Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Evaluating the Evidence: Kitchen

This is what happens to my kitchen if I don't clean for a day. It falls apart pretty quickly. It's also the most important room to keep clean, as far as Leif is concerned, so this is a pretty unacceptable mess!

My first assignment was to take a picture, then analyze what I see in the photo. Here's the picture, and here's what I see...

* Every flat surface is cluttered - I am a barnacler.
* Pizza stones and microwave cover are on the stove top - I forgot to return them to their homes when I was finished using the oven and microwave.
* Water bottles collecting on the counter - some need to be washed, some need to be put away. I take them to the kitchen, but don't take the time to finish the step.
* Ellie's stool is in the middle of the floor - she uses it and it just stays where she last was.
* Dirty dishes are strewn from one end of the counter to the other - I take them to the kitchen, but don't bother to go the extra step to put them in the sink or in the dishwasher.
* Empty boxes and bags are on the counter - I didn't throw them away when I was done with the food inside.
* Papers and movies and other miscellany gathered by the plant - this is the "catch-all" spot.
* Brita pitcher on the counter - I never refilled it and put it back in the fridge, so it just got moved around on the counter.
* Kitchen Aid attachments on the counter - I used the bowl where they are normally stored and it's in the sink, so I didn't have a place to store the extra attachments.
* Various dish cloths are on the counter, mixed in with the mess - I couldn't easily see a cloth, so I'd get out a new one, then lose that, etc.
* Plants are pretty scraggly looking - I don't take the time to properly water or prune them.
* Can of spray paint and sunblock on the far counter by the door - I used them outside, then just brought them back in and put them close to the door. I like storing the sunblock by the door so it's easy to use.
* Items from the cupboards are on the counter - Didn't put them back when I was done using them, or I pulled them out because I needed to get something from behind them and I never replaced them.
* Recipes from magazines are gathered in the cookbook holder - I thought I would get around to sorting through them, but I didn't and they just pile up there.
* Carbonater is pulled to the front of the counter - I pulled it forward to fizz some water, then didn't move it back when I was done.
* Josie and Ellie's leftover lunch on plates on the counter - I thought they might want to eat the leftovers later as a snack, so I left them out.
* Jumble of cords for the speakers, phones, and coffee percolator - I don't even see the cords any more.
* Empty spice jars stored with the full ones - I washed them out and then just placed them back on the shelf when they were empty.
* Hot pads on the counter where I last used them - once I pulled something out of the oven I didn't bother to replace the hot pads, then I pulled out another pair for the next batch of muffins.
* Window is bright, but has no window dressing - I never got around to making or hanging a valance when we did the rest of the curtains.
* Hand soap containers on both sides of the sink - I don't know why we have so many or how they got to the other side of the sink, and I've never noticed it before.
* Overflowing scrubber holder - I have accumulated too many scrubbers to fit in the little container I have for them.

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