How to balance feminism with pragmatism in household chores
Both my partner and I consider ourselves progressive, feminist individuals. In most things, we are great about ensuring the we are contributing equally. The problem arises when it comes to the domestic sphere…
I don’t want to be responsible for the majority of the domestic chores. At the same time, I don’t think it is very feminist to force someone to do something they hate. Is there some way you have found balance in your relationships?
How a Roomba saved my marriage
Twenty minutes later I hear him running the vacuum for the 4th time in 4 days and I wonder just how much strain this is putting on our marriage. I “spontaneously” tidy up the bathroom and hope for the best. Enter the Roomba…
5 ways to cope with hoarding
I didn’t expect hoarding to impact my life in such a big way. I grew up in a house that made constant donations to whatever organization would come by our front door — at least three garbage bags each month, minimum. Stuff came in, stuff went out. This was my normal. And then I met the man who would one day become my husband. And then I met his parents. And now hoarding is a very real and stressful part of my life. Here are some of the challenges of dealing with hoarders, and how we cope with them…
Gamify your chores for great justice
You can game-ify your home, but did you know you can game-ify the way you CLEAN your home? Unlock your inner champion for real-life rewards. Make a giant real life game out of your day-to-day chores to motivate yourself and your spacemates (while having more fun)!
Living with my partner isn’t like living with a roommate
The other day when my boyfriend was at work, I texted him to say “I’m exhausted and I just want to warn you that the dishes aren’t done. I’ll get to them tomorrow first thing.”
His response: “I hate to tell you this, love, but you’re an adult now. You can do the dishes whenever you want!”
My reaction in my mind: “Not true. I have a responsibility to my roommate to maintain this house in the way that I would want to live in it.” Then I caught myself and thought for a minute. Does living with your partner mean that maybe, just maybe, the entire home is now under our shared dominion? And that, within reason, I can decide what gets done when, just like he can? I still wasn’t sure.
4 reasons why you need to reassess the division of labor in your house
If you and your partner are anything like me and mine, you settled into some domestic patterns in the first few months of living together. But even if your systems are working well, you still need to revisit and shake-up your divisions of labor. Here’s why…
“Unfucking” your habitat together: 5 ways to get your partner to help clean house
I’ve lived with my spouse for four years. In that time, through several apartments and sets of roommates, I’ve learned that we are in fact Dirty People. Rather than keep each other motivated, the two of us tend to wallow in our own filth. This is how the blog Unfuck Your Habitat taught me the 5 ways to help get my cleaning-impaired husband to pitch in on the cleaning duties.
How to blend two schools of thought about cleaning under one roof
I try to do daily cleaning until I get behind and overwhelmed. Then he will take a weekend and do a massive cleaning. We both end up feeling like the other one never does any cleaning. How can we find a better compromise?