Unpleasant tasks….Are there many in this nomadic life?…

“Throughout Morocco, each door has a different story and design that reflects Moroccan values and culture. While some doors signify Islamic values of humility and respect, others illuminate a past of colonialism and cultural cohabitation.”

Whenever I have a task to do that I don’t enjoy, I find myself wanting to make excuses to postpone it. I am not a procrastinator, but some tasks make me wonder if I have tendencies in that direction. This morning, on cleaning day, I thought of ten reasons why we should change it to another day, mainly the reality that I didn’t feel like doing it.

In my old life, I had the lovely Teresa, who cleaned our entire house every Wednesday. During the in-between times, I cleaned as necessary but only washed floors after we’d had company for dinner on the weekend. I cleaned the kitchen and bathrooms daily, and laundry was tackled every three days.

With Tom working 12-hour days, I didn’t expect him to clean the house, although he took care of everything outdoors on his days off. When he was home for dinner or when we entertained, he did a huge portion of the cleanup and always did the dishes, a huge help, even now.

With him retired, he’s very helpful in keeping things tidy and still doing all the dishes. I clean the counters, stovetop, and refrigerator’s front and handles. I thought by now, with modern technology, there would be fingerprint-free refrigerator doors, but I’ve yet to experience such a “luxury” in any holiday home.

Ten days from now, while in Apache Junction, we’ll do our own cleaning. The park model is small with one bedroom and bath, and once a week, we’ll clean everything, getting it done in about 40 minutes. We’re not willing to pay $200 or more for a weekly cleaning. That will be another six weeks of cleaning; we’re free from there! We’ll have at least four months when we won’t be doing the cleaning.

Overall, I’d say cleaning is my least favorite task. I’d better get used to it since we won’t have a cleaner until we get to the hotel in Minnesota around May 23. From there, we’ll stay in hotels, and then, pure bliss, we’ll be in Marloth Park until the latter part of September.

In Marloth Park, we have Zef and Vusi five days a week. On the weekends, when they are off, all we do is make the bed and clean up after cooking and doing dishes. I can’t recall a day when we didn’t make the bed or had someone to do so. That’s no big deal.

The next thing I procrastinate over is getting the worksheet done for our accountant to do our taxes. I did this earlier this year, and at the moment, our accountant in Nevada has everything he needs from us. Tom gets worried about this, and although he never nags me about it, I can tell he’s concerned. It’s a job I’ve assigned to be my responsibility since I handle the money, but I tend to procrastinate about getting this task done.

Regarding procrastination, these are the only two tasks that I fall short of my usual “get it done” mentality. Everything else, I do when it comes up or on a regular schedule without giving it another thought. Even getting the daily walking and exercises done doesn’t find me looking for excuses to avoid the daily responsibility. I just do it without giving it much thought.

Every one of us has tasks we dread. If you’d like to share some tasks you dread, please comment at the end of today’s post. I’m curious to see what nags at you.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, March 22, 2014:

Yesterday, this was my meal at Le Jardin: fillet of Dover sole with a spinach sauce made with a flourless cream reduction sauce. In the center is an array of cooked vegetables, including carrots, zucchini, and eggplant. The chef prepared this meal after the server showed him the restriction list on my phone. It was fabulous. Now, I can’t wait to have this again! See how tempting it is to return to my favorite restaurant in Morocco when I can order a dish as unique as this? For more photos, please click here.

Comments and responses Unpleasant tasks….Are there many in this nomadic life?…

  1. Liz Reply

    Dear Jess and Tom, Your post today made me laugh! I too have an amazing husband who will pull his weight with cleaning, however our level of comfort that indicates ‘clean’ ‘tidy’ or ‘dirty’ ‘messy’ are on different pages. We approach life differently. I like to get things done & out of the way then I feel calmer and can relax into more enjoyable tasks after the necessary or less appealing things are out of the way. I do little and often on specific days. He waits and then blitzes the whole house over a long morning.
    As to tasks I avoid- I will pay a lot of money for someone to come in and clean my cooker oven. Doing the hob/ burners, no problem for me, but scrubbing shelving, sides of the oven and door I LOATHE with a passion! One Christmas my husband bought me an oven clean voucher and booked an appointment with an oven cleaning company. I thought it was the best gift ever! My mother in law was appalled! Whether it was that I didn’t clean my oven well enough myself or that she thought it was an inappropriate gift we will never know! I am not one for frivolous pretty gifts, practicality and experiences go along way with me. It showed he knew me and what would show his love and consideration. An astute quality.
    Tasks I do enjoy all have a common denominator of effecting change that creates a feeling of achievement- ironing clothes leaving a pile of neatly folded laundry, cutting the grass in the back garden leaving those strips on the lawn, cooking a recipe producing nourishing food for the ones I love, hoovering (vacuuming) the carpets, washing the kitchen floor. Although why I can’t get excited about cleaning the oven escapes me as I should enjoy the clean finish? Maybe it’s to do with the effort involve and the elbow grease needed? Isn’t it interesting how we are all different?

    • worldwide-admin Post authorReply

      Liz, I should have put oven cleaning on my list as well. I sure understand your abhorence to oven cleasning. Since we’ve been traveling, I wipe up spills right away but never seem to have the clean the oven leaving the task for the final cleaner service that is in included in our rent. What a great idea about the gift card for oven cleaning! I love that!

      Thanks for you interesting message, as always. We love hearing from you!

      Much love,
      Jess and Tom

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