Cleaning Sucks

I spent much of yesterday and about half of today cleaning the dogs' room. (Yes, they have their own room.) Talk about a dirty job . . .

Okay, I admit, I'm not a cleaner. I love clean houses; I just love when they clean themselves. And that never happens, at least not here.

So I don't recall ever cleaning the room thoroughly since we moved the dogs in. (It used to be the kiddo's room, but, hey, move off for ten years, and we eventually do something else with your space.) And the only reason I decided to clean thoroughly now is that I had to get the Christmas decorations put up, and they go in the closet in that room, and it was so dusty/pet hairy that my allergies gave me fits going in there.

So I vacuumed. Dusted. Everywhere. Honest to God, I had to vacuum the WALLS. We live in the country off a dirt road, so everything gets dusty, and six dogs put out a LOT of hair and dander. Before I started, Robert went up in the attic and emptied the canister for the central vac. (The guys who installed the current one told us the canister would need to be emptied about twice a year. Hahahahahah. Try twice a freakin' month.)

I had told Robert that he'd probably have to empty the canister again before I was finished, but I was joking. Well, not so much a joke. After a while, the suction on the vacuum dropped way off. I decided to call it quits since I'd been at it for hours and, like I said, I'm not a cleaner by nature. When I unplugged the vacuum hose from the wall, a hose-size clump of hair actually blew out of the outlet. And it was still attached to another hose-size clump of hair thst slipped back down out of sight.

Hm. So there's a hose or pipe or whatever snaking through my walls and attic, from the back hall all the way upstairs to the canister, and it's FULL of dog hair and dust. This long tunnel solid-packed with the shedding of six dogs. Kind of boggles the mind.

Next week I'm getting back to work -- writing work. Cleaning always makes me thankful I've got another job. It's the only good thing about it.

Well, that, and the fact that I can breathe in the dogs' room again. Rachel3:01 PM