Today I've been...

Ariadne

I'm happy despite the rain as I'm looking after my favourite cuddly baby

Teaching DD how to wash-up properly. So many people don't. She's on breakfast washing-up duty for the summer hols. Last year it was vacuuming duty.

You run a tight ship, Bags!
(Good idea, though!)

You're right Bags, they need to know. My 4 & 6 year old grandsons have been taught how to crack an egg properly by their Mum. They can both beat up a mean bowl of cake batter with no crunchy bits!

This morning, I've been back to have a whistling hearing aid adjusted. I don't like it. I got it in April, because other people were getting annoyed concerned about my moderate hearing loss. It's been whistling since May, so I just put it away. People started getting 'concerned' again. So follow up appointment, no whistling, no excuses not to wear it, everyone's happy. Except me.

However....in the general scheme of things it's precious little to moan about, so I'll stop. Breaking news....the sun is shining!

Bags; wondered what your definition of properly is. Only ask because, although my house looks like the Marie Celeste [and that's on a good day] I'm really fussy about washing up and won't let the S.O. do it [I've made an excuse to stop him which is, now that I've got a water meter I'm only washing up once a day and using as little water as possible and only I can judge the amount]. Presume most people would love someone else to do their washing up?

Actually, crimson, I prefer to do my own washing-up too because I know I'm more thorough than most people. I'm very fussy about food hygiene and bathroom hygiene, but the rest of the house can go hang, and does!

My method? Well, very hot water for a start. I wear rubber gloves. Good quality squeezy. An assortment of cloths (microfibre favoured), brushes, scrubbers, etc., which vary according to the surface being cleaned. one of my faves and the most effective on Le Creuset enamel is a bundle of broom roots tied together (made in Sweden). Another is made out of maize husks. Non-scratchy but very effective both of them.
I rinse everything (collect a few things together in the tiny fairly useless sink that's next to the main one and do them together – quick swill under the tap).
Leave most things to drain naturally, although I often put a teatowel over the Rayburn and put the dish drainer on that after the dinner washing-up. Things dry quickly that way. I have a slatted metal shelf above the Rayburn too on which I put all those useful plastic boxes that are hell to get dry. Also bottles/carafes up there on a stick-bottle drainer.

The broom root scrubber looks like this one, though mine's not exactly the same. They last a long time too. Never had to replace mine and I've had it for years.

Yes; I always wear gloves, partly because my hands get very sore if I don't but also because it means I can use scalding hot water. Always soak the brush in bleach between uses or any sponges that I use. Drain everything in the dishwasher [which I very rarely use as a dishwasher]. My main problem with other people washing up is that I always rinse everything with hot water prior to leaving it to dry; I can't bear soap suds on it! And I use bleach to get any stains off the mugs [or sometimes salt]. The Le Creuset thing sounds like the toothbrush in Cold Comfort Farm [I now want one!].

And this is the so-called spaghetti scrub made of maize husk.

Ecover laundry bleach and hot water is good for mug stains too, and I usually put some teaspoons in because DH has a habit of just rinsing the ones he uses so the tartar from tea tends to build up gradually. It's a bit easier to do it that way than rub them all individually with a microfibre sponge which works well but takes ages.

While other women drool over Jimmy Choo shoes I drool over kitchen utensils [well, only of the cleaning variety; I don't do cooking and stuff]. Best invention ever was the vileda supermop; was so excited when I bought my first one [very good for unblocking drains as well, and, when dry, for cleaning cobwebs off ceilings]. But,even better than kitchen cleaning stuff is stationery. As part of my house sorting programme I'm buying lots of black folders to put things in and can't wait to get them [I used to be a filing clerk once a filing clerk always a filing clerk ]. And don't get me started on treasury tags..but why can you only get them in green?

I sometimes soak the cutlery in milton .

Tannin, not tartar. Definitely suffering from worditis today.

I agree totally about the rinsing. OH doesn't think it's necessary, so if he's done the washing-up I always have to give everything a quick rinse under the hot tap....

The 'oxygen' cleaners are good for tea stains too.

Steradent, too - but bleach is cheaper!

Seems we're all very similar! I can't bear anyone else to wash up as I wear rubbers and use scalding water too!
So glad I'm not the only one who beaches mugs and spoons. I do wonder if it is a bad thing. The mugs absorb the tea, then bleach, then do I get it? My insides will be squeaky clean!

Bleaches not beaches?

When I watch my gc wash up it drives me mad because they use so much detergent - piles of bubbles everywhere, and they don't rinse anything.
I also use very hot water and rubber gloves and put my dishcloth to soak with just a drop of bleach. I find I can get stains out of my mug by rubbing with a dry paper towel, and then washing.

Tea stains are so much worse in the hard water areas where my sons' families live. I have soft water and such staining as I do get is well tackled by my small dishwasher.

Ella, I think if you rinse the mugs until the smell of bleach has totally gone, your insides will be all right! (That's what I tell OH anyway! )

First session at the guest house. Mr soop helped to dismantle stuff that needed to go to the tip. He did some strimming and weeding and duties in the greenhouse. I ironed my way through an enormous basket of laundry. Good feeling to be appreciated [and paid.] Now I'm about to visit Lil's for some light refreshment!

I too have done the ironing and feel relieved to have got that task over with. I've been sitting looking at it for long enough! Found some trousers at the bottom of the bag that I thought I might have left behind at my son's house!

Planned to go to a new members meeting of U3A but could not remember the time and venue (letter mislaid) so phoned to find out. Apparently I should have registered for it long ago and there are no places left

Instead I have been trying to edit some flower photos to put into a competition, using Photoshop Elements 10 which is new to me. Every single thing I try to do I have to find in the help file (once I had installed it - it seems to have been missed out when I installed the application) Then I have to experiment to see exactly how to configure each tool to get the effect I want. At this rate it will take me weeks to get five photos fit to enter. i suppose it must be good for the brain, certainly exercises the perseverance muscles.

When I read your post, Elegran it suddenly occurred to me that I was missing a U3A meeting. It's on the third Tuesday of the month and I hadn't realised that today was it! What an idiot! There's no-one there to represent the Creative Writing group! Oh dear me...