Covid Accomplishments

Here are my shoes, so far, that I purged.

 It's just a drop in the bucket, but it's something.

I have a very long list of less common, but necessary housekeeping things to do.  Here are a few of the weird, but useful projects I completed on Covid quarantine:

* Washed the kitchen ceiling. The ceiling was filthy and had stains and splatters on it. The other day I took my Swiffer mop and put on a microfiber rag (purchased in bulk on Amazon) which was soaked in water and dishwashing liquid. I then, turned the mop upside down and mopped the ceiling. It worked perfectly. I definitely need to paint the ceiling but this way there are no stains or dirt highlighted.

* Cleaned and organized the junk drawer.

* Cleaned and organized the tool box.

* Touched up the scratches on the wood furniture in the home with dollar store furniture markers. Such a difference!!

* Had the handyman repair the captain bed drawer fronts and drawers and shore up the loft bed. (The repairs were beyond our meager abilities.)

* Asked the handyman to repair the microwave handle that broke off. He was unable to fix it, then it stopped working altogether.

* Purchased a new dishwasher and over the range microwave. We comparison shopped and then went to the cheapest appliance store who came in well under the prices we had. It's been YEARS since our dishwasher died.  The handyman installed it lickety split and even took out and discarded the old one. (He needs to return with a helper to install the microwave.)

* Shelves above the pantry collapsed. Hubs was able to do the repair himself! Woo hoo!

* Organized several drawers of clothing.

* Bought two pair of like new sneakers for about $7 each. Score!

* And, last but not least, I went through my shoes and organized them and got rid of 8 1/2 pairs! (I can only find one shoe of set so that is the "half".)  It's amazing how many pairs of shoes I own.  The funny thing is I only wear a couple on a regular basis. There are a few more that may still end up in the toss pile.

Schmattas

My 7 year old (almost 8 year old) suggested that I post about schmattas.  A schmatta is Yiddish for rag. In our house we don't have paper towels or paper napkins. Instead we use cut up old clothing. This is what we use instead of paper towels 99.99 percent of the time. (One of the few exceptions is that my husband likes to have actual paper towels for draining french fries.) 

When clothing becomes unusable, they go under the sink and at a later date I decide if it's the right material that would be good for being a schmatta. I then cut it up, put it in a pretty bin by the sink, and use it. When soiled, I throw them in the  wash to be reused. I prefer cotton cloth with no logos or printing.  Whatever material is left over, the kids use for crafts, sewing, or I donate to the clothing recycling that accepts non wearable cloth. (I also donate unwearable shoes and belts.)  There are many such places throughout the city including in Union Square Park on Saturdays and Tompkins Square Park on Sundays that accept nonwearable cloth and material.

We also used cloth napkins that were mostly purchased from garage sales, given to me, or I purchased eons ago.  Both the schmattas and cloth napkins usage has greatly reduced our paper product bill. Plus, I think it makes meals a little more special to have cloth napkins.

It's crazy to buy something just to throw it away.  Good for the earth good for my wallet.  Can't beat it!!!