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| Source: lusi |
Mama said we gotta
clean this whole damn place. “Every inch
of it!” she said.
Mama filled up a
bucket of scrubbing soap that smelled like pine tree. She handed me a rag, and we started
scrubbing. Scrubbing hard, like there
was sin in every crack.
From the ceiling to
the floor, Mama scrubbed, scrubbed some more.
Then she changed the water with more pine stuff.
What was I
doing? “Sweep the floor! You gotta sweep clean!” So I did what Mama said. Then she told me to do it all over
again.
Mama filled another
bucket of water and pine stuff. Gave me
a stiff brush, got on her knees, and started scrubbing the floor in big
circles. She sent me to work along side,
so as we’d scrub from one end to the other.
She dumped the
bucket, put clear water and a dose of pine stuff. And we started all over again, circle and
circle, on our knees. Did this until the
water ran clear at the end. Thought we
was done.
But no. We got some old rags and rinsed off the pine
water. One end to the other.
Then Mama stood
up. “You always gotta sweep the floor
clean.” That was what we done.
Went out to the porch where a cool breeze was blowing. Mama had some coffee and a cigarette. I had some water.
I asked her why men didn't do this, since as it was darn hard work.
"Men don't know much about cleaning the house." She took a long hard drag on the cigarette. "They don't know much at all."
Went out to the porch where a cool breeze was blowing. Mama had some coffee and a cigarette. I had some water.
I asked her why men didn't do this, since as it was darn hard work.
"Men don't know much about cleaning the house." She took a long hard drag on the cigarette. "They don't know much at all."
Your story, Susan, brought back memories of my wonderful, hard-working mother and that horrible-smelling Pine-Sol.
ReplyDeleteOh a fellow floor scrubber! The smell of Pine-Sol stirs such olfactory memories!
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Deletelol some glad I'm not that strict about cleaning
ReplyDeleteYou can have your cats clean up for you, right?
DeleteThey sure know how to get things dirty though lol.
ReplyDeleteMom would be furious about the boys and Dad tracking in mud and such. She finally 'convinced' them to take off their boots out in the breezeway.
DeleteIt was Murphy's Oil Soap at our house. And, my brothers scrubbed the downstairs floors. I had to scrub the bathroom upstairs. My brothers had to learn to iron their shirts, too, when my youngest brother complained about the job I did. It was the last time I ironed their shirts, and I didn't even plan it that way.
ReplyDeleteMom started using Murphy's Oil on the paneling after I had gone to college. My younger sister had that chore!
DeleteWhen Mom got a steam iron, we all rejoiced.
Mama's a tough cookie. Glad my wife doesn't harp on me about the cleaning job I do around the house, although she does take to certain areas during the weekend to do some extra cleaning on her own. Things don't get all that dirty around here with just the two of us. At least it all looks just fine to me.
ReplyDeleteLee
Tossing It Out
At my mother's home on the farm, she fought a constant battle with Dad & brothers tracking in mud. Within a very short time, they had learned to take off the boots in the breeze way.
DeleteJust love Mama, and Mama is right, if my husband is anything to go by, he is very willing but has no idea about really clean.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry too much about the blood red eyes, they discover they are looking at the carved head of a Viking dragon long boat :0)
My mom was fanatical when it came to spring cleaning. It was a process I will never forget.
DeleteMemories. And I still don't feel the floor is really clean until I have scrubbed it by hand. Which means it isn't often really clean.
ReplyDeleteI feel so guilty about the tile in the kitchen right now. It is a good thing I cannot see it when I am on the computer.
DeleteThat is what I would call super clean
ReplyDeleteone would hope!
DeleteThat's more scrubbing in one day than I do in ten years!
ReplyDeleteholy doughnuts! I do mop over the floor occasionally. It's probably not enough, but it does me fine.
It may have been my mother and grandmothers who had this ingrained idea about precisely clean.
DeleteThis really brought back memories of my grandmother :) thank you
ReplyDeleteDid you get in on the cleaning process?
DeleteHi Susan,
ReplyDeleteSorry I haven't been over at your site much lately. I have a lot of multitasking to do. Just finished cleaning my house from top to bottom. And now I shall go and brush up my blog site. Could do with a clean sweep....
Gary :)
I'll bet your mom would not have thought kindly about the Swiffer! Sorry that you had to work so hard. I wouldn't be surprised if you still could eat off of the floors in your house.
ReplyDeleteJulie
Ohhhhhhh I could smell the Pine Sol. That's how we cleaned floors way back when too. :)
ReplyDeleteBrought back some memories when me and my sister were little. My brother and dad always managed to get out of it....
ReplyDelete