The Chore War

It's nice to know in this world that you are not alone.  So many of my readers have admitted that they too struggle with organization and all of life's obstacles.  I am sure I am not alone in feeling the imbalance in the responsibilities at home.  I have made a chart to compare "Man Chores"  versus "Woman Chores" at least how they apply to our home.

He-Man                                         She-Woman
1.  Lawn Care                                1.  Laundry
2.  Garden Care                             2.  Grocery Shopping
3.  Pool Maintenance                    3.  Dusting/ Windexing
4. Snow Removal                          4. Vacuuming & Mopping
5. Garbage Removal                      5. Picking up stray items
6. Grill Master                               6. Dishes
7. House Upkeep/Repairs              7. Toilet & shower scrubbing
8. Feed the animals                        8. Feed the human animals
9. Anything involving basement    9. Anything involving planning (Gifts, bills, travel)
10. Vehicle Upkeep                      10.  Cleaning out the fridge

At quick glance, this hormone driven chart may seem fair and balanced but it is far too deceiving.  Let's take a comparison of task # 1.  He gets to sit on a mower, driving around with the sun kissing his skin as he rocks out to AC/DC.  The most difficult aspect of this may be the once a week weed eating that he does maybe five months out of a year.  So maybe 20 times a year.  I do laundry pretty much 365 days a year.  It involves loading the washer, changing loads over to the dryer or hanging out the laundry, taking it down, folding, putting away.  If anyone else does it I can guarantee 9 times out of 10 it will be a mix of clothes and towels all covered in lint.  If my husband does it, it's usually loads of his clothes only.  Let's skip to # 4.  Once again, he sits on his rump.  In a heated truck.  Forward, reverse, forward, reverse.  Five months a year.  How about my # 4?  It involves bending, twisting and reaching into positions that would make a gymnast jealous.  And just as I put all the needed supplies away I guarantee the kids are going to drop a bowl of chips or the dog will roll around on the carpet, leaving behind his hair. 

Can we take a moment to take a break and also reflect on the fact that it was I who manufactured and produced minature human beings?  Once again, I got the unfair end of the deal.  Oh sure, he will try to insist that he had a part in this product, but the only thing he did was place the order.  It would be compared to going to the drive thru window at McDonalds, placing your order and then claiming that you slaved over the Big Mac.  Oh hell no, you may have wanted the Big Mac.  You may have placed the order for the Big Mac but it was me who put the blood, sweat and tears into our little Big Macs. 

So I definitely am feeling just a bit overwhelmed by the list of the Womanly Chores.  Brian can complete his chores in an afternoon and they stay completed for a week.  I leave the room after completing mine and within five seconds it is destroyed.  Sooo I think I am going to do a chores chart.  Spread the love.  I will still scrub the toilets and showers solo...I will continue being the planner and doing the grocery shopping.  There is no reason that I should be doing dishes every night that I cook dinner.  Especially with August and cheerleading approaching, I need to distribute some of this load.  Delegate.  I need time for *gasp* me.  Using Excel I managed to come up with this chore chart....
Hopefully the end to the Chore War...

	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
BRIAN	DISHES	DINNER	DINNER	TRAP SHOOT	DINNER	YARD WORK	DISHES
	MEAL CLEANUP	LAUNDRY	VACUUM	LAUNDRY		MEAL CLEANUP	YARD WORK
ERICA	DINNER	MEAL CLEANUP	DISHES	DINNER	DISHES	DINNER	DINNER
	LAUNDRY	BATHROOM		MEAL CLEANUP		LAUNDRY	LAUNDRY
		CHEER		CHEER		DISHES
PAIGE	CHEER	DISHES	MEAL CLEANUP	DISHES	MEAL CLEANUP	VACUUM	MEAL CLEANUP
	VACUUM		LAUNDRY		LAUNDRY	HELP W/ DINNER	HELP W/ LAUNDRY
MADISON	DOG	DOG	DOG	DOG	DOG	DOG	DOG
		CHEER		CHEER