by compound complex 337 Replies latest jw friends
Dear Kind and Gentle Readers,
Happy Homemaker thanks you for your comments and inquiries.
Though sought out and compliant regarding the professional cleaning of a large chain of restaurants last evening, Mr. Happy endeavors to attend to your most important needs by sleeping upon them (now). We, his humble staff, wish to assure you that this data is being fed to his brain even as we write.
He dreams of you - er, your inquiries.
Thank you.
Thank you very much - indeed!
Staff
The Clorox ToiletWand has disposable cleaning heads to make cleaning a toilet more convenient.
Photo Courtesy of The Clorox Company
Housekeeping Ads Clorox Toilet Toilet Products Cleaning Bathrooms Toilet Brushes Clean Oven Automatic or Drop-In Toilet Cleaners: Automatic or Drop-In Toilet cleaners usually consist of a disc of cleaner that you deposit into the toilet tank. Some other models suspend from the toilet tank or rim of the toilet. They automatically dispense cleaning solution into the water when the toilet is flushed.
Pros
An automatic cleaner is easy to use and easy to maintain.
Cons
The toilet will still need to be scrubbed occasionally. These cleaners aren't a good idea if you have pets or children who are likely to have access.
Powder Toilet Cleaners: Powder Toilet cleaners are designed to scrub a toilet without scratching it. These cleaners are a good choice when staining of the toilet bowl is an issue.
Pros
If you have rust or water deposit stains in your toilet bowl, using a powder cleanser offers enough scrubbing power without scratching your toilet.
Cons
Be careful not to scratch the surfaces of the toilet, which will allow future staining to occur more easily. Abrasive cleaners also require the use of an additional brush.
Toilet Brushes: Toilet brushes are bristle brushes that usually come with a storage container. Many companies market the toilet brushes to match bathroom decor.
Pros
A good toilet brush with stiff all-plastic brush and bristles does a great job at scrubbing a toilet. Don't choose a brush with bristles attached to wire. This can damage toilets.
Cons
A toilet brush needs to be thoroughly disinfected and/or kept away from areas where it could cross contaminate with bacteria. Cheap brushes can also damage the toilet.
Eye and Hand Protection:
Pros
Even the most experienced toilet cleaner can occasionally splash water and or cleaner during a good scrubbing. Protect your eyes with goggles and your hands with gloves. This is one of the filthiest places in your home. You do not want the contents or the cleaner anywhere near your eyes and hands.
Disposable Toilet Cleaning Systems: Almost every cleaning product company has some form of a disposable toilet cleaning system on the market. This systems allow you to have disposable prefilled cleaning heads, or automatic cleanser triggers that keep you from relying on a reusable brush and separate cleanser.
Pros
These systems save time because there is little cleanup. The cleaning systems work fairly well, although toilets with staining may still need a brush.
Cons
Disposable cleaners and cloths aren't friends to the environment.
Paper Towels vs. Rags: Sometimes it seems as though the outside has become dirtier than the bowl. Using paper towels, rags, or sponges along with a spray cleaner will get the outside as gleaming as the bowl.
Pros
Paper towels are able to be thrown away. There is no risk of contaminating other surfaces or laundry.
Cons
Paper towels aren't the most environmentally friendly choice for cleaning. Use rags if you prefer, but wash right away in hot water. Otherwise, go with paper towels, and never use sponges.
How To Clean a ToiletOxiClean Miracle FoamLifeTree Bathroom Cleaner
15 Minute Bathroom CleanupIntense Bathroom CleanupSpring Clean a Medicine Cabinet
Guide since 2004 Sarah Aguirre
Housekeeping Guide
Advertisement
Dear Happy Homemaker,
I realize that TIDE gets dirt out, but I definitely do not have a CHEER wash! I am so frustrated because Clarice - she's my Mrs. Perfect Mother/Wife/PTA President/Yadda Yadda neighbor - always has little Mary dressed in crisp, spanking white pinafores and young Bobby in snappy white trousers (they are also crisp). These little hooligans play in the same grass and dirt as my Molly and Edward.
Why can't my kids' whites be sparkling white with no grass stains like those of the brats next door?
Marge
Dear Marge,
Sounds as if your issues go far deeper than surface dirt. These dark spots on your psyche appear ground into your heart of hearts. While it's true that cleanliness is next to godliness, I see no indication of spirituality on your part. What kind of example are you setting for your children? I want my children clean enough to be healthy but not necessarily clean enough to eat off.
Dress your children in denim from the local thrift store or pave the entire neighborhood in concrete and be done with it.
May I send you some coupons for Arm and Hammer Laundry Detergent?
Hope this helps!
Happy Homemaker!
Dear Wings,
Start slow and then take your time.
1) Pick a room - perhaps that most suitable to serve as central command or one that really, really needs help FAST!
2) Declutter - you cannot clean surfaces that are not visible. Have at least two boxes (or garbage bags for what is truly genuine trash) for starters. Toss GARBAGE into one, SAVE into other (don't "toss" China or figurines [of course, you know that]). Find a spot (I don't imagine there's a spare room available?) to put your "treasures."
3) Remove as many small pieces of furniture as possible - this is a major help when you're ready to clean.
4) I did dream about this ...
When you're ready to clean, I'll be here to lend a hand ... or two.
Hope this helps!
Happy Homemaker!
Up until the 1850s, when the general store started stocking provisions, folks made most of their household supplies themselves, including lye soap . Three ingredients went into the making of lye soap: lard, lye , and lots of hard work.
Lard was rendered and saved for soap -making from the annual hog kill that took place at the time of the first hard frost in autumn. Lye was made from the ashes left over from the wood stoves. (Most people kept a wooden bin with a side spigot just outside the house, into which they'd dump their ashes. When it came time to make lye soap, they poured water through the ashes and siphoned off the liquid lye.) The third ingredient of lye soap had to be supplied by a pair of hard working hands.
Lye is an extremely caustic agent, so the soap makers had to be careful to have just the right concentration. Too much lye would cause the soap to burn the skin, and too little would keep the soap from hardening. An old wives' tale held that lye was at the proper strength when depositing a floating egg into the mixture revealed only its tip.
To make lye soap, lard and lye were mixed together over an open fire, and stirred for hours with a long-handled paddle. It is said that when the paddle stuck straight up, the soap was ready. Lye soap was then poured into a metal pan and allowed to dry and harden; a process that could take from two weeks to one month. After the lye soap hardened, it was cut into smaller bars for everyday use. People used lye soap to clean everything from their faces to their laundry. Today, many people still like to buy and use original lye soap.
Lye soap can be purchased from soap companies, which sell their product in specialty bath shops or over the Internet. Many people tout the benefits of lye soap; it is a natural product, and because soap makers have perfected the level of lye to add, it can be a very gentle soap. Current lye soap manufacturers have substituted different types of oil for lard. Fragrances are added, and sometimes natural oils such as aloe, jojoba, or coconut, which soothe the skin. Fans of lye soap also say that it can help reduce the itching caused by insect bites. Nostalgia is another reason why people like lye soap. Some enjoy homemade lye for the novelty of using the same rugged brown soap that their Great-Great-grandparents used so many years ago.
Dear Happy Homemaker,
Ever since I was a little boy, I've been cleaning house and fluffing pillows. I can't explain it - I just LOVE it! Now that it's time to think about college, I'm wondering if I could get a college degree in housecleaning. I've taken Homemaking for 3 years now and received top honors in class. My Dad wants me to be a lawyer, but Mom's happy that she can leave running the household to me while she's out being a Society lady. Either way, my parents won't give me grief over my career choices. They're cool.
What do you recommend? Incidentally, I'm very spiritual.
Thanks for your time. God bless.
Hugo
Dear Hugo,
Do you get beat up a lot at school? Just wondering. Young people today are far more progressive in their thinking than when I was in school.
To your point: since you are so religiously inclined, simply stay home on Saturday morning and you will receive an answer. You will learn how to serve your spiritual needs (according to someone's interpretation) as well as how to make a dandy living that allows you to follow your inherent abilities.
However, there is one (actually, MANY) caveat(s); if you follow through and become a member of this particular religious order (there will be no question as to my meaning once your doorbell rings and you answer the door - VOILA!), you must be very astute as to how you reference your "love" of any career choice and how you consequently channel your earnings. Other than that, it's all good.
Oh, have you talked to your school counselor? He/she may have something to add.
Hope this helps!
Happy Homemaker!
Hope this helps!
Happy Homemaker!
Dear Happy Homemaker:
Often, when I am stressed or upset, I find solace in cleaning. But lately I have been stressed so much that I have nothing left to clean!
Can you recommend something to replace the hours of drudgery I need to keep a sane and balanced mental outlook?
Signed,
Desperately Seeking Dirt
Dear Desper,
I know so well your state of mind. I once was DADDY DEAREST, barking out orders to the offspring to scrub, scrub and then, SCRUB SOME MORE!
"Daddy's not mad at you, Felix ... he's mad at the dirt!"
Well, I'm rather more laid back at this point in my life, but poor Felix is obsessive-compulsive and currently getting some really nice analysis. His fee is more than covered by dirtbusting his shrink's office suite and home on The Strand.
But YES! We do seek to make the world a little better (cleaner) place than how we found it. Do yo wish to go out and make your mark (figurative) in the world at large? Do you prefer, on the other hand, to do dirt domestically?
Domestic Endeavors:
Vacuum your rafters.
Clean out your fridge (come on now, how often to you actually get at it?) and
arrange all your dairy by expiration date.
Remove all books from shelves and give them and their linear residence a
thorough dusting.
Do like an elderly friend used to do as a child when she was an indentured servant to her
parents - every Saturday she removed all the furniture from each room and did
a top-to-bottom white tornado blast. Maybe her folks gave her through Sunday
to finish (no - come to think of it, they were strict Lutherans). No matter.
To be continued ...
Hope this helps!
Happy Homemaker!
