Coffee, Cleaning, and SATC

This blog was not intended to be written about cleaning, because it is a rare day that I do clean. Yesterday, surprisingly, was one of those rare days. I have yet to figure out how to get into that particular state of mind that makes me want to clean, but I recognize when it exists and usually try to take advantage of it.

I still haven't fully moved into my apartment. I moved in on a Saturday in August, and began work the following Monday. For the month of August, I spent any free time I had putting the necessities in their place and organizing them. I started traveling in September, and have been gone 4-5 days every week since. This upcoming week will be my last week traveling for work. I'm pretty excited to be back home most of the time (hence the poem I wrote that made me sound homeless). I realized, though, that I'll likely have to move out in May or June--so should I just leave some stuff packed? I've got a second bedroom. My intention was to use it as kind of a sewing/crafts room. Right now it's a graveyard for all my unpacked items. One of these days, I'll get around to fixing it up as my sewing/crafts room. In the meantime, I suppose I should find my motivation first...

Anyway, I cleaned for at least 4 hours yesterday! My desk, which usually gets the worst of the clutter (consisting of little notes-to-self, lots of books balanced on the heaping pile of clutter, a couple of magazines, grad school info, and dirty dishes) is now perfectly clear. It hasn't been that way since I moved in! I also did my laundry and packed my last suitcase to bring out for work purposes for the rest of the 2010 year.

So, what happened to the rest of the cleaning, you ask? I was totally on a roll, and then:

I had innocently turned it on (I own all the seasons and have seen them all before, so I thought it would be good background noise as I diligently cleaned) only to be grossly distracted by the show! Eventually, all motivation I had went out the window. Dinner went from being a pasta feast to being a can of cold corn (no judgments!) and I became a lazy bum engrossed in the lives of these four friends--again. So disappointed. Here's what I've figured out about my motivation to clean:

1. It only happens once a week, max. Take advantage of it while it's around.
2. It does not happen without coffee. Ever. Even at 10pm.
3. Watching HGTV usually enhances productivity.
4. Watching SATC diminishes all productivity.
5. It always comes around before I have guests over. Too bad I never have guests over here!

I suppose that's a start. Maybe when I'm 30 I'll have it better figured out. In the meantime, I'm going to sip on some Stephen's Peppermint Cocoa (because it's amazing--if you haven't already tried it, please do, it's a MUST!) and watch HGTV to see if the cleaning motivation comes back to me. If not, I've started on another good read...