Cleaning Up, Putting Up

 

Jack, why doesn't Mom want to crunch on those tasty little balls??

Well, them's that.

After a reasonably peaceful New Year's day, the Brick trotted off to work this morning...and I got to work, as well. Piles of stuff are EVERYWHERE. Fortunately, they're small piles...and an hour or so of folding and putting-away should take care of most of them.

Muse Marian has a seven-item checklist of things to take care of after the holiday season. Some don't apply to us, so much -- I never had enough champagne flutes to match anything, for example, thanks to girlies with a prediliction for dropping/spilling glasses. And we didn't throw any parties this year, so I don't need to check in with my friends for a 'postmortem.'

 I've got my own list:

*Get the balls and lights off the Christmas tree. Drag it outside...dogs view this as a new game, and try to play tag while I'm yanking it out the front door. Needles fly everywhere. (Oops, missed a ball or two.) Throw over the fence -- chickens immediately rush over to investigate. Here's my chance to check for eggs while they do -- one of the Rhode Island Reds is crabby right now, and tries to peck me, if she's in the nesting box. The chickens are laying well. (Of course, they literally stack on top of each other in the one or two nesting boxes they favor, even though the third one's empty.) The cold doesn't seem to bother them, thanks to sheer pigheadedness -- and the heatlamp.

*Wash clothes. Wash more clothes. Get them on the line before it gets too cold out. (Fold clothes already in the basket, so I can use it.) Iron shirts. Heave a big sigh.

*Scrub the oil off the stove. (We had fried eggrolls last night. What a mess.) Scrub more oil off the counter. Clear the dishwasher. Scrub and put away pots and pans. Tell Charley to quit licking places. (Not to mention munching on chicken poop, which he views as a delectable snack.)

*Haul out leftovers from fridge. Look at them  -- and decide on chicken enchiladas for supper, instead.

And when that's done:  9 articles to write, and some appraisal work to send out. Exciting, huh?

Must get on with it.

Some people just don't appreciate the finer things in life.