Hints From Heloise

Dear Heloise: For years, I did spring and fall cleaning the way Grandma used to do. Then, one year I was telling a friend how I needed to find time to start my spring cleaning and she pointed out the reason Grandma used to do spring and fall cleaning was that she did not have the vacuums and cleaning products we use daily or weekly. She said that basically the only thorough cleaning a house got was those two times a year.

I realized she was right and that I had actually been “spring cleaning” all year long. I felt like a ton of guilt had been lifted off of my shoulders.

I have since abandoned the idea of an all-out cleaning siege twice a year. As a working wife and mother of three, finding enough free time to do everything at once is a virtual impossibility. I clean what I can when I can get to it and periodically straighten closets, dust corners and crevices, and do all other out-of-the-way cleaning tasks as needed. I don’t get stressed out and my family is happier. As the saying goes, “If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!” - Jana L. Gleim, Burwell, Neb.

Your uplifting hint will help millions of women. Toss that guilt right out with the trash. - Heloise Send your money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, PO Box 795000, San Antonio TX 78279-5000.