Spring is here. In Texas, spring usually lasts about two weeks and then we dive straight into summer for the next seven months. But it’s technically spring and one of the rituals of spring, besides driving around looking for wildflowers, includes spring cleaning. Growing up in the North, our spring cleaning meant airing out the house after months of the house being bundled up against the snow and sub-zero temperatures. Windows were included in the spring cleaning ritual as were putting away heavy coats, scarves and gloves until cold weather returned. 

            My mom tackled the chore with a vengeance. She’d vacuum the rugs and carpets and fill the clothes line in the back yard with freshly washed curtains, drapes and blankets.

            So whenever I hear “spring cleaning,” the old tapes start playing in my head, and I start making a list of things to clean. I looked online for some tips, and good ole’ Martha Stewart graciously provided a printable spring cleaning list.

            Immediately, I can scratch at least half of her items off my list. We don’t have window screens, nor do we have storm windows. She also recommends waxing wooden furniture with paste wax. Sorry, Martha, but spray-on Pledge has worked just fine for 40 years.

            She does mention dusting the ceiling fan blades. Since ours seldom stop spinning and they’re so high up, it’s hard to see if there’s dust on there. However, that could be an item I’ll add to the list. I’ll get to that task right after I find the ladder.

            Which brings me to Martha’s recommendation for cleaning out the garage. My husband is extremely organized and neat, so there’s no need to add that to my spring cleaning list. And since the garage is so neat, I’d hate to mess it up by dragging the ladder out.

            So I suppose the ceiling fan blades can wait.

            Vacuum and shampoo rugs are next on the list. I’ll vacuum but our carpet isn’t that old, so I’ll defer that chore for another five years.

            Martha also recommends washing comforters and drapes. We don’t really have harsh winters so there aren’t heavy blankets to wash and hang out on the line. Besides, we don’t have a clothes line and I don’t have a clue where to buy clothes pins other than an arts and crafts store. So I quickly scratch those off the list.

            As far as washing curtains, I have the perfect excuse – we don’t have any. Thanks to allergies, I took down all the curtains years ago. Faux wood blinds do quite nicely, but I have a feeling there’s a nice layer of dust on all of them.    

            I took a closer look and, yep, there’s a layer of dust on every single blind. But if I start cleaning those, I’m only going to stir up a lot of dust and that’ll send my allergies into overdrive. Maybe it’s best if I just leave that dust there as a sort of protective sealant.

            Same goes for dust on the furniture. That fine layer of dust protects the wood, or so I’ve convinced myself, so I’ll just overlook that particular spring cleaning job.

            Scanning Martha’s list, I find I can cross a lot of things off without a second thought – clean the refrigerator coils – I don’t even know where those are – and defrost the freezer. Once the words “no-frost” came into my vocabulary, I’ve never looked back.

            The chores I will put on the list are updating the first-aid kit and tucking the warm-weather clothes out of the way. As a Texan, that’s about three items of clothing in my closet. Easiest job on the list.

            So there’s my spring cleaning list. Now I think I’ll get out there and enjoy those milder temperatures before the 98-degree days arrive. That should be in about a week.

This column was originally published in The Fort Bend Herald.