Clean Freak: A Moment of Maturity

My wife is a slob. Left to her own devices, she would eat off paper plates rather than have to wash up. Cleanliness is a life choice, but one she has opted out of. I get my head bitten off if I suggest she picks her pants up off the bedroom floor - talk about your reverse stereotypes!

I, on the other hand, like some sort of order. I like food to be in the kitchen cupboards, rather than in carrier bags randomly located across the kitchen floor. And so - if I may be frank - from time to time, her slobbiness pisses me off.

And yet, over the last few days I have been building up to a moment of maturity. The moment when I realised that I would be far better off just getting on with the housework rather than wait for her to do her share. Turns out, it's a win-win situation:

• Little & often ultimately means it takes less time. It should at least remove the need to spend whole afternoons cleaning.
• If I keep on top of it, it will be easier to keep the house the way I like it - and I won't get depressed at living here.
• If I put a regular, sustained effort into the housework there is a slim chance my wife might put regular, sustained effort into noticing and maybe even appreciating it.

And as regular readers may know, feeling under-appreciated at home has been a trigger in the past. It's all good.

Still clean, btw - the absurd heat brings out the skimpy summer togs, but it saps the energy, so it all cancels out.