Prioritize Jobs Before You Start Them
Those who possess basic how-to skills may be interested in taking a lesson from some of the most frequently requested jobs on the to-do lists of professional handymen.
Declare yourself a handyman (or handywoman if you prefer) for the day.
According to Michael R. Wilson, vice president of the handyman division of Bethesda, Md.-based Case/Remodeling, Inc., one of the best ways to begin is to take stock of each room, and make a list of every little thing that has been bugging you about it.
Some of the most frequently requested jobs are adjustment of cabinet drawers, planing doors that won’t shut properly, tightening faucets, adjusting windows so they slide easily or fixing crooked storm doors. Squeaky floors are very common. Wilson suggests rubbing graphite or talcum powder between old oak floor boards.
“Make a full list and prioritize as to what would make the most difference in comfort and what’s the best value,” says Wilson. You might begin with just four things and do the rest later. At least you have focused on the problems and made note of the jobs to be done.
Tips for cleaning
Putting your house on a diet requires willpower and diligence. Here is our prescription:
Remove five framed photographs.
Throw out three stained or cracked coffee mugs.
Go ahead and use all the boxes of gift soaps stashed in drawers and closets.
Go through your coat closet and sort out the old and the small. Give unneeded costs and jackets in good condition to an organization that could get them quickly to some cold people.
Recycle, give away or otherwise discard periodicals choking magazine baskets and racks.
Give all house plants a critical look.
Wash your windows - even if it’s only on the inside. Everything will look more sparkly when the sun does come out. “Clean windows are a spiritual thing. They’re our connection with nature,” says author Alexandra Stoddard.
Remove stuff from living-room tabletops. rearrange it, limiting tablescapes to three items.
Check the hook on the back of the bathroom door. “It probably has 14 items hanging on it,” says Stoddard. “Those things should be put in the washing machine.”
Remove all refrigerator magnets from the fridge and all the papers they are holding up. Start with a blank slate in the new year.