Spring Cleaning in July

We celebrated Independence Day by giving our prison cell apartment a thorough scrubbing. “Thorough” as in near-blisters and aching joints when we were done. Except we weren’t really done, because we still have our bedroom and closets to do tonight. That this includes a new bed, desk and rug – completing the Extreme Makeover – makes it all a bit more bearable.

It’s funny how you can go months without realizing you’ve simply been treading water, waiting for something to happen instead of making it happen. We hadn’t really done much with the apartment since we’d started looking at houses, and the place had gotten to the point where I was starting to hate being in it. It was always messy, my comic books were taking over the bedroom, and the kids’ toys were always underfoot in every room.

We flip-flopped the kids’ play area and the dining room – instead of our original plan of trading bedrooms, converting the living room into our bedroom and using the kids’ room as an office – giving them a lot more space to play and making the apartment feel new again after two years, the longest we’ve lived anywhere. We also finally put together their toddler beds, so India is now out of her crib and free to roam. Fortunately, she loves bedtime, the whole tucking in and saying good night, so it’s been an easier transition than I expected. We did have to switch their sheets, though, as she claimed Isaac’s bed for herself and wouldn’t give it up!

The comic books are still a bit of a problem, though, as I’m up to six longboxes, three short boxes and two stacks-and-a-half of unfiled (and unread!) comics and trade paperbacks. The discount I get at Midtown via Buzzscope has meant I’m spending slightly less money than I used to, but for nearly twice as many comics! (It also means your gift certificates for my upcoming birthday are worth twice as much!) I’m going to have do a little spring cleaning here, too, figuring out what I actually want to collect – primarily anything with Moon Knight, Black Panther, Black Lightning, [selective] Batman, random minority characters, and everything from Epic – and selling the rest of the stuff on eBay or something. I also need to figure out a way to generate some income from this stuff before the end of the year so I can claim some business expenses.

Anyway, we got some good news last Friday when we found a school for India that has an available spot starting in September. 1:1 teacher:student, they bus her there and back, and she can transition into their pre-K program after she ages out of Early Intervention. Also, our daycare provider decided to stop being flaky and, after a three-week vacation, will be back in business at her new place. All that’s left is for us to win the lottery now and we’ll be set!

As Isaac would say, “Seven more sleeps until we leave for New Orleans!” Calgon…

Written by Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

Guy LeCharles Gonzalez is the Chief Content Officer for LibraryPass, and former publisher & marketing director for Writer’s Digest. Previously, he was also project lead for the Panorama Project; director, content strategy & audience development for Library Journal & School Library Journal; and founding director of programming & business development for the original Digital Book World.

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