Pluggers by Rick McKee for February 28, 2024

I always hold a mop like a golf club.

Pluggers, apparently, don’t do much of it before then.

“Knee replacement surgery”? A fine excuse. Get back to work, woman!

Do like my mother did and have both replaced on the same day. Saves return visits.

A real plugger probably made a living swamping out something at some time or other. I know I did. I’ve swabbed the deck, pushed a broom and handled a “muck stick” (shovel) for a living. No shame getting your hands dirty.

Why go to a gym when one has a home to take care of ?

A true Plugger today would have know that already. But I guess the 1940’s version is shown here.

My grandmother had her babies in close succession of years. On the days of their births, still confined to bed, she did laundry in a bucket my grandfather put by her bedside. They were poor farmers, and that’s the way things were. I

That’s why I like the Swiffer Wet-jet. Less mess and quicker than a mop.

But many are clever and do it ‘not-so-well’ so they don’t have to continue once the knee is [mostly] healed. Amazing how spouses who can rig a sail, take kids camping in the wilderness, make a hole-in-one, run a successful business, etc. can’t seem to figure out how the vacuum works or where the pots and pans go or how to load a dishwasher or washing machine.

my husband didn’t realize how valuable I was around the home until he wasn’t my husband anymore.

I broke my back and my husband had to learn everything I did for us (8 months ago).

Nope, not here. First thing I did when home from surgery was take my walker to the back yard (down the long driveway instead of the porch stairs) to make sure the chickens had been fed. Husband didn’t lift a finger to help me.

Plugger should have Hazel on speed dial.

Hubby’s ex waltzed off and left him to raise their daughter by himself. He recognizes housework when he sees it and is a darned good cook. Even when the house looked as if it had been yanked by one corner, he never fussed with me. He’d ask the girls – “Is that your hat?” “Whose book are those?” “Did your mother leave that coat on the chair?”

Sorry but I was a stay at home dad for a time, it made the most sense financially. I took care of a five year old and a baby, cleaned ( and the house was clean ), cooked, and my usual yard and house stuff, it was easier than most jobs I’ve ever had. Granted my son was a pretty easy baby.

Us two Pluggers can do almost any jobs around the house. She can do my chores when needed, and I can do hers. I don’t necessarily enjoy cleaning the house, but I love when it is clean.

You’ve got to wring out the mop first.

I still had to do that for myself after knee replacement surgery, twice. Live alone,

my wife didn’t have to break her heel and go into the hospital for me to realize how much she did. i already knew. and she was also aware of all the things i was doing… ☺

I worked full time, dealt with the house, paid the bills (I am an accountant), ran our handcrafted business etc. He was in charge of outside and the vehicles – and he is not a “car guy”.

He was terribly burned out at work so I ran the numbers over and over and he took a leave of absence from work to see if he felt better – he did and he then quit his job in his early 50s. I kept working full time, he worked on our crafts and part time at his profession.

He started to see how much work I had been doing keeping the household running. So now we do almost nothing alone – we food shop together, we clean together, before I convinced him to give in and hire someone to mow and clear snow we did that together also – sometimes both of us pushing the snow blower together to get it to go.

Best part of him being home all the time is he now knows where we bank, where we grocery shop, where our PO box is, etc as he would be at work and I deal with everything else.