We need to talk. Why would anybody in their right mind use perfectly good vodka as a cleaning agent?
As I sat at home last weekend fretting about what a mess our place is, I resolved to make more of an effort at cleaning.
So I read The Organically Clean Home by Becky Rapinchuk and Clear the Clutter, Find Happiness by Donna Smallin. That’s where I learned about the double life that vodka’s leading.
The first book has some fantastic green ideas for how to make organic, chemical-free cleaning products.
Enter vodka.
Apparently, if you need a disinfecting spray for your bathroom that smells good and does the trick, then a mixture of white vinegar, vodka, lavender essential oil and water is the answer.
And if you have any vodka leftover, well….you know what to do.
For cleaning glass and mirrors without using Windex, the author suggests a concoction of water, vinegar, rubbing alcohol and peppermint essential oil. A couple more ingredients and you’ve got yourself a fancy martini!
I never knew cleaning could be this much fun.
Listing the basic ingredients along with their specialized uses, this handy little book will have you cleaning kitchens to bedrooms, floors to gardens, and playrooms to garages. And safely, too.
Once you’ve conquered cleaning, then comes de-cluttering.
You’ve heard the saying, “nature abhors a vacuum”? Well, so do I.
In the interest of finding low-energy cleaning ideas, I sat down with a martini (I mean tea) and read Clear the Clutter, Find Happiness.
Taking a very “Zen” approach to simplifying life and eliminating clutter, this book offers bite-sized advice and encouragement, so you don’t get overwhelmed and depressed by the clutter — or the book.
For example, ask yourself, “What’s the worst thing that could possibly happen if I let this go?”
If you can live with the consequences, you can live without the thing.
Or this: “If it takes longer than 60 seconds to decide if you should keep something, you probably don’t need it.”
Not exactly brain surgery, but it’s one approach.
For those of you who would rather meditate than clean and declutter your home, this might just be your ticket to nirvana.
Or you could read the ridiculously popular book The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up: the Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo.
For other popular reading suggestions, check out Richmond Public Library’s website at www.yourlibrary.ca/goodbooks.
