{"id":930,"date":"2016-04-18T10:26:22","date_gmt":"2016-04-18T15:26:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/?p=930"},"modified":"2016-07-21T09:18:02","modified_gmt":"2016-07-21T14:18:02","slug":"spring-cleaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/2016\/04\/18\/spring-cleaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Spring Cleaning"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Vintage<\/a>
Vintage postcard via Blue Mountains Library, Flickr CC.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This is the time of year that many\u00a0people throw open their windows and begin their yearly spring cleaning. Long ago, springtime cleaning had religious significance and coincided with holidays such as Passover and Easter. By the 19th<\/sup> century, spring cleaning had become more about practicality than piety. Particularly in places that suffered cold, wet winters, March and April were a perfect time for dusting because it was warm enough to open windows, but still too chilly for bugs to fly in the house. Ideally, the wind would help blow the dust out of the home instead of swirling it around the rooms.<\/p>\n

The blame for a dusty shelf tends to fall on women\u2019s shoulders because the home has traditionally been \u201cher place\u201d in society. Although the 1950s vision of June Cleaver has shifted and more women now participate in the labor force, women still tend to take on the bulk of the housework. Women employed outside the home have a \u201csecond shift\u201d of cooking, cleaning, and childcare when they come home from work.<\/h5>\n