Motivation

I finally realized the main reason why I clean my kitchen.

I probably do dishes at least twice a day, and I try very hard to keep the counters clear of crumbs. And certainly a big reason for this is because it's just plain nice having a clean kitchen!

But after the kids are in bed, I have to get everything spotless. Dishes washed, table and high chairs scrubbed down, floor vacuumed. The works. (And when I say "I," I really mean "we." Craig always pitches right in so we get the job done fairly quickly.) I remember my mission president's wife explaining that it was much more restful going to bed with a clean house, and I wholeheartedly believe this.

But the real reason I try to keep things so clean is because I'm afraid of ants. There is no greater siren song to ants than crumbs left all over your counter or food sitting on the table. Trust me, I lived in Africa. I know about ants. Any food left out would be covered in ants within the hour. I live in fear of the day that I will come downstairs in the morning and discover a kitchen turned black with ants. (Really, I've had nightmares.)

So I clean. And so far it hasn't happened. We did get some ants in the bay window of our apartment shortly before I moved, but there was no food there, just a lot of paint chips that the ants were convinced must be hiding food. But even then, I had to not look at the bay window or else I would lose my appetite. I was so relieved once I had finally cleaned it out and sprayed Raid all over it... The only other incident that even comes close to this nightmare of mine was the time I left brownies in my backpack while I was in California. That was a big mistake! After emptying the backpack of all food items, I just left it outside by the garbage cans for a week, hoping the ants would realize the food was gone. (Fortunately for me, my aunt didn't get mad that I'd gotten ants on her bed while my backpack was resting there-- she assured me that ants in Southern California were pretty much a way of life. Poor Californians!) And I'm sure I have many stories involving the ants in Africa, but none of them are coming to mind right now. Perhaps I've blocked them out? You're probably happier not hearing them, anyway, so I won't try to remember.

Anyway, that's my weird paranoia. Or at least one of them. What's yours?