An announcement and where I quote MLK and New Moon in the same post

Jan 18, 2010 by Rochelle

First…the announcement!

For a couple of months now, my sister, Marissa, and I have been working on a new blog project. Something where we can each make posts about our desire to be better people and…big girls. We spend a lot of time together going on and on about how we’re going to make life changes. And so we decided really try this year to do it, and share our experience with people.

We’re calling it “The Simple Sisters.” Mostly because we’re trying to find simple ways to be adult like (organized, responsible, financially sound, etc.).

So check it out. We’re having a pretty fun time with it and it’s working so far to keep us in line.

Today I posted a couple of times over there, including the post below. I thought I’d cross-post this one over here too.

Three Day Weekend Clean Up!

First, and foremost…today is Martin Luther King Jr. day and it’s definitely a day to celebrate and remember his contributions and principles. I happened to read an MLK quotation today that I thought was quite good, particularly in this time of tragic circumstances in Haiti,“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: what are you doing for others?”

Giving back to others is obviously a very important thing to think about and do, andI feel funny pivoting from that sentiment, but this is a post about doing things for myself. I’m learning that taking good care of yourself, frees you to do good things for others. And boy am I no where near being able to truly help others because there’s so much work to do here.

And if turning away from that sentiment wasn’t bad enough, I’m about to quote the movie “New Moon,” in the same post as quoting the great Martin Luther King Jr. This part of the movie really stuck out at me. Charlie, Bella’s dad, is encouraging her to see Jacob and he says “You know, sometimes, you gotta learn to love what’s good for you.“

Rather wise I must admit. And something that I need learn. Having a clean and organized home is not only good for me, it’s good for others. I need to learn to love it and strive toward it.

I’m not a terribly messy person, and I’m not terribly cluttered or disorganized. But I’m not solid in the other direction. My house gets messy, I neglect it and just go through the motions. I vacuum every now and again, and do the dishes when there’s no more counter space by the sink. I cook here and there, and have a decent pantry. And I do laundry when my underwear runs out. I could obviously be better about taking care of my environment and my things.

I tend to use the excuse that it’s because I’m on my own and I work full time. But what I’ve found is that I don’t really enjoy my off time because I’m constantly thinking about how I should be cleaning. And if it’s not clean, and my kitchen is not accessible, I tend to pick up fast food. My health suffers because I don’t have a clean kitchen, and the like.

So I decided that I would use this three day weekend to clean up a little bit and that’s what I’ve done. It also helped that I had a little pressure on me. I knew all week that I was going to have house guests on Sunday night to watch the Golden Globes. What an excellent source of pressure.

With all that in mind, and the great start I made this weekend, I want to work toward making it a habit, and be a big girl with a nice clean apartment.