Cleanin' and Scrubbin' and Hey Lookit, That Oil Smell is Gone!

there was a funky kind of oil smell in the restaurant--and today visitors told me, hey, the smell is gone!  so all that elbow grease and good ol' healthy vinegar and dish soap and removing the old layers of grime simply did the trick.  I hate when places just spray air freshener to cover bad smells.  So much better to take care of whatever is making the bad smells, right?  actually have it clean in the first place?

So I washed more dishes, here's a before and after:

 

and I oiled the wood furniture, cleaned the windows inside and out (including the glued-on circus poster someone had torn away and left a zillion tiny bits stuck to the glass, arrgh):

 

There's the Menu Planning area up in front by the window, there will be a book case behind and to the right of that with vintage cookbooks, and free recipe cards on the table for people to write down anything in the books they want to try (or they can buy the books, either way).  Tables in the middle will display bags of bulk food, as well as on the blue shelves, and two small tables on the far left.  There are shelves across from these items, not shown in picture.

And I spent one hour each on these two cases, including removing the glass and cleaning in all the crevases and grooves, after the glass was cleaned I oiled the wood:

 
and then the least impressive, but most satisfying part of my day, I cleaned the men's room, and the women's room, and the 60-foot hallway, and three floor mats that go there.  I lost count of how many times I changed the water, but I do know each area was swept and then mopped three times apiece.  So now they meet my standards, which is sayin' something.

You always hear the maxim, "Everything you ever learn in any job, will come in handy someday."  Those eight years of janitorial work, and the volunteering at soup kitchens and helping with the meals on wheels, even chiming in and lending a hand at church potlucks and Grange meetings, it's all being used this week.  A great many tasks go forward if you know how to use a mop, change a trash can, scrub a toilet, organize a work station, pack and label boxes, make a shopping list and follow it, and be a friendly sort of person to everyone you meet.  This was Day Five.  Tomorrow, cleaning the ovens and finishing the dishes.  Peace.

Comments

[Bev]

Looking good! I like that shelf across the wall above the blue shelf too.

[imortal]

Your hard-work will pay off... the place is a beauty. ^^*