be neat

My first chemo appointment is in about an hour and fifteen minutes here. So now that we’re in that strange I should have left for work 5 minutes ago so I’m ready for my day and have absolutely nothing I’m supposed to be doing gap of free time, I tell you about how I spent all day cleaning my house yesterday along with a little help from my dad and my sister.

I’m not normally a fan of antibacterial products being used by normal healthy people, but lymphoma is a cancer of your lymphatic system which is a critical part of your immune system and add to that that chemotherapy will compromise my immune system even further and in just a few hours here I’ll have virtually no defense against bacteria on my own.

Yesterday morning I went grocery shopping to pick up all the things I needed for my meal plan and at the grocery store I also picked up some Lysol spray and some antibacterial multi surface cleaner (products I wouldn’t be using if I were healthy).

After cooking up 12 servings of meatballs and a double batch of cranberry muffins for the freezer and cutting and seasoning all my other raw meat so that it’s ready to just pop in the pan, I cleaned every surface in the kitchen with antibacterial surface cleaner.

I’m also going to have to get in the habit of not reusing the same glasses for washing down my pills and instead start washing those after each use. I’ll have to actually wash the coffee pot more than once a week as well. Basically we’re to the point where everything needs washed after even one use. My dishwasher has an extra hot antibacterial setting and until I’m cancer free, I’ll be running it on that setting daily even when it’s not completely full.

In the bathrooms, all surfaces were cleaned with the antibacterial multi surface spray. My sister came over and helped me out by mopping all of the tile and linoleum floors in my house.

In my bedroom, I’m caught up on all of my laundry and it’s all put away. All towels and bath rugs and bedding was bleached and washed on hot and then put back in it’s place just as clean as can be.

My dad helped out with the vacuuming. I’m sure it’s only been a few weeks since I last vacuumed but somehow he filled the vacuum cleaner almost 10 times. (Really, I’m not sure how the cat has any fur left since she’s not that big and most of it was cat fur.)

Speaking of the cat, while on chemo, I’ll need a mask and gloves to clean her litterbox myself, but my dad has offered to come over and take care of the big weekly cleaning. She’s an indoor only cat so I don’t have to worry about her bringing in germs from the outdoors.

All of the light switches and door knobs throughout the house got a good dose of Lysol spray.

So for the past 12 hours now, the house has been about as spotless as it has ever been.

I’ll be breaking out the antibacterial products again to clean up after preparing things like raw meat or to wipe down potentially germy surfaces after anyone comes over but I still believe that if you have a properly functioning immune system then you do not need much more than good old soap and elbow grease to get your house clean.

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