Horrors of a new household

The door swung open and I stepped in a little gingerly, trying to pick my way through the 3 inch layer of dust that seemed to coat every surface. One and a half years after we were married, we were finally going to be living together- here in this messy house that had been locked up for 3 months. I had been well prepared already but it was still difficult not to scream in frustration as I looked at the dirt around me. We plunged right in, armed with brooms and mops and managed to scrub off a little of the dirt.

Prashanth left for office soon with a worried look on his face, imagining me dropping dead from exhaustion, no doubt. I surveyed the disaster area and decided to clean up one room at a time, starting with the bedroom. A morning spent dusting cleaning, mopping and sweeping left me clutching my back. So I entered the kitchen to take a break , but the sight was almost too much to bear. All our pots and pans had become black from salt water and corrosive sea air. It would take me a week to just scrub my way through. It took me three days to finally get the house into some semblance of order.
We were still eating out everyday and my next task was to get the kitchen in order. Amma arrived then, like a godsend and we happily spent the next two days shopping. The prospect of setting up house seemed to send everyone into paroxysms of ecstasy, especially the thought of buying plastic bottles in all shapes and sizes. She painstakingly washed, filled and arranged all of the boxes. The kitchen set up, we started cooking and surprising myself, I enjoyed it. Experimenting was exciting, and as long as I was trying out a new dish everyday, I was happy. Prashanth being appreciative of everything I tried, spurred me on.

I discovered just how demanding a house can be. There’s something to be done everyday – the gas, the telephone, electricity, some pipe leaking, something we forgot to buy – it seems never ending. But its worth it when I just take a look around and think that its my home - a dirty house that somehow transformed itself into a home. Plus a beach that’s a 5 minute walk away more than makes up for any other disadvantages I think :)