esrosedotblog

I want to share my dish washing procedures for other "single men" who find that they are eating alone.

First, if you are just beginning your "single" status, take all the clean dishes from last night's operation out of the dishwasher and put them away. Then take today's dishes, not counting any that your partner used this morning, and put them in the dishwasher as you use them.

I had the good fortune that my partner didn't use any before he left this morning. Easy peasy.

Do not, incidentally, use any of the dirty dishes during the day for a second use. This is a normal guy thing but I do not recommend it. Besides being a little on the disgusting side (why one would do it of course, to be disgusting) it is not making best use of this special method. Avoid the impulse to second use. One usage per dish.

At the end of the day, after dinner and before any "snack" really wash the load that is in the dishwasher.

Do not succumb to the other guy impulse which is to not wash the dishes until the machine is full. Do it at the end of your eating day.

Tomorrow. First thing. Take your dishes as needed from the dishwasher, an item at a time. Do not, of course, put it back into the washer until the end of the day. Accumulate the day's dishes in the dish rack in the left hand basin of the double sink.

At the end of the day, repeat.

This way, you will not use any more dishes than you absolutely have to use. You will have all that you need in rotation in the washer.

The single man does not want to have too many dishes in operation. I think that this is the reason the impulse to double or triple usage is indulged. This is over doing it.

Usually, the dishwasher will settle down to a nice regular inventory. In my case, there is a cereal dish, an egg plate or, on alternate days, a yogurt/fruit bowl. A mid morning cup and plate for under to contain the frozen yogurt snack.

There will be a plate for the lunch sandwich (small) and a glass for milk. There will be a coffee cup to nurse continuously during the morning to be finished around noon.

There is no afternoon snack that requires a dish of any kind. A coke in the can and a handful of pretzel rods have their own "plates". Then. A big dinner plate at night. Perhaps another glass for water with dinner but usually, on my own, I drink from my perpetual water bottle or don't have water at all as I would if someone was here.

Then, at the end of the day, as happens these days, a plate and a cup thing for pistachio nuts and their shells. This does not get washed that day but is kept over for the next day's load. It can be used the next morning, the one re-use exception if you need a handful of pistachios before lunch. After all, it is pretty clean and can be safely used in this way.

After dinner, pretty simple, everything goes into the dishwasher and the machine is turned on.

In the morning, your day's clean plates will be ready for use. Load up the dish drainer as you did on the previous day.

On Friday, there will be one cup that has been holding your tooth brush at day and your dentures at night. Put it in the wash and grab it out when it is clean just before you need it for bed. If you do not have dentures, no problem. Use your water glass in the bathroom to hold the brush for that night.

The bathroom water glass. Needs cleaning when you think of it. Put it in the mix anytime and don't forget to take it out. Do not do it on a Friday as it will be needed to hold the tooth brush if you don't have dentures. See above.

Any questions?

OK.

One more thing. In this house, we wash the dog's food dish daily. It is put in at night and retrieved in the morning. The clean dish becomes the water dish which becomes the meal dish. Then that one is washed.

I include this because some people do have a dog.

Also, I realize, that some people, usually not dog people are revolted by the idea of a dog dish being washed with human dishes. These people should get a life. The modern dishwasher is so hot you can't stand it and if I am willing to eat dishes that are used by other humans, so what?

Labels: housekeeping