Domestic Goddess and my new Blue Beauty....love! As I've stated many times, I’m no fan of housework. But, now I'm thinking maybe I didn’t have the right tools to do the job. One of the many excuses to avoid the drudgery of domestic labour, was the lack of a decent vacuum cleaner. I’ve been hauling around an ancient Electrolux and although the suction was still capable, there were things breaking that duct tape couldn’t fix. The beater bar gave up the ghost several years ago and having to push and pull the wood floor brush back and forth over the pile of our oriental carpets made it easy to ignore the dirt.
The length from the handle to the brush was never right, causing my back to bend in a touchy position that irritated my old sciatica problem. And then there's the sweat and hot flashes from exerting that much energy, especially in the summer months, that just wasn't conducive to my being a happy camper. Hubby never minded the strenuous workout, so I’d leave that job up to him; a little home coming present after working in Alberta. He’s one of those men who are comfortable with house cleaning and is always willing to pitch in, especially to keep me from turning the air a blasphemous shade of blue.
The length from the handle to the brush was never right, causing my back to bend in a touchy position that irritated my old sciatica problem. And then there's the sweat and hot flashes from exerting that much energy, especially in the summer months, that just wasn't conducive to my being a happy camper. Hubby never minded the strenuous workout, so I’d leave that job up to him; a little home coming present after working in Alberta. He’s one of those men who are comfortable with house cleaning and is always willing to pitch in, especially to keep me from turning the air a blasphemous shade of blue.
It was time. We needed to invest in a new machine. So Wednesday afternoon we headed to Bridgewater. We like supporting local, independent small businesses and Dave’s Vacuum Shop was our destination. They are very knowledgeable and pack 29 years of experience in their well stocked shop. They took the time to answer all our questions about the various options of each machine so we could best match one to our needs. We walked out with a Germany built vacuum called the Miele. I checked on the net and it came with a very high rating but I will admit the attraction first began with the colour. My eyes landed on the blue beauty and it was love at first sight. My body gravitated toward it while the shop gal described all the units around it. There were many makes and models to choose from and each one offered different options, some with downsides while others did more than our little house would need. Coincidentally, the little blue Miele was the perfect match for our desires.....like connecting on a dating site she seemed to be made for us!
Happy with our purchase, we treated ourselves to fish and chips at Waves Restaurant because there wasn’t enough time to get home and make dinner before the hook-in that evening. I was torn, I really just wanted to fire that puppy up and clean the house. I wanted to see how she handled. After the hook-in it would be late and dark, and cleaning with only house lighting is never enough to see all the dirt in the shadows, cracks and crevices.
Most of the gals left the hook-in early to get home and watch American Idol so by 9:30 I was home and we were plugged in to go! We could hear the dirt and debris being sucked up the nozzle....to be fair, the house had gone three months without a clean so there was bound to be a mess. A lot of work for our little blue diva but she rose nicely to the challenge. Nothing about this little vacuum sucked, except of course for the suction! It has various setting strengths for carpets and Persian rugs and we had to lower it to keep the beater bar from sucking out all the wool.
We cleaned downstairs, taking turns to get the feel of it. My only complaint about the machine was that I had to wait my turn! Next we headed to the bedroom. The ceiling fan was turning fuzzy from the dust so we cleaned that first and then moved to the drapery and blinds, making quick work of each chore. The princess canopy over the headboard never looked so good. Then we tackled the cobwebs around the crown moldings. We sucked up enough webs and their manufacturers to put the common house spider on the endangered species list. So slick and smooth, the canister rolls behind you like an attentive puppy and the telescopic arm on the handle allows for the perfect height so my back wasn’t bent in painful angles.
Even though the vacuum has a powerful motor its whisper quiet. We always had a problem using the old Electrolux because it was deafening and the dogs didn’t like it. Henri would hide in another room and Honey and Fiz would take runs at it and bark. The real craziness happened when we pulled out the cord or retracted it back into the machine. Honey would lose her mind, and then the rest would bark at her. A four dog circus! I think maybe the cord had the appearance of a snake, surfacing the ingrained fear that most animals have for the coiling, cold blooded reptile. She would attack it with a vengeance, biting at it as it slithers and winds back into the machine.
When Honey was young it was cute. A little pup pouncing on the cord and all her funny antics made us laugh, but as she got older and then passed this annoying quirk to her sister and then Jake, it grew tiring. So this new machine provided us with the perfect opportunity to break the old habit. Honey watched us pull out the cord and ran toward the machine to receive a firm “No”. Voila, habit broken! She sashayed to the sofa and watched from her perch as the humans cleaned her house. Fiz and Jake, not having the usual neurotic show joined her to watch us work. Henri hovered close by but didn’t show the normal signs of distress. That alone makes the purchase worth every penny and means I’ll be able to clean on a more regular basis without losing my mind from guard pups trying to protect me from the loud beast.
So the rugs and floors are clean, the walls and beams are dewebbed and the horizontal surfaces are dusted. The house sparkles! Now my little Blue Beauty sits quietly, waiting for her next call to duty….if only the house would get dirty so I can play domestic goddess again........
Happy with our purchase, we treated ourselves to fish and chips at Waves Restaurant because there wasn’t enough time to get home and make dinner before the hook-in that evening. I was torn, I really just wanted to fire that puppy up and clean the house. I wanted to see how she handled. After the hook-in it would be late and dark, and cleaning with only house lighting is never enough to see all the dirt in the shadows, cracks and crevices.
Most of the gals left the hook-in early to get home and watch American Idol so by 9:30 I was home and we were plugged in to go! We could hear the dirt and debris being sucked up the nozzle....to be fair, the house had gone three months without a clean so there was bound to be a mess. A lot of work for our little blue diva but she rose nicely to the challenge. Nothing about this little vacuum sucked, except of course for the suction! It has various setting strengths for carpets and Persian rugs and we had to lower it to keep the beater bar from sucking out all the wool.
We cleaned downstairs, taking turns to get the feel of it. My only complaint about the machine was that I had to wait my turn! Next we headed to the bedroom. The ceiling fan was turning fuzzy from the dust so we cleaned that first and then moved to the drapery and blinds, making quick work of each chore. The princess canopy over the headboard never looked so good. Then we tackled the cobwebs around the crown moldings. We sucked up enough webs and their manufacturers to put the common house spider on the endangered species list. So slick and smooth, the canister rolls behind you like an attentive puppy and the telescopic arm on the handle allows for the perfect height so my back wasn’t bent in painful angles.
Even though the vacuum has a powerful motor its whisper quiet. We always had a problem using the old Electrolux because it was deafening and the dogs didn’t like it. Henri would hide in another room and Honey and Fiz would take runs at it and bark. The real craziness happened when we pulled out the cord or retracted it back into the machine. Honey would lose her mind, and then the rest would bark at her. A four dog circus! I think maybe the cord had the appearance of a snake, surfacing the ingrained fear that most animals have for the coiling, cold blooded reptile. She would attack it with a vengeance, biting at it as it slithers and winds back into the machine.
When Honey was young it was cute. A little pup pouncing on the cord and all her funny antics made us laugh, but as she got older and then passed this annoying quirk to her sister and then Jake, it grew tiring. So this new machine provided us with the perfect opportunity to break the old habit. Honey watched us pull out the cord and ran toward the machine to receive a firm “No”. Voila, habit broken! She sashayed to the sofa and watched from her perch as the humans cleaned her house. Fiz and Jake, not having the usual neurotic show joined her to watch us work. Henri hovered close by but didn’t show the normal signs of distress. That alone makes the purchase worth every penny and means I’ll be able to clean on a more regular basis without losing my mind from guard pups trying to protect me from the loud beast.
So the rugs and floors are clean, the walls and beams are dewebbed and the horizontal surfaces are dusted. The house sparkles! Now my little Blue Beauty sits quietly, waiting for her next call to duty….if only the house would get dirty so I can play domestic goddess again........
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