When I was a teenager, in 1991 or ‘92, my parents had my siblings and me do the dishes each night after dinner. Two of us three kids would wash and dry everything by hand then put it all neatly away. Just before my sister and I had finishing the chore one night, our mother came in and spoke to us, pointing out that water had collected on the counter and in the sink. “When you’re finished,” she said, “leave so few traces that that not even Sherlock Holmes could figure out what had occurred here.” We wiped away the clues, leaving the area sparkling, and spotless.
Now, nearly thirty years later, I still do my best to stick by the logic related above. When I dirty a dish or pot, I clean it up immediately. When the dishes are dry, I put them away. Used laundry goes in one place, clean clothes in another. If something is out of place or damaged, it gets fixed or discarded. In this way, my work gets done while it is still small - before it becomes a burden.
With a glance at my living quarters, a trained detective could gather lots of information about my habits and proclivities. What he would not find, however, is that I am a messy person.
americanifesto / JPR / whorphan / 場黑麥
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