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I often would say, “Someday I’ll get to this.” or “Someday I’ll do that.” Well, someday has arrived. That’s one of the main memories I’ll have of the time of Covid-19.

Being stuck at home. Being a Type A.  Being someone who has been in the process of regaining my energy since total knee replacement surgery this past January 28. For all these reasons, I would’ve gone nuts if I didn’t have a list of what to do each day. I know, I know, everyone gives me a bad time about my lists, but that’s me. What makes me happy at the end of each day is crossing off what I’ve accomplished. So since my ‘someday’ had arrived, here’s my list of what I’ve accomplished starting with this week and looking back.

Monday, September 7, alerts on iPhone, radio, and TV about extreme fire danger:

–Put together a go bag—just in case I had to evacuate. It involved making a list of what to put together for me and Sir Groucho and then getting it ready. Just looking outside at the orange sky before it got dark and then feeling a hot wind come up at 11 p.m. that had gusts of 45 to 50 mph or more, I was spooked. I put my go bag together between 11 p.m. and midnight Monday. Because of our ever-present danger of major earthquake and tsunami, it was something that needed to be done.

This past weekend:

Scrubbed and re-stained decks and balcony. After my knee surgery, the doctors said to give it six months before my energy returned and that was exactly right. I started being able to make it through the day without naps or feeling tired some time in August. Didn’t know if I would have the endurance to do the decks, but as it turned out, I did.

I scrubbed every inch of the large deck and its railings and the steps to the lower deck and the railing alongside it on Saturday. It took nearly all day. Then on Sunday, I did the balcony and its railings. On Monday, I stained all the areas I had scrubbed except the steps and railing alongside. I still have to do those. Everything was wet from condensation that day until about 1 p.m. So that’s when I started applying stain. I finished at 4:18 p.m. I don’t like to paint or stain after 4 p.m. because of the nighttime condensation. I pushed myself. I’m not able to get down on my knees like I used to, so I bent over for all of the decking. The railings were easy, peasy in comparison.

Anyway, this is a chore I have done nearly every year since I’ve lived here because my decks are on the north side of the house, but I did not do it last year because of my bad knee. So I had two years of yuck to clean. I was really pleased that I was able to get it done and in short order. I’m also pleased that I finished before our extreme weather event. I would not have been able to work outside in the smoke.

A week ago:

Cleaned out basement. Pulling a few years accumulation out of the basement and laying it all out on the gravel area below the decks, was a good way to see what all I had. I swept what I could in the basement and put back what I wanted to keep in an organized way.

I got rid of more than I kept. Hauling it up the incline and steps to the front of the house was the most difficult part. Some of it went into bags to the dump, and some of it went to Habitat for Humanity’s Restore. There are also two boxes still in the basement labeled “hazardous waste” for the round-up at the dump in October—mostly fungicides and other poisons for gardening that I no longer use.

Two weeks ago:

Cleaned and organized walk-in closet. When I converted my downstairs into an apartment and started renting it in 2009, it really limited my storage area. Everything wound up in my walk-in closet off my bedroom. Besides all my clothes and jackets on hangers, there is a wine storage unit, picnic basket, cooler, Christmas stuff, bedding for two twin beds (my king-size bed is actually two twins pushed together), hamper, vacuum, mop, feather duster, small ladder, birding scope, laundry baskets and soap, etc, cat litter, a box of 120 or so bubble envelopes for my book business, and a box of 100 smaller flat envelopes for the cards I now sell. And that’s just what’s on the floor under the clothes. On the shelf above are coffee filters, vases, a pantry of foods, boxes of shoes, paper towels, TP, purses, hats, and pillows.  

It took a day to go through all the stuff. And then a few days to go through all the clothes and shoes because I had to try on everything. I got rid of a lot of stuff as well as clothes and shoes. And I feel like it’s Christmas because. I have so many “new” outfits to wear. These are clothes I’ve had for years but didn’t wear because I had never put that top with those pants or those shoes. Not only do I feel good about getting rid of so much and being more organized, but excited about my “new clothes.”

Last spring:

Office–I had previously cleaned out my office where every file and every photo was looked at and either tossed or shredded or organized in a proper place—not in a totebag sitting on the floor or piling up in the closet like they had been.

Garage–And I had gone through the garage. I threw out stuff that had been in cabinets that the last person to use was my late husband who died in February 2001—almost 20 years ago. Way past time to clean out and reorganize.

Botttom line:

All this purging resulted in filling bags and boxes, loading the car, and getting rid of it:

Last spring

–Many trips to the dump

–One trip to Habitat for Humanity’s Restore

Lately

–Two trips to dump

–Car filled with 8 boxes and 7 large bags to St. Vinny’s mostly clothes and shoes

–Car totally filled with mostly gardening stuff from basement to Restore

All this purging also resulted in less clutter, more organization:

–It’s so nice to walk into the office, the walk-in closet, the garage, and the basement and no longer have that overwhelming feeling of “where do I start to clean up this mess?” And, now, the decks look decent again.

Next:

I’ll turn my attention outside. The back area is in good shape, so I’ll tackle the front two areas. Now, it’s their turn.Their someday has arrived!