Where's My Machete?

Now that the taxes are out of the way I can get back to cleaning and my timed method of doing it.  It's still working for me although I am taking some liberties with the time.  The key is not to attempt the "whole thing;" just take it in baby steps until the "whole thing" is done.

Yesterday I gave the new vacuum cleaner a go.  My old one was about 5 years old (and inexpensive) and had started making an awful lot of racket when I turned it on...and you could see puffs of dust coming out.  Plus, I was having to line up stuff for it.  You shouldn't have to do that.  So, I picked up a new one a week or so ago, but had to put off using it until I was through with the taxes.  This one is a really pretty red one.  Wayne even commented on how pretty it was.  I thought he was talking about how nice the floor looked, but he was talking about the vacuum.

I had noticed how filthy the floor was behind the television in the living room.  The tv there is kind of tucked under the stairs, so it's not really easy to get to...unless you're a little child.  There were so many dust bunnies back there it looked like a bunny had actually disintegrated. Plus, I had also noticed that the plate that covers the box where the tv cable comes out of the wall had either (a) come undone or (b) never been attached.  So, that area was one of my projects yesterday.

As filthy as it was, I knew I needed a dust mask to keep from inhaling all that crap and I knew where to find it.  It took a couple of trips back and forth while I got distracted by other things, but I finally had the mask.  Except the rubber strap that holds the mask on one's face had broken on one side.  That needed to be fixed before I dove under the stairs.  I ended up poking a hole with an ice pick, threading the rubber through the hole and tying it in a knot.  Problem solved.  Mask on, I headed back to the target area.  I pulled the tv and the cabinet next to it out far enough to allow easier access, but then noticed the tangle of cords:
(1  satellite cable
(2  telephone line connected to the satellite box
(3  power cord to the isobar that everything else is plugged into:
    (a  power cord to the tv
    (b  power cord to the Wii
    (c  power cord to the satellite box
    (d  power cord to the vcr/dvd
    (e  power cord to the clock

I needed something that was going to help me dust under and around all those cords.  I decided a plant holder with wheels was just the thing and picked up the whole knot of cords and plopped it in.  Easy, peasy.  Problem solved.

I had already used the vacuum for the first time and was familiar with the tools including a small turbo brush that fits onto the hose, so I hooked that all up and prepared to suck up some dust bunnies.  There I am, crawling under the stairs, wearing my dust mop slippers and my dust mask.

It took two attempts to get this shot using the self-timer on the camera.  The first shot was all butt!  So, I repositioned and tried again.

It's still not really clean behind the television, but it's certainly much better than it was.  I'll try to do a better job someday.

While I was back there I fixed the cover plate that was hanging.  It took multiple trips to gather supplies...a screwdriver, a small stool to sit upon, screws.  It wasn't easy since I couldn't get right in front of it and had to use my left hand instead of my right.  I guess it's a small miracle I didn't poke holes in the wall or my face.

Oh...I almost forgot...the machete part.  Today I was working in the laundry room trying to clean off the top of the big table that is handy for folding, etc.  A few things had to be taken to the car for a recycling run.  While I was stowing cardboard in the car, I started deconstructing some cardboard boxes that had been sitting in the garage for a while.  One of them was hard to pull apart, but I thought I had just the tool to assist me.  It wasn't hanging where I had last seen it, though and I said out loud (I often talk to myself out loud), "Where's my machete?"  Hearing myself say that made me laugh.  It was just one of those things I never thought I would hear myself ask.