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17 November 2010

#322 Spend a whole day the same thing

Uncle Scrooge has his thinking circle, Aristotle went walking to clear his thoughts and Sally Bauer swam to think clearly. Everyone has their tricks to clear their heads from debris and find smooth mental sailing. I usually clean for a whole day. There’s nothing that clears my head the like a good cleaning session. What’s funny is that I can’t see when a cleaning day is coming.

It starts with me just washing up. And then suddenly I get started and sort baby clothes, putting labels on plastic containers to separate scarfs and skirts from socks and hats, rolling the couch free of lint and changing the sheets. Then I can’t stop. I walk away with the dust cloth on CDs, dusting shelves and vacuuming corners. It usually ends with me spread out on the couch with a big smile on my face. My girlfriend opening the door just when I’ve switched on the TV looking at me with big eyes and raised eyebrows, her whole face asking me: Have you just been sitting on the couch all day?

Text: Navid Modiri

Required time: 
1 day or less
Cost: 
Free.
Cons: 
You can be attacked by the dust balls under the bed.
Pros: 
Besides the fact that you put on your mental screen saver and let your brain rest, it may actually be the case that the best ideas pop up just during a cleaning day. Moreover, the home is much more pleasant and more comfortable to breathe in.
26 July 2010

#208 Clean

When I was little my mom was some sort of super hero. She never became ill. Of course, I was home with the cold now and then and the best thing I knew was to be at home on the couch and watch Empire of the Sun by Stephen Spielberg and eat sandwiches with cheese and butter and drink a big glass of chocolate milk. I did absolutely nothing. I just lay there and let the films take over from each other.

Once my mother became ill. Dad eventually managed to persuade her to stay home. For some reason, I was also sick at the time. So it was me and mom at home. I explained to her that the sofa was the best spot for chillaxing and how to dip the sandwich in the chocolate milk so that it didn’t fall apart. It took half a movie for mom to become restless.

She stood up and put her hands on her hips and said that we needed clean up. I sighed and stood up as well. My mom is the superhero, like I said, and when a superhero says clean; you clean.

Required time: 
1 day or less
Cost: 
Free
Cons: 
It takes time. It is not that fun. Your hands will get dry from the soap. The dust swirls around when you clean and it can get in your nostrils, making you sneeze.
Pros: 
Both home and soul will be clean afterwards. You can stand and admire your work and feel satisfied. The feeling of satisfaction is among the best there is. Perhaps it’s easier to rest then.