Out with the old, in with the new.

Call it a throwback to our Scottish roots and the tradition of Hogmanay – a New Year’s Eve ritual – cleaning the house from top to bottom. So, we did our own version of the cleansing ritual to burn off any bad spirits left from the old year so that the New Year can begin and continue clean and purified.

There was a LOT of purification necessary in our binge and purge this year. Taking advantage of the post-Christmas sales at Michael’s, I bought nine plastic bins in which to house Bryan’s twelve-year collection of tchotchkes for seasonal decorating. And he bags on ME for giving his apartment the “woman’s touch” as he calls it?! He loves decorating throughout the year in his little space.

Most of the bins were filled to the brim with Christmas ornaments and decorations, but there were some for Halloween, Thanksgiving and winter as well. And, I was informed, he needs decorations for Easter and summertime now. Not that there’s any room in that closet for another thing!

From the cleaned closet which is outside on his little porch, we went inside to tidy up his bedroom and bathroom. THAT was a chore! At the first whirr of the vacuum, Dad knew something was amiss. Why were the brushes not spinning inside the canister? How long has this been broken? Being recently replaced, vacuum #3 should have been working beautifully. A sock and other items were removed, a broken belt discovered, and Dad set about fixing the new machine. No matter how many times we stress to pick up large items off the floor when vacuuming, Bryan doesn’t seem to get it. Frustrating!

Once the vacuum was fixed, that room was cleaned. On to the bathroom! Bryan knew he has trouble folding his sheets, so he requested my assistance with all of his sheet sets so they can be folded properly and stacked on his linen shelves. He was basically rolling them into a ball and stuffing them onto the shelves. Extreme lime deposits on tub and toilet had to be dealt with using a lot of elbow grease. But, after four hours, things were as clean as they could be.

Will Bryan’s desire for cleanliness last well into the new year? I seriously doubt it will last more than a few weeks. But at least the need for order and tidiness which lies dormant for most of the year springs to life as the new year approaches.

Chalk it up to his Scottish ancestors….and his mother!