Refresh, fresh fish, fresh produce, fresh face, and on and on.

What we are talking about here is fresh! To me fresh has mostly food meanings. I love to Farmer’s Market shop for crunchy veggies and I always do “pick your own” fruits in season whenever I can. What is also part of the meaning of the word fresh to me is renewal. I guess I am talking about the term “freshen up.”  To freshen ourselves up or to freshen up our surroundings can be daunting and frustrating. the New Year is a good time to perhaps revisit some goals that may have failed in the past.

I think that the new year is a time for forgiving ourselves and giving whatever it is a “fresh” try, don’t you?  How about we start with remodeling the bathroom? Oh, can’t afford the contractor or the architect? Well, here is an idea for a fresh start. Begin by just cleaning the hell out of everything. Scrub everything out, wash the walls, and whatever else needs to be done. Stand back and look at that then look at your budget. Start with some colorful towels and move on to a bright, cheerful shower curtain. If you don’t have a medicine cabinet buy a mirror at Lowe’s or Home Depot. They start at under $ 20! Do all of that and then see how you feel. No tile or paint or sink. Just that. I promise you will see you old bathroom as new and fresh! 

 Wow, you have been so successful there, let’s do the fridge. Start by taking everything out-yes, I mean everything . Look at your stuff and toss anything old. Wipe down what you have left and then wipe down the inside and outside of the fridge. I read in a magazine that you should see color when you look in your fridge, so try to do that. Put fruit in front. Arrange labels so the colorful side shows. Use your imagination. Make your fridge cheerful. Don’t say this is stupid. Just take half an hour and try it. When you are done, give your kitchen a great big clean and buy some grocery store flowers and a basil plant and be happy. Oh, finally, for just a couple of dollars, replace old dish towels and check out that old fringe curtain above the kitchen sink window. Walmart and a couple of dollars could change your dish washing life! You might get so inspired that you will go crazy and clean the whole rest of the house while looking for cheap easy places to put color. 

Last but not least, and most important of all, refresh yourself. Read a good self help book, take a big shower in your new bathroom, shave your legs, put a rinse on your hair, and put on a cute outfit that is easy to button or better yet has an elastic waist band. As the new you walks out the door to buy those flowers and herb plants, think good thoughts about you having spent half a day and about $25 and having a really fresh outlook on 2022.