Head of Maintenance

I am married to a maintenance man, and yes, you should be very jealous!  He fixes what breaks.  And while that means I haven't gotten a new washer and dryer yet, that means I haven't HAD to get a new washer or dryer.   While I admire his ability to fix what is broken, he has taught me that a maintenance man's most important job is to maintain equipment so that it won't break in the first place.  It is a frustration when various disturbances cause him not to be able to preform the preventative maintenance he needs to do at work.  And when something breaks because of a lack of preventative maintenance......well, the grumbling would put a teenage boy's stomach to shame.

I have realized that my housework is much the same.  I can fix what is broken, when I have to, but the most important use of my time (houseworkily speaking) is in preventative measures. If I spend a few minutes every day picking up, then it won't take me 3 hours on Saturday morning to get the floors clean enough to mop.   If I will run the dishwasher every night, and empty it first thing every morning, then I won't have to search though bowls of  gloopy slime to find the offensive odor.  If I would clean out my fridge 5 minutes a day, I will never have to worry about the science experiment in the back. (Science will have to get along without me.)

You get the idea; but what is really the aha factor for me is the effect on my attitude.  When I am doing housework as preventative maintenance. it is usually enjoyable.  At the worse, it is a minor bother, quickly taken care of.  However, when I am doing housework that is a result of a LACK of preventative maintenance.....I grumble, I complain, I get angry and frustrated.  Hmmmmm, my course of action seems pretty logical, doesn't it.

And so, without further ado, I would like to introduce myself as the new Head of Maintenance for LAG Interiors.  I hope the crew likes their new boss!!