{"id":157,"date":"2011-04-10T20:56:31","date_gmt":"2011-04-11T00:56:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/?p=157"},"modified":"2011-04-10T20:59:40","modified_gmt":"2011-04-11T00:59:40","slug":"housekeeping-for-nerds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/2011\/04\/10\/housekeeping-for-nerds\/","title":{"rendered":"Housekeeping for Nerds"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Housekeeping for Nerds<\/h1>\n<p>Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to be on the <a href=\"http:\/\/2011.arisia.org\/Schedule2011#932\">House Keeping for Nerds<\/a> panel at <a href=\"http:\/\/2011.arisia.org\/\">Arisia<\/a>. Among my co-panelists were <a href=\"http:\/\/www.findyourfloor.org\/\">Jennifer Hunter<\/a> &#8211; a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.findyourfloor.org\/\">professional organizer <\/a>who also runs the blog <a href=\"http:\/\/findyourfloor.wordpress.com\/\">&#8220;Weird Stuff I Found While Organizing&#8221;<\/a>; <a href=\"http:\/\/ourpolyhome.com\/michelle\/\">Michelle Driscoll<\/a>; and Shana Fuqua.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Since the panel, I have been contacted by people who were unable to attend but felt that they could have used the housekeeping advice. As a service to those people, I&#8217;m reproducing the handout that we provided to panel attendees. I also hope that these tips may be useful as a fresher to those who attended the panel as well as to the wider Internet community.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The information below was jointly contributed to by all panelists and provided in hard copy to the attendees. I will later blog in more depth about my area of the panel \u2013 using technology to help with housekeeping and organization \u2013 however, I don&#8217;t feel that I can more accurately represent the advice of my co-panelists than by presenting verbatim this jointly authored handout.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h1>Resources, Tips, and Tricks<\/h1>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Housecleaning:<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><a name=\"rky5\"><\/a><\/p>\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"3\" width=\"100%\">\n<col width=\"128*\"><\/col>\n<col width=\"128*\"><\/col>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"50%\">Remember:&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Divide and conquer<\/li>\n<li>You don&#8217;t have to do it all at once!<\/li>\n<li>15 minutes really makes a big difference<\/li>\n<li>Develop your own \t\t\trituals and habits and (gently) help housemates establish theirs<\/li>\n<li>If you leave stuff clean, other people will \t\t\tbe more likely to keep it clean<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td width=\"50%\">The Weekly Home Blessing&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Slipshod cleaning. No detailed cleaning required; \t\t\tvacuum the middle of the floors only!<\/p>\n<p>FlyLady sets her timer for 10 minutes to work on \t\t\teach of 7 tasks:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Vacuum<\/li>\n<li>Dust<\/li>\n<li>Mop<\/li>\n<li>Polish \t\t\tMirrors and Doors<\/li>\n<li>Purge magazines<\/li>\n<li>Change \t\t\tSheets<\/li>\n<li>Empty all trash<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This takes approximately one hour; some tasks take \t\t\tless than 10 minutes.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Don&#8217;t obsess, set your timer for 10 minutes \t\t\tfor each task, then QUIT!&#8221;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Resources<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>FLY \tLady: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.flylady.net\/\">www.flylady.net<\/a>\n<ul>\n<li> A \t\tlittle hokey, but lots of good ideas.\u00a0 Room cleaning list, \t\thouse blessing outline, and daily tasks if you want them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>http:\/\/www.chorewars.com\/&#8211;Gain \tXP for cleaning your house!!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Cooking:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Cook ahead of time<\/p>\n<p>Divide leftovers into small portions<\/p>\n<p>Label leftovers with food item and date (use masking tape\/sharpie, or write right on plastic containers with a dry erase marker)<\/p>\n<p>Find out food peculiarities<\/p>\n<p>Discover the slow cooker and the rice cooker<\/p>\n<p>Plan meals ahead of time (if possible)<\/p>\n<p>Fill the sink with soapy water and toss in dishes as you cook<\/p>\n<p>Do dishes while waiting for the next step in cooking<\/p>\n<p>Resources:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Joy \tof Cooking<\/em>: for beginners, defines all important terms, and \tgives a substitution table for when you run out of ingredients<\/li>\n<li>Rachel \tRay:\u00a0 All the books are good, but I especially recommend \tthe\u00a0<em>Express Lane<\/em> book, which gives a great list for \tstocking the pantry and recipes that use fewer than 10 special \tingredients.\u00a0 Some very heavy food, but some healthy options as \twell.<\/li>\n<li><em>The \tSneaky Chef: How to Cheat on Your Man (In the Kitchen!): Hiding \tHealthy Foods in Hearty Meals Any Guy Will Love<\/em> by Missy \tChase Lapine: I don&#8217;t have this book, but it gets excellent \treviews.\u00a0 If you or your family wants to keep healthy but \tdoesn\u2019t like vegetables.\u00a0 Seems to require a lot of \tpre-planning (freezing things ahead, etc.)<\/li>\n<li> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.allrecipes.com\/\">www.allrecipes.com<\/a>: \tRecipes for anything you could ever want, with comments and \tsuggestions from other users.\u00a0 Bonus is you can search by \tingredients you want or don\u2019t want, so you can figure out what to \tdo with that carrot, fennel, and asparagus that is hanging around \tthe fridge.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Clothing\/Laundry:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Get help if you need it<\/li>\n<li>Develop a ritual: if you have a washing machine, throw a load in every morning.\u00a0 If you don\u2019t, pick a day or time that works for you.<\/li>\n<li>Develop a database of clothes to help with packing<\/li>\n<li>Establish clear patterns of where clothes go<\/li>\n<li>Always keep the laundry basket in the same place (for late night tossing)<\/li>\n<li>Avoid buying clothes that require ironing or dry cleaning<\/li>\n<li>Resources:<\/li>\n<li>Steamer (like an iron, but uses hot steam, and can quickly release wrinkles from hanging clothes)<\/li>\n<li>Shout wipes (you can keep them in your laptop bag, for quick stain removal)<\/li>\n<li>About.com:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/housekeeping.about.com\/od\/stainremoval\/Stain_Removal_Ideas_and_Tips.htm\">http:\/\/housekeeping.about.com\/od\/stainremoval\/Stain_Removal_Ideas_and_Tips.htm<\/a> (how to remove every kind of stain known to man)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Organizing:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Tips:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Purge, baby, purge. The less stuff in your house, the easier organizing (and therefore cleaning) will be.<\/li>\n<li>Group like items with like. This not only makes them easier to find; it also helps you see how many there are.<\/li>\n<li>Real estate: Keep the most-often used items the closest to hand. Banish other stuff to the suburbs.<\/li>\n<li>Create systems, labels, and homes for things. It may seem overly fussy, but especially with housemates, it will save you angst.<\/li>\n<li>Work with your current habits. If you prefer to do your paperwork at the kitchen table rather than your desk, figure out a system to make that possible.<\/li>\n<li>Stem the incoming tide of paper. Opt out of mailing lists (there are several websites), or email\/call companies directly to get taken off. Keep recycling\/shred bins where you\u00a0open your mail (preferably in your front hallway so it doesn&#8217;t even make it to your desk).<\/li>\n<li>Hiring a professional organizer can make this all much easier and more effective!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Resources:<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"qj21\"><\/a> Many useful organizing links at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.findyourfloor.org\/organizinglinks.html\">http:\/\/www.findyourfloor.org\/organizinglinks.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"n2x1\"><\/a> The National Association of Professional Organizers is at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.napo.net\/\">http:\/\/www.napo.net<\/a><\/p>\n<p>An excellent book on organizing is <em>Organizing From the Inside Out<\/em> by Julie Morgenstern.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Miscellaneous Ideas:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Establish an area where you can be as dirty as you want to be (or allow your spouse\/partner\/housemates to do this).<\/li>\n<li>Ask trusted visitors to be brutally honest with you about the state of your home. You may not be able to smell it anymore, but they do.<\/li>\n<li>Don&#8217;t be afraid to delegate. Install a dishwasher, hire a housecleaner, send the laundry out. It doesn&#8217;t matter how it gets done, just that it gets done.<\/li>\n<li>Bribe yourself to do the boring tasks: listen to good music or a podcast while you work.<\/li>\n<li>Don&#8217;t aim for perfection; aim for <em>better<\/em>. Set small goals that can be easily accomplished, and work your way up.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Technology\/Products:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"qp6-\"><\/a><\/p>\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"3\" width=\"100%\">\n<col width=\"128*\"><\/col>\n<col width=\"128*\"><\/col>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"50%\">\n<ul>\n<li>Roomba<\/li>\n<li>Scooba<\/li>\n<li>Japanese Screen<\/li>\n<li>Plastic Storage Containers<\/li>\n<li>Buy redundant quantities of small items &#8211; I have 50 \t\t\t\tidentical nail clippers and 120 identical combs<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td width=\"50%\">\n<ul>\n<li>Space efficient dishes: e.g. Corella<\/li>\n<li>Wall mounted shelves<\/li>\n<li>eBook readers<\/li>\n<li>Web services to get rid of junk: Fufillment by Amazon, \t\t\t\teBay, Craigslist<\/li>\n<li>I&#8217;ll post details at: \t\t\t\thttp::\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Housekeeping for Nerds Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to be on the House Keeping for Nerds panel at Arisia. Among my co-panelists were Jennifer Hunter &#8211; a professional organizer who also runs the blog &#8220;Weird Stuff I Found &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/2011\/04\/10\/housekeeping-for-nerds\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2148,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2148"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=157"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":166,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157\/revisions\/166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/dlarochelle\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}