In my life, nothing is ever quite finished:
- My kids are always a work in progress
- My job is one long, ever-evolving project
- I'm always redoing one or more of the rooms in my house
- I've always got some self-improvement project going
That's why I get a great deal of satisfaction from my refrigerator. My husband does most of the grocery shopping during the week and every other Tuesday we get a delivery of organic produce from Farm Fresh to You. So by the time Saturday rolls around, the fridge is nice and full, and I clean it out.
- I pull out all the produce, clean it, cut it up, put it in containers that are all the same size and create an altar for them where I can admire their beauty, and the kids can have easy access to them
- I organize all the cheese and meat in one place, the leftovers in another
- I make a big pan of lasagna for my son Jack, who loves lasagna, and give that it's own shelf
- I throw away all the expired condiments -- sometimes I throw out something that's not quite expired just to have the satisfaction of purging something
- I like my refrigerator to have lots of pretty colors in it, so sometimes I make an extra trip to the store to fill in a blank in the palette.
When we're done, I step back and admire our work. If our work is especially beautiful, I sometimes call the other kids in to admire with me. They roll their eyes and say "we know, Mom, you do this every Saturday."
As I read back what I've written so far, I realize I sound like a nut, but there's nothing like a project that has a beginning, an end, and a tangible result to make you feel like you've accomplished something. I love my fridge.
5 comments:
My refrigerator is so intimidating! Finally, someone has provided me with some direction on how to take a design approach to healthy eating habits.
Thanks, and lookin forward to your next blog..
design challenged in Scottsdale
I totally get what you mean about theraputic fridge cleaning...it's the best. Organization brings a sense of calm to life even in the most unexpected places.
Have you tried fridge cushions yet? I put rubber cushions in the shelves of my fridge doors to reduce the rattle bottles made when the door was opened. You know, those rubber cushions that you buy and cut to fit shelves, rugs, or whatever you want to hold in place. The other day I saw cushions in colors...now I want to replace all the cushions in my fridge with lovely colors....I think I'll collect citus colors...then when I open the frige, it will smile back at me.
Do you have an answer for toast crumbs? Think about it....it's a never ending battle at my house: ME against the CRUMBS.
I am convinced they have a strategy meeting every night and are prepared and fresh in the morning when I wake up and sleepily make my way to the coffee pot. After a cup, my head is clearing and I begin to think about food. (I will admit that secretly, I have been thinking about food since I woke up, but needed coffee worse.) Anyway, I pull out the toaster, and there they are again...toast crumbs.
Every time I use the toaster, I clean up the crumbs from the tray and toaster before I put it away, but then they appear again the next morning before I even put the bread in the machine.
...they are on the shelf where I store the toaster,
...they are on the counter where I set the toaster
...they fall on the floor when I take the toaster out of the drawer and put it on the counter to make today's toast.
...as a final insult, they are in the butter bowl that I use to make toast each morning.
I have tried giving up toast so my toaster and kitchen will remain crumb free...but I can't. Cinnamon toast is my #1 comfort food...can't live without it.
That's a great question, and one I can relate to. Cinnamon toast is a house special at Casa de los Furbers too, but our issue seems to be more with the cinnamon ending up everywhere. My Mom has a good idea for that -- premake it and put it in a shaker like salt or pepper.
On the crumbs, I have a few thoughts:
Put your toaster on a tray with high sides and handles. The proliferation of crumbs and scraps will be contained on the tray rather than here, there and everywhere. Maybe cleaning your toaster tray can become your version of my Saturday morning fridge blitz.
Or
Keep a dustbuster wherever you know there will be a mess. In this case, under your kitchen sink. That way, when the mess gets to you, your tools are handy.
By no means should you give up cinnamon toast -- it's one of the last true simple pleasures. A couple good pieces of cinnamon toast can sometimes be the best thing to happen to me all day.
I am fairly OCD and understand wanting to organize, purge, and tidy the refrigerator. However, since I am a single guy who eats out for lunch and dinner every day, I have been able to achieve a new level of minimization. I have nothing in my freezer at all. Not even ice cubes in a tray. The refrigerator has one container of milk, and occassionally a bottle of water. That's it!
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