Joy's Carpet Cleaning service

Last summer, I was faced with a little dilemma: to throw out or to professionally clean a beloved rug of ours. The thing is, it was only about $40 to start with, and I did not want to do either thing, but it was FILTHY. It had been rolled up for months, and there was dried smashed banana on it, and general grime--I think even some cat barf.

So, I tried something that would not hinder my options to still get the thing professionally cleaned or to of course throw it out.....here is what I did.

I made a big bucket of hot water with a little splash of Tide in it. I took the rug out to the driveway, and got on my hands and knees and just crawled all over this thing, scrubbing and scrubbing every inch of it with an old wooden bristle-brush. I scrubbed and scrubbed it with hot detergent water, soaking it, and the bubbles were grey, and I wasn't sure if this was working at all...but on I scrubbed. My knees hurt, my back ached, and I felt like I looked ridiculous to the neighbors with my big ole butt in the air in the driveway--but there was no where else to do this!

then I hung the heavy soaking wet soapy rug up over the fence, draping it over both sides, and just blasted it with the hose for a long, long time. Filthy water poured off of this thing, but eventually went from grey bubbles to grey water to clear water. I rinsed and rinsed and rinsed it with the hose nozzle set to the harshest spray level, and then left it there to dry in the sun. It wasn't even that hot (or sunny!) of a day, but there was nothing else to do with it.

I went out to check on it after about 2 hours and Lo and Behold it was clean! Really, really clean, and the pile was as fluffy as the day I got it. It was also almost dry, and so I flipped it around to get the rest of the day's sun on the other side.

Like I said, this thing was only about 40 dollars, but I saved it and I learned a great technique in the meantime. I even considered cleaning other people's rugs for them, for maybe 15 bucks?

It is very IKEA-ish but it was originally from KMart. I remember distinctly the night I ran to Kmart for a quick errand and came home with the big polka dot rug...it was just so cute that Steve understood right away why the random purchase. I am so glad we didnt have to get rid of it!!!!!

a lament

I read this today on Mothering, and it was a cute story, but it made me really sad....because I, a life-long Michigander, have alwasy been the one to "stick up for" winter. When people heard that there was a forecast for snow, I was always the one to think "Yippee!!", and to tell anyone within earshot what horrible scrooges they were for bemoaning and begrudging the beautiful and fun and inevitable S-N-O-W. I vowed I would never become one of these wierdos, obsessed with spring and summer--I loved to sled and skate and I have even skiied as a teenager and LOVED it.

but....but...but....its just over for me, now. We are always sick in the winter, and I mean always. there is no sledding, there is no skating. There is Daddy too sick to shovel and Mommy too sick to buy healthy groceries, and a whole lot of outrageous heating bills and pizza and misery. Hacking coughs that take our breath away, cancellations of every winter party, Valentines party, St Pattys day party and usually my own birthday party (April 3rd!) I have very few memories of not being extremely sick on my birthday.

So, even though paintings of "Up North" types of scenes, with little Cardinals and Squirellys and White Pines make me so happy, and even though I have idyllic visions of sitting on my log couch in my log cabin high up in the woods, curled up with my Woolrich red plaid blanket, Sipping on some decadent chocolate coffee, just looking and looking and looking at the birds out in the white expanses of snow, (maybe even a little notebook at my side to write down that mister bluebird came today, or Rose breasted grosebeak came back to visit) this plan is slipping out of my grasp as something that is possible for me or my family anymore, and I am really sad.

We are getting better now, but I dont dare take us anywhere. The baby is still having such harrowing, gasping coughing, and I am still getting really dizzy and wiped out when I try to do much of anything around the house, let alone dress us all for some "outing". I just feel so sad about this, and dont know if we honestly need to move somewhere else, an old fashioned notion of "delicate" health, I dont know. I just don't know. but almost 1/2 the year now is being cancelled due to this syndrome, and I dont think it is any way to live. Please dont write to me about Echinacea or garlic, we have spent hundreds if not thousands of dollars on that stuff, and it never ever helps. :(