cleaning Quotes

“To quietly work away at disposing of your own excess is actually the best way of dealing with a family that doesn’t tidy. As if drawn into your wake, they will begin weeding out unnecessary belongings and tidying without your having to utter a single complaint . . . Cleaning quietly on one’s own generates another interesting change—the ability to tolerate a certain level of untidiness among your family members.”

“There were times, indeed, when the vigor she put into her work was more of a relief to her feelings than it was an ardor to efface dirt.”

“When he’s finished giving himself a trim, he’ll want a broom to sweep it up. He’ll start sweeping. He might get carried away and sweep every room in the house. He may even end up washing the floors as well!”

“She looked at her list again. Dust the furniture. ‘did you ever hear tell of such a silly thing. At my house we undust the furniture. But to each his own way.’ ”

“I asked you what you were doing,” said Lotta. The dog sat down in the grass and began to lick his front right paw. He wrinkled up his nose and cleaned especially carefully between his toes, which were crusted with lumps of thick dry earth. He behaved as though he hadn’t heard a thing.

“They abolished National Service, and they’ve put me where I can’t turn garbage into men any more, but I can clean up the garbage, can’t I?”

“They have lots of fun sweeping the chimney—but they get very dirty.”

“Once there was a lighthouse keeper called Mr. Grinling... In the day time he rowed out to his lighthouse on the rocks to clean and polish the light.”

“Now and again Dave’s Mum said that Dogger was getting much too dirty. She showed Dave how to wash him in a bowl of soapy water.”

“I’ll clean out your stables and curry your horses... whatever you want.”

“Housekeeping ain’t no joke.”