Spring Cleaning: Getting It Out of the Way

Winter weather is hard on everyone. It makes it difficult to leave the house, it sucks away your motivation, it’s just downright rough! It probably also means that you’ve gotten a little lazy with your apartment cleaning. That’s alright, though. Winter is sticking around for a while so you still have tons of time to spruce up the place. Spring cleaning doesn’t have to begin in the springtime. Here’s how you can get your McHenry Row apartment back in tip top shape.

Image courtesy of Pixabay

Split the work up for yourself. If you try and do it all in one or two days, you’ll stress yourself out about having to get it all done. Spreading it out over the span of a week or so will let you work at a slower pace and give more attention to the details. You won’t miss any spots if you spread all the work out. Create yourself a schedule and you’ll know exactly what needs to be done on what days.

Living Room

Get into those couch cushions and vacuum in between them to get all the built up clutter and dirt out. You might even find some money in there! Take everything off of coffee, side tables and book shelves. Make sure to dust not just under the objects but the objects themselves too. Dust all light fixtures and lamp shades. You’d be surprised at how much brighter it will get in the room once you remove that layer of dust. If you have any rugs lying about make sure to take them outside and shake them out to get the dust and debris off of them.

Kitchen

You wash dishes all the time but you probably don’t think of the place where your dishes live. Get everything out of your cabinets and wipe down the inside of the cabinets as well as the outside of the cabinets and handles. Think of how many hands have been on those handles! Next, empty out the refrigerator and wipe down all the shelves and drawers. Toss anything from the fridge that you know you won’t eat or is out of date. Wipe down your stove and oven. Messes are attracted to the stove so scrub it down extra well. Clean the microwave out by first putting a glass of water in for 30 seconds. This will loosen up all of the gunk caked onto the inside walls. Don’t forget to sweep and mop to clean up all those spills from the last few months.

Bathroom

Wipe down that mirror so you can see your beautiful face in it again! There’s no point in having it if you can’t see yourself in it. Your shower head has probably built up a lot of residue over the time you’ve used it. Take a plastic zip bag, fill it with distilled white vinegar and tie it up around the shower head using a hair tie or rubber band. Let it sit for and hour and then wipe the head clean with a wash cloth. Take stock of your beauty products and hair care products. Over the next month keep track of what you’ve used or haven’t used and at the end of the month toss everything you haven’t used. You’ll cut down on your clutter and also streamline your routine.

It doesn’t take a lot of work to keep a home clean but it does take a lot of work to get it clean in the first place. So get a head start and get your charming apartment back in shape and from here on out you’ll only have to do small things here and there.

Black History Month Events

Image courtesy of Wikimedia

Before Black History Month was an entire month, it was confined to just a week. It wasn’t until 1969 that it was proposed as an entire month. In 1970, the first Black History Month celebration took place at Kent State University. This month we celebrate the amazing men and women who came before us and changed the world. Here are the goings on and here’s how you can celebrate.

Until the end of the month, the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore will be hosting a Black History Month exhibit dedicated to teaching about the African American men and women who contributed to the railroad industry. Learn how these men and women served in vital positions along the railroad and throughout the entire timeline of the railroad’s creation. You’ll also learn about how social issues played an important role in the completion of the railroad. The new exhibit will focus on the segregation of the travelers and the workers on the trains. Learn more about the exhibit and the museum here. The B&O Railroad Museum is only a 10 minute drive away from our home at McHenry Row Apartments.

The Great Blacks in Wax Museum is hosting a bevy of events this month. Coming up at the end of the month is the Fighting for Civil Rights Through Civil Disobedience event. This event will feature live performances by young people depicting the ways in which youth fought for their civil rights through civil disobedience. Young people both black and white were having sit-ins in the face of water hoses, attacking dogs and police in riot gear. The moving performances will also be accompanied by a tour of the “And A Little Child Shall Lead Them” exhibit. Learn more about the Great Blacks in Wax Museum and the exhibits here.

All throughout February (excluding Sundays), Lexington Market will be full of Black History Month musical performances. Each day, you can see school performances music, dances and narrated skits based on African, Caribbean, Jazz, Blues, Gospel, and Big Band Swing/Jazz themes. You’ll also be able to see an exhibit from the Great Blacks in Wax Museum, hear poetry from talented African American authors and a special presentation from the Buffalo Soldiers in their full uniforms. Learn more about the Lexington Market celebration of Black History Month here.

Celebrate the amazing men and women who helped to change the United States and people’s mindsets throughout the years this month in Baltimore.


Additional Sources
Wikipedia

Spread the Love: Valentine's Day Ideas

Image courtesy of Pixabay

Valentine’s Day is finally here and it’s the perfect time to show your loved one that you care a little extra this week. If a Valentine’s Day date seems like high pressure, don’t sweat it! We’re taking the pressure off of you this year and equipping you with a couple of ideas that will help you impress your date whether you’ve been with them for years or just a couple of dates. Here’s what’s happening in Baltimore for the love-liest day of the year.

On V-Day itself you can attend A Red and Black Valentine’s Day Affair with your loved one or even come alone and meet someone special. You’ll be able to dance the night away to live music and listen to beautiful poetry readings. There’ll be food to munch on and drink specials to keep you hydrated. Couples’ admission is $40 and a single ticket is $25. The event takes place from 3PM until 7PM on Sunday. Since it’s a Red and Black Affair, make sure you’re wearing black and red too! Find out more information here. A Red and Black Valentine’s Day Affair will be at The Windup Space which is only a 13 minute drive away from McHenry Row Apartments.

If you’re looking for a fun night out either alone or with your loved one, a great place to do that is at a comedy show. Nothing bonds people together quite like laughs so it’s a perfect date for a couple on Valentine’s Day. The Baltimore Improv Group will be performing on Valentine’s Day at The Mercury Theater in Baltimore, only 12 minutes away from McHenry Row. Tickets are only $5 apiece so you don’t have to worry about spending too much. Find your tickets here.

Friday the 12th at the National Aquarium just so happens to be half price admission night. Walk hand in hand with your date and ogle the aquatic life swimming all around you. If you’d rather make it a whole night long event you can have a sleepover with the dolphins or the sharks. You’ll receive dinner at the aquarium, watch a 4D immersive film, learn more about the creatures in an interactive presentation. Fall asleep with the dolphins and sharks sleeping soundly nearby. Take your date for an all night adventure to the National Aquarium and they’ll never ever forget it! Find out more information here.

Don’t let Valentine’s Day stress you out! Let us take some of the pressure off of your shoulders with some ideas.

What are your Valentine’s Day plans this year? Let us know on Facebook and Twitter.

Grown-Up Snow Days

With the way the weather has been treating us lately, it’s likely that we’ll have another weekend snowed in before too long. As a kid, you probably remember getting that phone call from one of your friends or seeing the scroll on the bottom of the morning news. Seeing your school switch from ‘delayed’ to ‘cancelled’ was the greatest feeling! We don’t get quite as many of those as we used to now that we’re all grown up. The best we can do is make the best of those snowy weekends when the roads are too bad to leave the house. Here’s how we recommend spending your snowed-in weekends.

Image courtesy of Wikipedia

Turn your snow day into a spa day. Pamper yourself with all of your favorite things. Slather on a mud mask and paint your nails. Brew up a hot cup of tea, coffee or hot chocolate and curl up on the couch with a good book. Or watch reruns of old TV show to make it feel like you’re actually a kid again.

Get started on that new Netflix series you’ve been meaning to watch. If you’re really dedicated you might even be able to finish it. If you need some snow day recommendations head here.

If you can actually dig yourself out of your apartment, consider heading out with some friends to a local brunch place. You won’t have to rush to get there (most places serve brunch until at least 2 PM) and when you get there it will probably be deserted. Consider Little Havana Restaurante y Cantina Cubana. It’s only 10 minutes on foot (15 in the snow?) away from McHenry Row Apartments. Keep it traditional with a Yanqui breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon and potatoes or try something new with a Cuban sandwich or Chilaquiles, soft corn tortillas sautéed in green tomatillo sauce and two fried eggs. Brunch will help you forget about the weather outside and brighten your mood. See Little Havana’s full brunch menu here.

Pretend like you’re actually a kid again and take to the great outdoors for some good old fashioned snow day fun. Bundle up in your warmest and thickest clothing and grab your garbage can lid. Find the biggest hill you can and get to the top! Build yourself a snowman and snow angels at the top before you come rocketing down the hill on your garbage can lid. Put some food coloring in a bottle of water and you can decorate the snow in color!

Don’t let a weekend of snow make you feel trapped. There are tons of things you can do on a snow day. Put your snow suit on and make the best of it!

What’s your favorite way to spend snow days and snowed in weekends? Tell us on Facebook and Twitter.