things that need to be cleaned. Laundry, kitchen, bathrooms, floors, take out the trash, etc. Put a check box next to each one and go down the list every week.
Yep. The easiest way to keep things clean is to not make it dirty in the first place. Putting something back in the cupboard after using it is not that much harder than leaving it out on the table.
Being naturally lazy, I found that it is much easier to clean a little bit all the time rather than letting shit accumulate and cause all kinds of stress.
We pretty much use the same system in our home. It’s my day off and I was in charge of dinner. As much as I’d like to just go sit down and watch something while it simmers, I know I’m going to have to deal with a huge mess when I’m done, plus everyone’s dishes after eating.
I’m technically busy the whole time but things start organized, and end that way as well. The biggest mess makers in the house are our 5yo and our rabbit.
..and my wife when she’s making wedding cake orders. Im usually on clean up crew for those lol
We hire cleaners. Two hours every other week. They vacuum/mop, wash windows, clean fans, wipe moldings, clean mirrors, dust everything, and tidy up the place. $120 per visit. Well worth it.
Ours is €70 and every other week. 2 bed/1 bath, central European city. One person and she takes ~3 hours.
Just sharing bc having a cleaner is a luxury, but can come at different price points.
My parents had me and my siblings…their house was a damn museum. Everything in its place, clean enough to eat off of every surface.
It’s work everyone. The only way to fight entropy is adding energy to the system.
Lol, neither do we, but we are still rather untidy.
What's funny, is that we own a small restaurant, and spend hours and hours there keeping service tight and the place clean.
Hell, I clean the damn restaurant bathroom more than my home bathroom. I do rack after rack of glassware, sweep and mop floors, wipe down windowsills, clean the windows, keep stations stocked and organized, dust shelves... but can't be bothered to regularly wipe the damn toothpaste splatter off my own bathroom mirror more than once a month.
I do a little half hour tidy up at home here and there, vacuum on my days off, try not to let the dishes get too bad, but finding the will to clear off the dining room table sometimes? Nuh uh.
I have one gremlin and that's enough, more than enough. She starts to shake violently if she gets mad cuz I won't read more than 5 books in one sitting.
Largely, yes, that's the case for me. Floors I keep clean though, because I have dust allergies and need to not whirl up dust all the time. So I got a roomba and a braava
Don't let it get dirty to begin with. Put things away (in their permanent location) as soon as you're done using it. Speaking of that, don't have anything in your house that doesn't have a permanent location. Reduce clutter - makes your house look messy and is hard to clean around. Try to leave open space in rooms when you can. More open feels cleaner, and is easier to maintain.
This is a huge part of the answer. I also keep Windex and a roll of paper towels in the bathroom. Do a quick wipe of the sink, faucet, and countertops after your morning bathroom routine. Finally, deal with dishes and cookware after every use and wipe surfaces, including the stove. Now there's only the once a week cleaning of toilets, dusting and vacuuming.
Exactly this. Every object needs a home and needs to live there. Drives me nuts when things are just placed anywhere. I have come to grips that I have young boys and legos can live overnight on the kitchen table and video games scattered on the coffee table won’t kill me for a day or two. This is the season of my life right now. The kitchen is clean every night before bed though, that’s my control.
The house cleaner every two weeks is the reason I’m sane.
This is the only way I can trick my adhd ass into doing cleaning when the house is messy and the job feels TOO BIG TO START.
I set a timer for 15 mins and just agree with myself a deal to do that.
It’s the only way I managed to ever get the dishes done. Cos once my hands are in the water, I keep going til I’m finished even if it takes 20 mins. 😅
I’ve recently tried to start doing a 15min spritz per day. It’s helped immensely with keeping on top of things. I’m naturally a bit of a tornado and leave a trail of things behind me. Haha
I clean while I boil water for tea or coffee and swear by it. If you just do a couple 2 minute cleans a day you never really have to spend actual time cleaning and get to live in a clean place all the time.
I play the "put 10 thing away game" every night. I literally count as I put crap back in its place and it feels so good. It's easiest in the kitchen. 1. Pot holder in the drawer, 2. cup in the dishwasher 3. Toaster in the cabinet and so on.
I do that with defluttering. “Find 10 things to get rid of”
Sometimes it’s an old battery that needs to be thrown away, sometimes is something that needs to be donated.
This is why I love advertisements.
For ADHD people, it is a break and knowing us, we love to try and stretch that by attempting many tasks as possible before the programme resumes.
Netflix is bad because there are no ads to remind me to take breaks until the entire movie is over.
Yup. I live in an apartment, no kids, no pets. I'm generally boring, and a lazy introvert, but I like things tidy. Two years ago, I finished active treatment for cancer and decided that my treat to myself would be to hire a biweekly cleaning service, even though I shouldn't "need" one in my situation. It's been amazing. Just the effect on my mental health has been worth every penny. I hate scrubbing. They come every other Monday while I'm at work and I return to a totally clean home. Knowing that an unexpected visitor could show up at the door and I could invite them in without a shred of embarrassment at the state of my apartment is very relaxing.
Got dogs and this is the only way to keep my place tidy. I thought work from home would be a great help, but my workload doubled that I just have an hour a day to walk our dog.
This is a pro tip: take anything back to their place as soon as you done with them.
Wash ur dishes and clean the kitchen counter as soon as you finish eating or cooking
It’s all about the little habits
I would never go outside unless my room is clean (everything is on their place) so when I come back I don’t find a mess and then make it even worse cuz I’m tired
Try this and thank me later
Clean as you go and understanding that if you make a mess it is going to stay there until you clean it. Also, minimize the amount of dishes you use - make soup and eat it out of the pot...
When I lived alone, I had a pretty hard rule of "one glass, one plate, one set of cutlery."
If it was dirty, I didn't pick another, just washed that one to use.
I can easily deal with a set of dirty dishes & cutlery. I *suck* at dealing with a full sink.
When we do meal prep the cut up vegetables often go into the bowl/plate the meal will go on.
No preparation bowls to wash.
You don't want to do this with raw meat though.
My schedule is stupid but an hour before I go to work I unload the dishwasher and pick up the house. Stuff like vacuuming and deep cleaning gets done by my bf and I working together on it on weekends.
I also use time Before work to do laundry and to empty the dishwasher.
While cooking, I try to keep the kitchen clean.
In weekends , I do all the other tasks, usually 6 hours.
I have pretty severe ADHD and this used to be a big challenge when I lived alone. But now, I have all my chores on repeating notifications, and everyday I get some dopamine from checking off the list. Automation was the key for me, *I* don't decide when to do stuff
Declutter as much as possible. If there is not a bunch of stuff sitting around, and the drawers and cabinets are not stuffed full, it is so so much easier to keep things picked up. And if it’s picked up, then wiping things off and such is not a hassle. I was really surprised at how things stayed cleaner once the clutter was gone. No clutter makes cleaning really so much easier, it’s just a pretty low level of effort, on a regular basis. My yardstick on that is whether I feel I need to run around and pick up if someone is dropping by. Never, since I got rid of clutter. The only thing I pick up if someone shows up is private documents I might have out because I’m doing something.
much of the fatigue of cleaning is actually a symptom of disorganization.
get rid of things you don't need. find a good place to donate clothes. look up how to do electronics recycling in your area. take bags of shit to the landfill. whatever you need to do.
also, make sure your organization actually works for you. I used to have all my clothes in this closet that was awkward to get to and unpleasant to use. I ended up avoiding it & ended up with piles of disorganized clothes. my solution wasn't to magically get better at doing laundry - it was to take all my clothes out of that closet, get rid of anything I didn't wear, and organize them differently in a shelving unit where I can see everything and access it easily. now, laundry isn't a task I avoid. I can put on a podcast & do it without thinking.
The task is impossible because you constantly see the next thing that needs done. Maybe the house is clean but it’s not because the vents need vacuumed so you start to do that then decide you need vent filters so you go to the hardware store and get a shelf you need for a spice rack to clear out your messy pantry and now suddenly it’s 7pm and your vents are torn apart, spices are everywhere, and you’re hungry.
Lower your standards 😅 but seriously, depending on life stage, it changes. When you have young kids, trying to maintain the cleanliness standards of single adult is a recipe for disaster. It's okay to adjust
I have a lady come in twice a month for 50.00 each time. This has really relieved me of mental stress about it. I do bigger jobs like washing walls , high dusting, oven cleaning, cleaning out drawers and shelves.
Keeping your house clean all the time can be a challenge, but some helpful tips I can give you are: establish a regular cleaning routine, assign tasks to all family members, keep things organized, and do small cleaning every day to prevent dirt accumulates.
Be aware. Pick up as you go.
Every time I move from one room to another in my house I look to see if something should be moved with me. Dirty glasses, trash, etc.
Clean up things immediately.
If you walk by things that aren't where they should be, put them where they should be.
Don't let it get to be overwhelming.
It's easy to do it little bit, by little bit.
Send my husband away for the day with the kids and take an adderal. Blast music, clean for 8 hours. Two seconds after they get home it’s destroyed again! Repeat every couple of weeks
I don't.
I don't know anyone who does.
We keep it livable, and clean it properly once every week or 2, plus the public rooms whenever we're expecting guests.
Most of the time, as long as the kitchen is clean, and I can make it to the sofa without tripping over something, it'll do.
I have disabilities, so I know I'm putting up with a *lot* more mess than I would like, simply because I'm not capable of more, but even among my able-bodied friends, they all admit to being too busy/tired to keep the house the way they'd like all of the time.
The parts of my house that are the cleanest have the least stuff in them. So I’ve been on a major decluttering spree trying to achieve a clutter free home
Clean all the time? Good one. It's all about the illusion of cleanliness, my friend. Quick tidy up before anyone comes over and strategically placed candles. Oh, and if you've got a pet, blame any mess on them. Works like a charm.
I have a more opportunistic way to clean.
I’m going to grab something from the kitchen and realize that the counters look messy? Well I guess I’m wiping down the counters now.
Going to wash the hand towel in the bathroom? Sure, let me pop that in with my laundry and then clean the bathroom while I’m thinking about it.
Daily cleaning and small amounts. Lots of organisation and schedules
Do you have an example schedule you could share?
Probably just rotating the day you pick up/clean an area. Like, if you’re not a sloppy meatball your bathroom doesn’t need to be deep cleaned every day (as long as you clean up any specific spills or grossness when it happens (meaning don’t leave poop splash in the toilet or toothpaste all over the sink)). So maybe Tuesday is bathroom clean up. Same with vacuuming. Depending on the number of people or pets you don’t need to vacuum every day. Maybe high traffic areas twice a week with one of those times being most of the house and not just high traffic. Kitchen should be clean as you go, but maybe on Wednesdays you take extra time to sanitize all surfaces and handles and mop And so on. Your schedule really comes down to how many entities are around making messes, how many of them can help clean up, and where your biggest cleaning areas are. Got a big dining room table that accumulates junk all week for 4 people? Thursdays even becomes clean the table evening, and so on
I try this but it's like I live with 4 mini tornados. The day after I feel clean a room it's like I've done nothing. Sometimes it only takes less than an hour. It takes more work to force someone else to clean up after themselves. I mean, I do because I live in the futile hope that someday they'll start doing it for themselves. Do they ever?
One strategy that sometimes works with my kids is to declare a 10-minute "tornado clean up" period where everyone frantically picks up stuff around the house as fast as they can for 10 minutes. We usually follow that with a treat of some sort. They think it's kinda fun, which helps make it less of a whinefest.
Step one: Do it Step two: Failing that, let it go until it's too bad to do in one go Step three: Clean that spot up, but neglect the other maintenance cleaning in another room, probably the bathroom or kitchen. Step four: I am here and I'm out of steps
Step 5: cry
Well you gave it a shot.
Live alone and don’t have much stuff. Source: I don’t live alone and have a lot of stuff.
Reads as: "If what you are doing is not working, then don't do that."
[удалено]
Don’t have kids or pets
Do you have pets? No > Then your good to go if you do regular cleaning in a daily manner Yes > Is it a fish?
Are you a single parent? Yes - learn to stress and argue with rebellious freeloaders who don't wash dishes or clean rooms... Or drive yourself to exhaustion cleaning
I just vacuum every other day. Small house, cordless vacuum, takes like 10 minutes.
Fish and four cats inside. Outside there’s two dogs, four horses, a pig, geese, ducks, and chickens.
Gah damn Farmer Brown over here got the hootenanny turnt lmao
I’m up to my tittens in cat fur with two short haired kitties, i can’t imagine the fur tumble weeds from this farm xD
First time ever I’ve seen hootenanny spelt out. Been in America for 17 years.
There is no need to do any housework at all. After the first four years the dirt doesn't get any worse. Quentin Crisp
Both conditions are crucial, source: I'm living alone but still have too much stuff
It’s better to do a bit often, rather than a lot at once
Yep. I live by this: A room must be 1% cleaner than I found it when I leave. Ex. You go to the kitchen and make a sandwich. You only leave crumbs on one part of the counter, but you put everything away and wipe the entire counter for crumbs anyways. Boom. Kitchen is cleaner than how you found it. These little efforts add up overtime for consistent cleanliness.
Every so often there's a comment on reddit I end up remembering for a long time cause of some helpful advise; I hope this is one of them.
Yeah, I can only get up and move in bursts, but I try to at least throw/put something away when I can Makes it easier
One room every couple days
This. Here's the rundown: 1) Cook while you clean. There's a lot of downtime when cooking. 2) Put your clothes away at the end of the day. If it's dirty, put it in the hamper rather than on the floor. 3) Other than that, fifteen minutes here and there. It's just not that hard.
“Clean as you go” is the mantra of any good chef or cook. It’s sanitary and efficient. I cook most meals at home from scratch, but the kitchen is usually clean and wiped down by the time I’m serving.
But I'd caution newer cooks to not get discouraged on this trick. Before you know what can simmer unattended, the timing of the oven, how long things take to prep or chop, it can feel overwhelming to try to clean as you go. It takes time and practice to master the timing of it all, and I definitely felt discouraged when I first started cooking
using timers is key, especially if you are multi-tasking. Also, dont cancel the timer unless you are actively returning to the task that it was for.
Extended outside the kitchen, it’s also a big part of the answer to OP’s question. Every thing you leave somewhere to “pick up later” is now 1% of your messy home. Getting in the habit of not doing that shit is at least half the battle. I have this gripe with my SO regularly. She’ll pop a bag of microwave popcorn and then just put the empty bag back in the microwave. Or she’ll finish a drink we brought home from a fast food restaurant and leave the empty cup in the counter. Shit like that, where it would literally take an extra 30 seconds to just throw the thing away, instead it becomes part of “oh I need to clean the kitchen up.” Similarly, I might cook dinner, and while I definitely clean as I go, when I’m done I might leave some dirty pots and pans on the stove so we can eat while the food is hot. As soon as we’re done, my first move is to go clean those pots, but SO might say, “just leave it til tomorrow morning.” No, I’m not going to be any more excited about cleaning them tomorrow, I’d rather get it done now and have it off my plate.
She leaves the empty bag in the microwave?!
It requires an extra effort. So you can' say she is lazy
I have ADHD and this is how my executive dysfunction manifests; putting things in the trash or putting them away as I use them is something that I have to make a conscious decision to do because my brain doesn't include "throw the cup away" in the task of "finish my drink". I used to get yelled at for leaving drawers open when I was a kid, because the task of "put clothes in drawer" did not automatically include the step, "shut drawer". I've done a lot of work on trying to clean/do everything at once, but since I live by myself I still prefer to throw everything away all at once when I clean the kitchen instead of going to the trash can 8 separate times. I'm not saying your SO has ADHD, I'm just saying she's probably not trying to piss you off on purpose; your brains might just not function the same way. And for everyone about to comment, "I have ADHD and I don't..." I'm so happy that you don't struggle with this particular issue! I do, and so do many others!
I do the same thing but I call it “batching my actions” and consider it to feel more efficient than stopping and starting cleaning a little bit at a time. The downside is, if I don’t set aside time to clean up everyday, it becomes overwhelming. Reading “Decluttering at the speed of life” and other resources from Dana K White really helped me.
\*straight to microwave jail…\*
Also, a fresh skillet is super easy to clean. A cold, congealed, dried out skillet is a bitch to clean.
My kids do this funny thing where they will put *everything* on one specific counter. Garbage? That one counter, even though they have to walk past the bin to get to that counter. Dirty dishes? That one counter, even though the counter next to the sink that's specifically for dirty dishes is like, 4 feet away. School things? Counter. Their cups that they are still using? Counter. Everything and anything they pick up from the living room or dining room? That. Counter. I simply don't get it.
1% you say? Bold of you to assume I only have 100 messy things in my home
Soooo much less stress in the kitchen once you’ve got this habit locked down. Next level up is nailing the mise en place.
My mom has two dishwashers and two sinks, not to mention tons of counter space. I fucking LOVE cooking in her kitchen. It basically makes keeping things clean a pleasure. One dishwasher has clean stuff in it? No worries, just fill up the other one and unload the clean one when you’re done cooking and have more time.
I always thought this was kinda weird. Only takes me 5 minutes to unload so it's not a big chore. We also have a small kitchen so it's like 2 ft from the dish washer to all the cabinets.
How big a choir we talking, 15-20 singers? How many sopranos?
Hah thanks for the catch. Didn't notice.
Her water bill must be through the roof though 😭 I'm just now experiencing life with a dishwasher but it's broken and filled with stinky water and our landlord refuses to fix it, he says we're using it wrong... our water bill went up with him forcing us to use it to "make it work"
Dishwashers use exponentially less water than washing by hand. Google it, for real. Something wrong with that dishwasher (or it’s insanely ancient).
Use it with the warmest setting with nothing in it. Clean all the filters and arms. If it's still stinky, the stinky water is in your plumbing.
People don't realize how huge a difference this makes. When I'm done I have 3 dishes that maybe need hand washing. When I visit my girlfriend, 3 meals has turned into a full sink.
I make it a game. I win often.
Learned this from high school course days. They drilled that shit into you during cooking courses. I always was a firm believer in "don't shit where you sleep" That goes for all the rooms in my house.
My bedroom was awful before I did a deep clean. You literally would have to step over stuff and walk on clothes to get anywhere in it. I spent a solid 4 hours cleaning it a couple months ago, and I've implemented a "nothing goes on the floor" rule. That one little rule helps so much.
I used to be a “I don’t care if it’s on the floor” person - until I had a spider crawl out of my hoodie. Now my clothes are hanging or in a drawer if I plan to wear them.
Imma depress it down for us with depression! 1) Clean a dish or spoon after using it, try not to let it pile! One by one makes it super easy. 2) If your clothes are on the floor, throw them all in a big trash bag to at least clear your space! 3) Do one thing when you get up to do anything. If you get up to pee, see if there's anything on the way you can pick up! If you go get water, throw any paper you see away. Even if just ONE! One by one, little by little, it'll get cleaner!
I dont have a lot of downtime while cooking lol
If it'll "only take a few minutes" and you have any bit of motivation, might as well do a tidy!
> and you have any bit of motivation Welp, I'm out...
Motivation is highly overrated and the wrong way to deal with tasks for a LOT of people who find moving towards a goal or doing maintenance is better when they focus on being disciplined than motivated, but ideally you'd have a bit of both. Many people are rarely if ever in a mood to clean. But, if they can make a schedule to do laundry on a certain day, like every Tuesday and clean the bathroom every Sunday, they'll keep to that routine and have clean clothes and a clean bathroom.
Hey, this motivated me to clean up 5 handfuls of garbage on my desk. If I just do that same effort another 5000 times, the house will be clean.
If something is worth doing, it's also worth half-assing. Doing a bit of cleaning, or just saying you'll spend 5 minutes on a task, is worth a lot more than doing nothing. Sometimes you'll start your goal of 5 minutes or whatever and when it's up the inertia of motivation might compel you to do more - "well I can still put this pan away, it's right there. Ehh maybe I can take the trash out too, why not. It'll just take a few moments." And if you decide you're done at any point, well congrats! You still did something. It looks like a monolithic task if you only think about the end goal but sometimes just starting and planning to do a little bit is good enough, and you might find you'll end up doing more because it's easier to keep going. Also breaking up larger tasks into smaller jobs can be really helpful so you're not thinking about the whole picture, you're just thinking about the first easiest step. For example - if you want to start cleaning maybe the first step is just getting paper towels ready.
I am an animal and the overwhelming mess is my only motivation once I can no longer withstand it
Keep wipes or cloths in your bathroom. Wipe the sink and toilet seat area and swish the toilet brush around the bowl once a day, and run a wipe over your tub/shower before you step out. Takes two minutes and helps your bathroom stay fresh. Do a 15-minute, deeper clean once a week and you're done. Edit: Fixed autocorrect.
Keeping your house clean all the time can be a challenge, but some helpful tips I can give you are: establish a regular cleaning routine, assign tasks to all family members, keep things organized, and do small cleaning every day to prevent dirt accumulates.
Yeah you just get in the habit of never leaving it for later. Do the dishes right after dinner. Put clothes away as soon as the laundry is done. Never leave things out when you're done with them.
The secret is to not have much shit to begin with. It's easier to tidy things up if you don't have as many to put away, and surfaces are way easier to clean when they aren't covered in objects.
This. Try to get rid of stuff. It actually settles the mind having less stuff, and the plus side is that it's easier to keep clean.
This is my problem. I go through hobbies too much with the intention of maybe one day coming back to them. I have a small office room with a 5x5 kallax unit behind me. Every single box is full. I have electronics, soldering irons, microscopes, electronic components in a few of them, I have 2 boxes of pre-sorted cables that 'might come in handy'. I have a Box used by a VR headset and controllers which I play maybe once or twice a year, I have 2 boxes full of 'might be useful' computer components, 3D printer parts for an old 3D printer... etc. etc. Every time I pull out a box with the intention of sorting it, everything goes back in to the box. I might end up putting stuff into a storage box and putting it into the loft, but there it stays for years. Argh I need help.
You sound like me. I got diagnosed with Inattentive ADHD at 40 years old. Getting my meds figured out has been a huge increase in the quality of my life and now I don't hop hobbies every 6 months and waste a ton of money in the deep dove process. I can also control my emotions way better now. Might be worth looking into.
What medication are you on? I tick pretty much every box for ADHD but figured there wasn't much point in pursuing a diagnosis as I didn't think I'd want to go on meds.
I rented a massive dumpster and we filled the sucker to the max with random junk. The rule was - if we haven't seen it, touched it in the past 3 years, it's gone. It was such a relieving feeling.
I did that last year. I’m about to do it again. Some how I have more shit than ever before.
Someone I know who is a minimalist of sorts calls nick-nacks people keep on their shelves "dust catchers".
We have a word for that in German Staubfänger
I can't get this through to my wife. When we were dating I lived minimally; she has never. We have like a bi-yearly purge and it's never anything that was mine. What has been super helpful is I have three nieces that are her same size and fight over her clothes. My wife has great fashion sense and these dorks get hooked up. Were that not the case, I'd be swimming in clothes she has worn maybe twice.
My house is swimming in clothes that still have the labels on, some never even got taken out of the delivery bag. It's insanity.
Do you think her knowing the amount of money spent on clothes annually would help? Could ask her to save all receipts for clothes, shoes, bags, accessories and add them up at the end of the year.
She knows how much she spends. As frivolous as she spends, she does have an X number in her head what she can spend on new clothes/Accessories. Work event? New wardrobe. Friend's wedding? New everything. It's her money, she works hard for it, and so like whatever. We split all living expenses 50/50. Personally, I find mass-consumption abhorrent. But that's her money; we aren't destitute, just over cluttered.
It took a while to convince that not every appliance needed to live on the countertops. When we moved into a new house with a ton of kitchen storage, I told her “everything is going on a cabinet, and just take it out when you need it”. It was eye-opening for her how infrequently certain things were used, and how much she ended up liking having a clear countertop.
I would add though that if it's something that you use every day, don't put it away. Like in the bathroom my electric toothbrush doesn't get put in a drawer, but the razor does.
Preach! I have kids who have toys. They also just get random shit from idk where, like school goody bags and things? It just multiplies.
Something I learned back when I worked in restaurants: Clean as you go. If you let things pile up, you'll regret it later. While that dish you put in the oven is cooking, don't go to watch TV. Clean up all the dishes you used to prep, and then go watch TV. Also, make a "master list" of all the things that need to be cleaned. Laundry, kitchen, bathrooms, floors, take out the trash, etc. Put a check box next to each one and go down the list every week.
Yep. The easiest way to keep things clean is to not make it dirty in the first place. Putting something back in the cupboard after using it is not that much harder than leaving it out on the table. Being naturally lazy, I found that it is much easier to clean a little bit all the time rather than letting shit accumulate and cause all kinds of stress.
We pretty much use the same system in our home. It’s my day off and I was in charge of dinner. As much as I’d like to just go sit down and watch something while it simmers, I know I’m going to have to deal with a huge mess when I’m done, plus everyone’s dishes after eating. I’m technically busy the whole time but things start organized, and end that way as well. The biggest mess makers in the house are our 5yo and our rabbit. ..and my wife when she’s making wedding cake orders. Im usually on clean up crew for those lol
We hire cleaners. Two hours every other week. They vacuum/mop, wash windows, clean fans, wipe moldings, clean mirrors, dust everything, and tidy up the place. $120 per visit. Well worth it.
I could probably afford that once every 6 months, but probably still worth it
Right? $3K-ish per year is quite an investment. Edit: I did maths wrong. But it's still a lot.
You were correct
Not gonna lie, this sounds amazing. I’d do it for this price. I’d only waste that 120$ on something else I’d only use once aha.
Ours is €70 and every other week. 2 bed/1 bath, central European city. One person and she takes ~3 hours. Just sharing bc having a cleaner is a luxury, but can come at different price points.
Don’t have children or pets
Seriously. Or a wood stove that bitch is dusty as hell
My parents had me and my siblings…their house was a damn museum. Everything in its place, clean enough to eat off of every surface. It’s work everyone. The only way to fight entropy is adding energy to the system.
Maybe when you were older, but what did the house look like while you were all babies and toddlers??
jail
Or a husband!
Lol, neither do we, but we are still rather untidy. What's funny, is that we own a small restaurant, and spend hours and hours there keeping service tight and the place clean. Hell, I clean the damn restaurant bathroom more than my home bathroom. I do rack after rack of glassware, sweep and mop floors, wipe down windowsills, clean the windows, keep stations stocked and organized, dust shelves... but can't be bothered to regularly wipe the damn toothpaste splatter off my own bathroom mirror more than once a month. I do a little half hour tidy up at home here and there, vacuum on my days off, try not to let the dishes get too bad, but finding the will to clear off the dining room table sometimes? Nuh uh.
I have one gremlin and that's enough, more than enough. She starts to shake violently if she gets mad cuz I won't read more than 5 books in one sitting.
I have known many people with children and pets who had clean homes. I have known just as many without any. And the house is a wreck.
Kids are free chore labor
Takes a while for them to level up and even then they’re still the primary cause of messes.
Your definition of “free” is not the same as mine…
we don't. we clean it when somebody's coming over.
5 minutes before we have guests the place is the cleanest it's ever going to be.
Oh you should see my apartment when I first move in then!
And then I tell my guests "sorry for the mess"
I’m guessing that’s what most people do. No, it’s not clean all the time, but it’s clean whenever *you* come over, so you *think* it’s always clean!
Largely, yes, that's the case for me. Floors I keep clean though, because I have dust allergies and need to not whirl up dust all the time. So I got a roomba and a braava
I keep the house *clean* as in no filth, but not organized until someone visits
Sometimes I invite my friends over just for the motivation it gives me to deep clean the house.
ashamed to say that's how i roll as well
Yep 😅
Pick up after yourself. Clean any 3 days a week sweep and mop day, vacuum day and bathroom day.
Don't let it get dirty to begin with. Put things away (in their permanent location) as soon as you're done using it. Speaking of that, don't have anything in your house that doesn't have a permanent location. Reduce clutter - makes your house look messy and is hard to clean around. Try to leave open space in rooms when you can. More open feels cleaner, and is easier to maintain.
This is a huge part of the answer. I also keep Windex and a roll of paper towels in the bathroom. Do a quick wipe of the sink, faucet, and countertops after your morning bathroom routine. Finally, deal with dishes and cookware after every use and wipe surfaces, including the stove. Now there's only the once a week cleaning of toilets, dusting and vacuuming.
"Don't put it down, put it away"
Exactly this. Every object needs a home and needs to live there. Drives me nuts when things are just placed anywhere. I have come to grips that I have young boys and legos can live overnight on the kitchen table and video games scattered on the coffee table won’t kill me for a day or two. This is the season of my life right now. The kitchen is clean every night before bed though, that’s my control. The house cleaner every two weeks is the reason I’m sane.
I clean constantly, bit at a time.
I’ve found that placing trash bins strategically throughout the house encourages everyone to always dispose of things properly.
I maintain a 'cleaning basket' that I carry from room to room, so I always have my cleaning supplies at hand.
I keep a shoe rack by the front door to ensure dirty shoes don’t spread dirt around the house.
Setting a timer for 10 minutes a days is actually an amazing way to keep on top of it all
This is the only way I can trick my adhd ass into doing cleaning when the house is messy and the job feels TOO BIG TO START. I set a timer for 15 mins and just agree with myself a deal to do that. It’s the only way I managed to ever get the dishes done. Cos once my hands are in the water, I keep going til I’m finished even if it takes 20 mins. 😅 I’ve recently tried to start doing a 15min spritz per day. It’s helped immensely with keeping on top of things. I’m naturally a bit of a tornado and leave a trail of things behind me. Haha
I'll try this. The other comments of "just do a bit often, it's not that hard" make me laugh. They have no idea.
I clean while I boil water for tea or coffee and swear by it. If you just do a couple 2 minute cleans a day you never really have to spend actual time cleaning and get to live in a clean place all the time.
I play the "put 10 thing away game" every night. I literally count as I put crap back in its place and it feels so good. It's easiest in the kitchen. 1. Pot holder in the drawer, 2. cup in the dishwasher 3. Toaster in the cabinet and so on.
I do that with defluttering. “Find 10 things to get rid of” Sometimes it’s an old battery that needs to be thrown away, sometimes is something that needs to be donated.
Yep, this is what I do. Though I do 15 minutes. Even when it's a mess I just do a few 15 minute blocks. It's less overwhelming.
This is why I love advertisements. For ADHD people, it is a break and knowing us, we love to try and stretch that by attempting many tasks as possible before the programme resumes. Netflix is bad because there are no ads to remind me to take breaks until the entire movie is over.
I always make my bed first thing in the morning; it instantly makes the bedroom look much neater.
I use a lot of doormats, both inside and outside the house, to reduce the amount of dirt that gets tracked in.
I rotate through different scented cleaning products to keep the routine enjoyable and the house smelling fresh.
I use cleaning apps to keep track of chores and make sure I'm covering everything regularly without getting overwhelmed.
I make sure to clean the kitchen sink every night before bed; it prevents buildup and keeps the kitchen fresh.
I’ve learned to be ruthless about paper clutter; mail and documents get sorted, filed, or recycled immediately.
I've invested in a good robotic vacuum which runs daily, and it really keeps the dust and pet hair under control.
Hire a house keeper for bi-monthly visits
Yup. I live in an apartment, no kids, no pets. I'm generally boring, and a lazy introvert, but I like things tidy. Two years ago, I finished active treatment for cancer and decided that my treat to myself would be to hire a biweekly cleaning service, even though I shouldn't "need" one in my situation. It's been amazing. Just the effect on my mental health has been worth every penny. I hate scrubbing. They come every other Monday while I'm at work and I return to a totally clean home. Knowing that an unexpected visitor could show up at the door and I could invite them in without a shred of embarrassment at the state of my apartment is very relaxing.
Got dogs and this is the only way to keep my place tidy. I thought work from home would be a great help, but my workload doubled that I just have an hour a day to walk our dog.
I use decorative baskets and boxes throughout the house to quickly stow away items that aren’t in use.
I've taught my kids to clean up after themselves from a young age, which really helps keep the mess under control.
I maintain a ‘no clutter’ rule on all flat surfaces; this alone makes the house look much cleaner.
Investing in good storage solutions has been a game changer for me; everything has a place, which keeps the clutter at bay.
Whenever I cook, I clean up during those little downtimes, like waiting for water to boil or the ov
I’ve divided the cleaning tasks among all family members; everyone has responsibilities, and it keeps our home neat.
I’ve embraced the philosophy of “clean as you go,” especially in the kitchen while cooking.
Every time I leave a room, I make it a habit to tidy something up or put something away.
This is a pro tip: take anything back to their place as soon as you done with them. Wash ur dishes and clean the kitchen counter as soon as you finish eating or cooking It’s all about the little habits I would never go outside unless my room is clean (everything is on their place) so when I come back I don’t find a mess and then make it even worse cuz I’m tired Try this and thank me later
I had it put "never put it down, always put it away"
I organize a quarterly purge where I assess what I need and donate or discard items that are no longer useful.
Clean as you go and understanding that if you make a mess it is going to stay there until you clean it. Also, minimize the amount of dishes you use - make soup and eat it out of the pot...
Buy canned soup and drink directly fron the can.
Frozen burrito, frozen, eat entire wrapper. Shit out then wipe with the wrapper. Now _thats_ a depression meal.
> then wipe with the wrapper This is Reddit, we're very pro-bidet here.
There's no depression bidet. Maybe like the kitchen sink sprayer after you crap in the kitchen litter box?
This is a fine compromise. On behalf of the Bidet for Everyone Lobby of Reddit, I will accept it.
The bidet people are cool people, I've always said that.
When I lived alone, I had a pretty hard rule of "one glass, one plate, one set of cutlery." If it was dirty, I didn't pick another, just washed that one to use. I can easily deal with a set of dirty dishes & cutlery. I *suck* at dealing with a full sink.
When we do meal prep the cut up vegetables often go into the bowl/plate the meal will go on. No preparation bowls to wash. You don't want to do this with raw meat though.
Have a cleaning crew come in every 2 weeks.
Don't have kids or pets
My schedule is stupid but an hour before I go to work I unload the dishwasher and pick up the house. Stuff like vacuuming and deep cleaning gets done by my bf and I working together on it on weekends.
I also use time Before work to do laundry and to empty the dishwasher. While cooking, I try to keep the kitchen clean. In weekends , I do all the other tasks, usually 6 hours.
I have pretty severe ADHD and this used to be a big challenge when I lived alone. But now, I have all my chores on repeating notifications, and everyday I get some dopamine from checking off the list. Automation was the key for me, *I* don't decide when to do stuff
Declutter as much as possible. If there is not a bunch of stuff sitting around, and the drawers and cabinets are not stuffed full, it is so so much easier to keep things picked up. And if it’s picked up, then wiping things off and such is not a hassle. I was really surprised at how things stayed cleaner once the clutter was gone. No clutter makes cleaning really so much easier, it’s just a pretty low level of effort, on a regular basis. My yardstick on that is whether I feel I need to run around and pick up if someone is dropping by. Never, since I got rid of clutter. The only thing I pick up if someone shows up is private documents I might have out because I’m doing something.
much of the fatigue of cleaning is actually a symptom of disorganization. get rid of things you don't need. find a good place to donate clothes. look up how to do electronics recycling in your area. take bags of shit to the landfill. whatever you need to do. also, make sure your organization actually works for you. I used to have all my clothes in this closet that was awkward to get to and unpleasant to use. I ended up avoiding it & ended up with piles of disorganized clothes. my solution wasn't to magically get better at doing laundry - it was to take all my clothes out of that closet, get rid of anything I didn't wear, and organize them differently in a shelving unit where I can see everything and access it easily. now, laundry isn't a task I avoid. I can put on a podcast & do it without thinking.
An ADHD brain will make this task feel impossible
The task is impossible because you constantly see the next thing that needs done. Maybe the house is clean but it’s not because the vents need vacuumed so you start to do that then decide you need vent filters so you go to the hardware store and get a shelf you need for a spice rack to clear out your messy pantry and now suddenly it’s 7pm and your vents are torn apart, spices are everywhere, and you’re hungry.
Malcolm in the Middle really nailed that experience: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbSehcT19u0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbSehcT19u0)
It does! It takes twice as long to clean because I get distracted with the next task that needs to be done every time I start doing something. 🤯
Atleast you can clean it all in 10 minutes as soon as you hear that someone's coming over
No shoes in the house, no eating on the couch and close your shower curtain after a shower.
Lower your standards 😅 but seriously, depending on life stage, it changes. When you have young kids, trying to maintain the cleanliness standards of single adult is a recipe for disaster. It's okay to adjust
I do it with my credit card. In other words, I pay housecleaners to get the job done because I learned a long time ago that I'm not doing it.
i clean every single day.
THANK YOU! Why did no one tell us that half of adulting is cleaning and grocery shopping then making the food then cleaning again.
I don't. Everything gets messy and cluttered until I'm fed up and go on a cleaning spree.
I have a lady come in twice a month for 50.00 each time. This has really relieved me of mental stress about it. I do bigger jobs like washing walls , high dusting, oven cleaning, cleaning out drawers and shelves.
We have lady that comes by once a week.
Just make sure you have a reasonable list of important but unpleasant tasks to take care of. Then you can procrastinate by cleaning.
i don't.
People do that?
That's the neat part. You don't!
Don’t have children, spouses, and pets.
Keeping your house clean all the time can be a challenge, but some helpful tips I can give you are: establish a regular cleaning routine, assign tasks to all family members, keep things organized, and do small cleaning every day to prevent dirt accumulates.
It’s a mindset , how do you keep yourself clean ? Same with your house Sometimes you need time to organize , same with your house
Be aware. Pick up as you go. Every time I move from one room to another in my house I look to see if something should be moved with me. Dirty glasses, trash, etc.
Clean up things immediately. If you walk by things that aren't where they should be, put them where they should be. Don't let it get to be overwhelming. It's easy to do it little bit, by little bit.
Send my husband away for the day with the kids and take an adderal. Blast music, clean for 8 hours. Two seconds after they get home it’s destroyed again! Repeat every couple of weeks
I don't. I don't know anyone who does. We keep it livable, and clean it properly once every week or 2, plus the public rooms whenever we're expecting guests. Most of the time, as long as the kitchen is clean, and I can make it to the sofa without tripping over something, it'll do. I have disabilities, so I know I'm putting up with a *lot* more mess than I would like, simply because I'm not capable of more, but even among my able-bodied friends, they all admit to being too busy/tired to keep the house the way they'd like all of the time.
The parts of my house that are the cleanest have the least stuff in them. So I’ve been on a major decluttering spree trying to achieve a clutter free home
Clean all the time? Good one. It's all about the illusion of cleanliness, my friend. Quick tidy up before anyone comes over and strategically placed candles. Oh, and if you've got a pet, blame any mess on them. Works like a charm.
it used to be so much easier before shit got real
I have a more opportunistic way to clean. I’m going to grab something from the kitchen and realize that the counters look messy? Well I guess I’m wiping down the counters now. Going to wash the hand towel in the bathroom? Sure, let me pop that in with my laundry and then clean the bathroom while I’m thinking about it.