Tag: cleaning

How to Use an ‘Extra’ Hour

Posted on by Jordank

Daylight Saving Time (DST) ends at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 7, when most U.S. households turn their clocks back one hour. That means people will be able to take adavantage of an “extra” hour to do whatever they see fit.

In actuality, the hour isn’t “extra” at all, having been borrowed from the clock earlier in the year to provide more daylight in the warmer months. You may feel like like going to bed earlier for a few days, but plan now to make the most of that extra time.

Dreamed up by a New Zealand entomologist and an English golf aficionado who wanted longer daylight hours for their pursuits, DST has long been championed as a way to conserve energy. Its first widespread use came during World War I as a strategy to conserve coal.

Most of the U.S., Canada, Great Britain and France never completely abandoned the practice, although it remains unpopular among dairy farmers. DST has become so popular among retailers and the general public, in fact, that four U.S. states have advanced proposals to make it permanent.

So what will you do with that “extra” hour? The first, most obvious option is to sleep though it in order to adjust to the new schedule faster. If you wake up early instead, you can use the hour to do some of the household winterizing chores you’ve been putting off.

Alternatively, you can take that extra hour and use it to #organize, #decutter and #clean a single spot in your home — a drawer, desktop, shelf, closet or room — and benefit from a newly streamlined space throughout the winter.

If you really want to thrive through the darkest months, consider making this a practice every week. Take one hour — any hour in the week — and use it to organize. You’ll be amazed at what you can accomplish if you set aside the time and make #organizing a part of your routine.

If you find any articles of #clothing, small appliances or other household items that have some life left in them, bag or box them and take one of your extra minutes to contact ClothingDonations.org for a #contactless #donation pickup.

Time is the most precious commodity we have. Take advantage of your “extra” hour this week, no matter how you choose to spend it.

Fall Cleaning: Just as Important as Spring Cleaning

Posted on by Jordank

Spring cleaning always gets the spotlight. Why? Because people feel like they need to make a fresh start after a long and grueling winter. But fall cleaning is just as important; after all, you’ll be indoors for three months or more, why not spend it a clean place?

The first and most obvious thing to do is get your furnace inspected if you own your own home, and change the filter even if you don’t. You’ll want to enjoy consistent heat throughout the winter, as well as clean air coming out of the vents.

Then, you’ll want to initiate a thorough cleaning. The first step — as always — is to purge some of the things you don’t need. The holidays are coming, and you can make space for new stuff — or all of the guests you’ll be hosting at your Thanksgiving, Christmas and Super Bowl parties.

Town & Country magazine has a list of 50 things that you probably don’t need to keep: condiment packets, outdated reference books, canvas totes, unworn costume jewelry, extra mugs, leftover paint and old phones. They’re just taking up space.

Bag up any lightly used clothing and household goods that might be of use to someone else and contact ClothingDonations.org for a contactless #donation pickup. A truck will visit your house on the appointed day to take that #junk away for good.

Then, start a targeted, room-by-room dusting and cleaning. Take as many hours or days as you need, but concentrate your efforts to make sure everything gets organized, dusted, wiped, mopped and sanitized.

Dust, pollen and insects such as moths probably blew into your home over the summer. Don’t let pests set up shop and overwinter in your basement or rafters. “See who’s hiding where and giving them a squish or kick to the curb before they start snacking on you or your clothes,” Apartment Therapy says.

Think of fall cleaning as a fresh start on a new season — one in which you’llbe spending a lot of time indoors. Don’t you want to live in a clean, sparkling and healthy home? Get started while you can still can!

Follow CDC Guidelines to Keep Your Office Safe

Posted on by Jordank

Offices and schools should to revisit CDC guidelines as they attempt to reopen during the #Delta variant’s “fourth wave” of coronavirus infections. Depending on the office layout, transparent shields, physical barriers, and signs or tape markers may be necessary to keep employees apart. “High-touch” communal items such as coffee pots and bulk snacks should be replaced with single-serve alternatives. Offices should consider upgrading their #ventilation systems and enhancing #cleaning protocols to keep workers safe, in addition to keeping facemasks, wipes and #sanitizers stocked and ready for use.

Keep Papers in Check to Cut Desktop Clutter

Posted on by Jordank

Students and office workers alike do the majority of their work on a computer, but papers can stack up nonetheless. Best Life suggests creating a zone on your desk distinct from the computer’s area to keep papers organized and cut down on #clutter. To stay on top of the piles, review papers at the end of each day, deciding what can be scanned, filed and shredded. Then, do a complete desktop #decluttering and #cleaning once a week to “deal with any papers or trash you missed” [and] reorganize office supplies, stray folders and misplaced files.

Keep Only what You Need on Your Desktops

Posted on by Jordank

#Cleaning and organizing your desk can not only reduce the threat of colds, flu and #COVID-19, it can make you more productive. Having a #disorganized desk makes it harder for most people to process information, and getting rid of #clutter can help you focus. Medium recommends starting with a purge that involves moving everything off your desktop and adding back only the things you need for one week; anything else can be stored or tossed. The same goes for your digital desktop: Extraneous files and open browser tabs only compete for your limited attention, and should be judiciously culled to the ones you actively use.