Ms. Clean

I nearly always leave a vacation rental cleaner than I find it. When we're in Florida for a month, I clean and do laundry several times a week. Bathrooms and the kitchen get a good cleaning before guests arrive and after they leave. I always feel satisfied after I finish, even though the job is far from perfect. Bob jokes that he's going to get me a job cleaning vacated condos, but I know my skills and effort aren't up to professional standards.

This Good Friday morning, a time I often devote to Easter cleaning at home in Saint Paul,  I performed the usual tasks, including a quick once over of the deck furniture, and am listening to a load of laundry complete its last rinse cycle. I hear kids playing in the pool and am looking forward to the visit of grandchildren Adam and Mitchell, as well as their parents Trudy and John. Easter weekend will be more lively than usual, and we're looking forward to their cheerful presence.

A little grocery shopping and we're done with scheduled work for the day. Looks as though the rain will hold off so we'll find something fun to keep us occupied. At home, we'd go to Good Friday services in the evening, one of two in our large parish, but there's only one at the traditional 3:00 p.m. time at St. John Vianney Church and I'm not sure that we'll make it.

I love the clean smells and the faint odor of salt from the Gulf of Mexico. I'm trying to ignore the occasional strong whiffs of sewage from the pumping station across the street.