A grandmother is a mother who has a second chance

Thursday, March 13, 2008

See, Mom, I did it right!!

Yesterday I was racing around getting ready for an early meeting (yes, even retired folks have early meetings). I was trying to make the bed, get dressed, and have breakfast all at the same time. Decided on cold cereal and poured the milk in the bowl. Finished off what was in the carton so I closed it and put it on the counter to take to the recycle bin. Started to walk out of the kitchen when I heard my mother say – “Sandi, smash the carton!” So I went back to the kitchen, uncapped the carton, smashed it as small as possible, and recapped it. There, now I felt better.

Mind you, Mom passed away almost 13 years ago, but she still yells at me! At least in my head. One of her pet peeves was when any of us would throw a carton or box away (even toilet and paper towel rolls) and not smash it down first. Took up too much room in the waste basket if we didn’t. Ed isn’t a smasher – so I follow him around pulling empty Kleenex boxes out of the trash and smashing them. A little OCD? Ya think? Plus there is all that Italian/Catholic guilt that has built up over the years. Can't defy my mom.

I still hear my mom’s voice at other times, too, like –

When I take the last of something out of the refrigerator or off the shelf – better write it on the shopping list RIGHT AT THAT MOMENT!!

When I wash my hands, I never hold them too high to shake them dry – might get water spots on the mirror. I keep them close to the basin and gently shake the water off. Oh, and if I do get a spot on the mirror, it gets wiped off in a flash. If not, she might see it!

I can NEVER leave the house with the bed unmade. For heaven’s sake, you never know who might drop over and, of course, insist on seeing the bedroom. OK, I would make an exception in an emergency, but it would have to be one hell of an emergency.

If I see a corner messed up on an area rug, or the rug isn't positioned properly, I must fix it.

Mom always said she wanted to be able to go into any of the drawers in the kitchen in the dark and find exactly what she was looking for. While this isn’t something I do very often (or ever – not a big fan of the dark) I do manage to keep things in their place. If the scissors aren’t in the top drawer in the little basket to the right with the blade pointed toward the back, I get a little anxious.

I also get nervous when I see someone put their silverware on their plate in such a manner that any of the items cross over each other. That was some sort of Italian superstition , and even though I have no idea what the “bad” result would be, it still makes me nervous.
Luckily Ed is as OCD as I am - even more in some areas (I know, it's frightening!). So it all works out. And Mom stays happy - never did like it when she yelled at me.

8 comments:

junglemama said...

If mom's happy, everyone is happy!

Jenni said...

Oh good grief! Leave the bed unmade once in a while. Sometimes it's nice to crawl into it when it's all rumpled.

I often hear Grandma yelling "Stun bit!" (her polite way of saying "Son of a B--ch") Not sure why, I just do.

Just Laura said...

I like that you still hear your mom and even more that you follow her direction.

Jenni's right - leave the bed unmade every so often. It is nice to crawl under nice cool sheets.

Scoobers said...

this post made me a wee sad. i dunno why. maybe i thought of having to think of the echos i will hear one day...

i do hear my gramma occasionally when i leave a light on, wear stripes ('you look like a convict in those clothes!'), a door open ('are you trying to refrigerate the whole neighborhood?').

tunia said...

Strange how little things keep them alive in us!

Desert Diva said...

It's amazing the impact our parents have on us - even long after they are physically gone...

Unknown said...

Mom would be proud. My mom is still around but I certainly hear her voice in my head too. :)

Chatterness said...

You're the kind of person I soooo envy!! I have strict routines in every aspect of my life except my household chores! I am always going 100 mph, yet when I get home from work, all I want to do is get on my computer....to hell with making up the bed!!!!