The gods had condemned Sisyphus to ceaselessly rolling a rock to the top of a mountain, whence the stone would fall back of its own weight. They had thought with some reason that there is no more dreadful punishment than futile and hopeless labor.

— Albert Camus —

I don't know about you, but I have certainly had my share of days when Cleaning felt like the punishment of Sisyphus, doomed to repeat the same task over and over again of pushing a rock to the top of the mountain — only for me it was the sinks and toilet bowls. I am sure you have had your own days of spending hours getting your home in tip-top shape, only to have the kids come bounding in from rolling in the mud and dragging their joy over your clean carpet and floors. It took a while for me to get a handle on my own Cleaning routine, but now, for the most part, I have a system that works for me, that is largely based on my STARS System. Some of my favorite cleaning books which have helped me get a handle on cleaning are listed below.

1. Spirit
   The first thing I had to do was look at my own attitudes, expectations, and standards. If I continued to bring an attitude that I am doing the task of Sisyphus, then I was doomed before I began, as I was carrying a negative energy for the time I was cleaning. So, I had to develop an attitude that by caring for my environment, I was caring for myself. And just as women should not be comparing themselves to air-brushed, media enhanced models in magazines, we should not be comparing our homes to Architectural Digest million dollar mansions with staffs to clean and stylists to arrange the perfect shot for the layout. So I had to set a comfortable standard for myself and if I started to want "perfectionism" I had a little mantra I made for myself to reel myself in. I imagined that a newspaper had printed the following obituary for Leo Tolstoy:

   Leo Tolstoy passed today. He was most noted for keeping the cleanest kitchen and best-beaten rugs in Russia. He also wrote a few books.
   

   
   This was my reminder that though it was important to care for myself by caring for my home, I also had a Great Life to live and I had plenty of things to learn and do without going crazy over the spot on the floor.
   
   
2. Time
   It seems that Cleaning and Exercising are some of the activities that we tend to put off, until we have to do a big overhaul to get things under control. Yet these are are the areas that respond very well to consistent small steps. One of the best ways of cleaning time management comes from Marla Cilley's Sink Reflections (listed below). Each week of the month is dedicated to one area of your home for attention. By working this way, you can avoid the big spring cleanings that most of us have done, and have often felt overwhelmed by.
   
   In conjunction with working with your Action list, you need to be aware of how long specific tasks take. Make a list of 5 minute, 15 minute, and 1 hour tasks, so that you can fill in some down time with your quick tasks. That way many tasks are out of the way before you know it.
   
   
3. Action
   Cleaning Actions can be broken down into three areas:
   
   1. Throw Away.
   2. Put Away.
   3. Clean.
   
   Oftentimes, the Throw Away and Put Away actions can be taken care of as we go along during the day. If we make a habit of throwing away the junk mail as we receive it, or put away our tools as we finish with them, so much of our cleaning time is reduced. That only leaves the actual Cleaning part. This is where you must know the amount of time a task takes and assign it a time to get it done. Many cleaning chores are actually quite quick to do and can be incorporated into daily or weekly routines.
   
   
4. Resources
   There are three Resources when it comes to Cleaning.
   
   1. Products.
      One of the decisions you will have to make is how "green" you want to go with your cleaning products. The less chemicals you use, the better off you will be health wise. But sometimes that grime and grease might need an extra kick. You may want to consider the less harsh cleaners for everyday use, and keep the tougher products for the times that elbow grease doesn't cut it. Martha Stewart has good guidelines in her Homekeeping Handbook (listed below). You should have a caddy for carrying your cleaning products from room to room. Another tip is keeping commonly used cleaners and a roll of paper towels in duplicate in each of your bathrooms and kitchen for quick cleanings. This also keeps you from running out of your frequently used products as they always have a backup somewhere.
   2. Tools.
      As in any activity, the quality of your tools can make life easier, and cleaning is no exception. A vacuum cleaner that has seen better days becomes a hindrance, rather than helping, so make sure your cleaning tools are doing the jobs they are supposed to do. Disposable dusters and floor moppers are almost a joy to use for those in between cleanups.
   3. People.
      Everyone living in your home should have some responsibility for keeping things nice in your home. Bedrooms and bathrooms should be taken care of by the people who use them. Kitchen cleaning should be shared, as well as other chores. Making a weekly or monthly assignment chart helps, so there is no confusion as to who is responsible for what chore. This list could be kept at your Command Center. You may also have the finances for outside help. Even then, you want habits and routines set up so the cleaning crew can easily clean and not have to work around clutter. Plus in between having outside help come in, you still want a comfortable environment for yourself.
      
      
5. Space
   Make sure your space is "cleaning friendly." This means not only do you have spaces to keep things, and you do not have much clutter around, but that the things you live with are easy to clean. It is easier to clean a single handle sleek faucet than double handles that have ridges in them. It is easier to clean a properly sealed counter, than one that is hard to remove stains. It is easier to clean a glass case holding knickknacks, rather than dusting each individual one. You don't have to go around remodeling your home, but as the time comes to replace things, be aware about how easy or difficult they are to clean, and take that into consideration as you make a new purchase.
   

— Shelly —

Here are a few books I like which you might want to read. You may also search for more books and other items at the Amazon search box on the right.