#penstrokes

There are four stages of doing the dishes. The first is to put away any dishes which may be remaining in the drying rack. This stage is often forgotten until you have washed the first dish and realize that there are a bunch of clean dishes cluttering up the drying rack.

The second stage is to move the dirty dishes out of the sink so that you can fill the sink with soapy-sudsy-bubbly water which you can then proceed to immerse the dirty dishes in. It is important that you move them out of the sink beforehand, however, as there may be large pieces of leftover food which were careless tossed into the sink.

The third stage is when you actually wash the dishes. I prefer to wash them by category, starting with the plates, then the bowls, and so forth. This is the longest and most routine stage, which means it is easy to fall into an autopilot mode where you don’t pay attention to if the dish you are washing is fully clean. It is also important in this stage to remember dishes which usually sit out around the counter. For example, butter knives are often left to rot by the butter tray until someone is finally so disgusted with it that they toss it in with the rest of the dirty dishes which are likely in a pile nearing the ceiling at this point.

The fourth stage is the most often forgotten stage: wiping down the sink and surrounding counter area and floor. It is highly likely that, while you were diligently washing dishes, you splashed some dirty dish water onto the counter or the floor. As such, it is your duty to clean it up as well. If you really want to prove yourself to be an overachieving clean-freak, as I most enjoy, then you will also take care to wipe down the other kitchen surfaces, such as the stove top.

Now that you’ve finally finished washing the dishes you can relax and not do any other household chores because you’ve paid your dues. A great way to relax after washing dishes in steaming hot water is to take a peaceful shower, also in steaming hot water — if you stay in long enough the rest of your body will become as wrinkled as the raisins your hands have turned into!