10. do not talk to anyone if you are hungry. you will probably get mad, and then they'll get mad, and then it'll be madness.
9. avoid sticky situations, like sitting where your sister sloshed her oatmeal that morning, or the laundry detergent cap that is covered in said detergent.
8. innovate. for example, if there are 3 squeezed-to-the-end tubes of toothpaste in the bathroom, hunt around your "traveling toiletries" kit for the mini tube you used last summer on la vida (and pray fervently that whatever ants crawled inside it during the wilderness rampage have long since left).
7. do your homework in a "timeless" spot in the house; i.e., not your bedroom when your ten-year-old roommate goes to bed at 9 pm and you stay up til midnight.
6. go outside. (it helps when the weather is 60 degrees and sunny, which apparently is what "february in philly" warrants.)
5. thank your mom for making your lunch in the morning, since she's been whipping out PB&J's for over two decades and is LOTTTS faster at it than you are.
4. help out whenever possible, even if that means setting aside your favorite math homework to put clean dishes away, re-load the dishwasher, set the table for dinner, scrub the pots and pans laying around, and whatever else you can think of that would assist the fam and keep your homework at a safe distance.
3. organize your room when clutter builds up in the rest of the house so that at least one place will be tidy.
2. do this for your sister's multi-million collection of books that carpets the entire house:
or this:
and the #1 way to stay sane with a bajillion people in your family? go crazy with the mess, and post ultimatum signs, warning them what will happen if their mess doesn't go away:
Like your clothes? So will the thrift store.
Anything found on the floor of the laundry room after 4 PM on Tuesday, February 14, 2012 will be donated to the Beehive Thrift Store.
No comments