I think it suggests something about disordered thinking vs. ordered thinking. Being careless vs. careful. Giving fucks or not having any fucks to give.
And I really resent the suggestion that, if I care about sanitation, that means I have too much time on my hands. WTF, is that supposed to be some sort of excuse to be a lazy POS who never cleans anything, because you're just so important and busy?
No, I think a clean house means I don't want to live with vermin and bugs. I don't want to get sick from mold spores or have allergy and asthma attacks from dust mites and dog fur. I don't want to poison any food or drink that I offer to my guests. I can't be having every last surface in the kitchen and bathroom covered in e coli.
You may choose to live differently. I have always believed that the state of my house is a reflection of the state of my mind. When I am depressed and give zero fucks, guess what my house looks like? Like a friggin' hurricane blew through there. When I am in good shape mentally, taking care of business, and not blowing off/ignoring important things that must get done, usually my house is part of the "important things" list and reflects the more ordered thinking.
According to a talk yesterday by the world RS president, it's a sign of a worthy sister who is properly supporting her priesthood-bearing husband, and as such invites the spirit.
That alone makes me want to let the place slide a little...
But what if it's guys instead of women!? My TBM dad's room and my room are clean and neat, while my youngest TBM sister downstairs lives in a pig pen room next to my room!
Your parents should really be nicer and get her an actual room. ;)
From the sounds of it credit goes to your mom anyway, but in actuality the focus is no doubt on the parts of your house that would be seen by other church members, not the hidden away places.
In my case, our untidy home is a sign that my wife, with RA and fibromyalgia, and I, with a replaced knee and bad lower back (surgery didn't fix), are unable to keep it tidy.
We do, however, have a great time making fun of ourselves and laugh a lot at the signs of our accomplishment of "growing old together"!
Cleanliness could have to do with the value a person places on cleaning, the number of other things they have to do, personal organization, how they feel (energy, or even health could play into this), or the cleanliness of other people who share the house.
I remember dating a guy once who told me he thought cleanliness reflected directly on the person and the state of their mind, almost like a worthiness test. That was a real turn off for me. I wouldn't want friends, or a romantic interest to constantly judge me for the way my house looks. How I keep my house is my business, not theirs.
That said, I feel better when it's clean. I can think better, I get more done, and I feel a lot less stress.
Since I have an unorganized (and at times messy) house, I would like to say that it's not a big deal. But to be honest with myself, I'm lazy. I don't like to get down to work and organize. Throwing away papers (namely, but other things, too) is agonizing. I don't like making these decisions. I do have boxes and waste baskets full of paper that I would never miss that are taking up space in my house, but I am procrastinating (years) to throw away.
Here an unclean house means I'm pregnant with a toddler, husband is working away, I'm looking after disabled parents and running a business. Oh and can't get a cleaner for love nor money, the only ones who'll come out will do a "one off deep clean" but nothing regular.
I don't think it means much other than housework isn't someone's high priority.
My house is often a mess. My partner and I both work full time, have kids and a couple of pets. We both have elderly family members who need help. The kids are in a zillion activities, so our usual routine is to come home from work, slap some dinner on the table (often stuff I've cooked over the weekend or froze). I think having a family dinner is way more important than whether the beds are made.
We shove the dishes in the dishwasher and each take a kid off to music lessons, rehearsals, dance lessons, concerts, TKD, etc. We get home in time to do a little minimal stuff like a load of laundry and it's bed time. Weekends are full of running errands, grocery shopping, prepping for the week, mowing the lawn and dealing with elderly relatives.
We do clean periodically, but usually the place is a mess. It's not filthy, but it would benefit from more housework. There just aren't enough hours in the day, and my priorities are getting my kids to activities and helping out the old folks over having the place sparkling.
People with clean homes rarely think they are spending their time unwisely, people with dirty homes are always wishing they had time to clean their homes.
I don't think it really says much, and definitely doesn't indicate "disordered thinking vs. ordered thinking. Being careless vs. careful."
I think I have very ordered thinking, and am very careful, but having a "clean" house is not high on my priorities.
As a kid, my room was always spotless. Now, it's no big deal if the house isn't "clean." I have siblings that were just the opposite. Their rooms were a pig-sty growing up, and now everything has to be squeaky clean.
At the opposite end from "dirty," I know people that their house has to be spotless at all times, to the point of being OCD about it. One drop of food on the floor while cooking--immediately vacuum the whole house, in case any of it did (or might) get tracked anywhere, even though no one was near the food for the 2 seconds it was on the floor.
I'm not saying that everyone who HAS to have a clean house is OCD about it, but some are.
I grew up in a house that was a disaster area. I hated it. I don't mind a bit of clutter, but i'm am very picky about having a clean bathroom and kitchen. Dirty kitchens an bathrooms are gross.
After taking a couple of microbiology classes I changed the way I work in a kitchen. When you see the stuff on the counter top moving around under a microscope it can make you kinda queasy.
I like a clean bedroom. I never make my bed though. I change sheets whenever they seem to need it.
My husband is a bit ocd. I learned to keep most of the clutter in cabinets and closets. When you come to my house, be careful when you open a closet door. You never know what's going to fall on you.
I know when my son is living in squalor that he is suffering. I used to go in and throw him out of the room and clean. Now I pay him to clean his room. It has worked. He is much happier and doing much better.
Sometimes, though, I had to overlook the mess to keep working.
We like a clean house. My Catholic wife was raised by an overbearing, humorless clean freak (see, not only found in Mormonism) and my Mom was also fastidious about keeping a clean house and was raised Presbyterian. We have cleaners come in every 2 weeks to help because out house is too big now and we're semi crippled up but a clean house is a nice place to be.
Ron Burr
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/02/2014 05:11PM by Lethbridge Reprobate.
That reminds me of my grandma who was Catholic, but was a real clean freak to the point where it was uncomfortable to visit the grandparents. Every single thing was planned, and my grandma wasn't the type who would make cookies with the grandchildren because we would mess up the kitchen too much or something. There was a wooden train set that we all played with, but everything had to go back into its box before being put in the plastic bin.
Right now my very messy house says that my three little boys have been playing Legos and that I had a root canal this morning so I haven't felt up to cleaning. No deeper meaning there.
I keep my apartment very clean and tidy. But, I'm terrible with closets they are messy. Now and then, I'll go through and throw out things, but I get it messy again.
I think it depends how dirty we are taking about. Certain levels of dirty can indicate a psychological problem. Ever seen hoarders?
My home always has some mess and my wife is much cleaner and organized than me. Just the kids cause a lot of clutter. It is past time to try to teach them to clean up after themselves.
1. A messy home may be an indication of depression. 2. Longfellow wrote that a perfectly ordered house is a sign of....no children. Longfellow loved children. 3. The ideal is inbetween.