Women understand that most men are virtually inept when it comes to cleaning house; we know you (probably) don't have a clue as to what consitutes a clean home, and we don't really fault you for it. We assume it's genetic. So, when living in a boy-girl household, you're forgiven for your housekeeping issues, because we're there to keep things tidy.

(Note: this does not mean we want to clean up after you, or be a maid -- it just means that most of us accept that you, er, suck at keeping the place clean.)

If you're single, that's another story altogether; you're home is probably about as untidy as a woman could possibly stand. (Unless you have a housekeeper.) This may seem insignificant to you, but the state of your home can make or break a dating situation, especially if she comes over on the first or second date. The following advice involves things which can really turn a woman off, should she happen to notice them.

Clean your toilet

And clean it well. We're not going to lift the seat to check how good a job you've done (ok, some of us will) but we don't want to see any nastiness in the john. No hair, no... well.. you know. Clean it!!

Clean the shower, and make sure you clean off the soap!

She may or may not peek in your shower, but if you intend for her to sleep over, she may want to shower at your place before she goes home. If you use bar soap, please, God, please, let there not be hair on it.

Take the trash out and open the windows for a few hours before she comes over.

This includes trash that isn't already IN the trashcan. Those banana peels, apple cores, beer cans, etc -- put them in the trash and take it all out. And then open your windows and air the place out for a bit. You may think your home smells April fresh, but if it *does* smell funky, you're probably immune to it by now. Air it out and that won't be an issue.

Change your bed linens and clean the bedroom.

Do not expect a woman to fall into bed with you if it's full of cracker crumbs and whatever else you eat in there. And don't expect us not to be aware of what else you do in there -- we want clean sheets, please.

Wash the dishes.

Do not have a pile of dishes in the sink when she gets there. That will make you look lazy and it can give her the impression that you're a bit dirty. If you can go 2 months without washing dishes, how long do you go without washing yourself?