We often overlook the blessings. And that shouldn't be.
We have a washer and dryer in the house. Not everyone does, you know. Even in this country that sometimes is simply not available. And if you go into the third world countries...well, you get the picture.
Growing up we had an old Maytag wringer-washer that resided in a cubbyhole closet on the porch. Beside it sat a galvanized steel rinse tub. Doing laundry meant filling both with plenty of water, washing the whites first, then the colored fabrics, then the darks, and lastly the rugs and mop rags. By then the water was a dingey, slimey opaque gray. To drain the two, we attached a garden hose and ran the water out into the yard.
Drying the clothes was a different matter. Hang 'em on the line in the summertime till dry. Hang 'em on the line in the winter time until freeze-dried which wasn't dry at all. Bring them in frozen, drape them over lines strung up in the bedroom and over the oil burner stove in the dining room.
As a young adult, living in my first house away from home, and the second, and the third, the laundry had to be hauled to the laundromat. Expensive. Inconvenient. In a single word, a "hassle".
That was decades ago. (I know, I'm old!) And even after decades of having my own washer and dryer in my home, I still remain grateful that I do not have to take my laundry to the laundromat. Which is a good thing, because the only laundromat in this town closed down about four years ago.
Now that we are getting
The job is begun. Plumbing is in place. We plan to buy new units so we're on hold until that can be done. And in the meantime...our house is a mess.
It will get better. Soon.
And I will be grateful to be able to do laundry. In my own house. Not in the basement. Not at the laundromat. And not in an old-fashioned Maytag wringer washer.
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7 comments:
Laundry is, believe it or not, actually a good thing! Why? Because I remember the days of chemo when I just could not do any laundry because of how awful I felt (weakness, nausea, etc.). I also remember actually praying and thanking God when I finally felt well enough to be able to do the laundry again! Ironic, isnt it! :}
I read a book years ago (can't remember the title or author at the moment) that detailed what doing laundry was like in the early 20th century. It made me appreciate my washer and dryer (in my home) greatly!
I dropped over from Debby's blog and have thoroughly enjoyed browsing around here!
Ah yes, I love my washer and dryer. Sometimes I forget how lucky I am!
Elle
I remember the tiny little apartment my hubby and I shared a few years ago and having to carry the laundry underneath these stairs and the many times I bonked my head on the cement slab. I'm so thankful to now have laundry inside my own home. You are so lucky to have been able to live so long; I hope that I can too; my doctors are not very hopeful that I will last next year, but I am! Anyway I wish you all the best!
Love,
Jayne
I'm thankful for the same things. I never had a wringer/washer though. I've had to use a laundromat, and an apartment laundry room. Eventually I graduated to a house with laundry in the garage. Now I'm happy to have laundry in the house proper.
I've looked at some model homes that show someone finally asked a woman what she needed. These had the laundry room upstairs, where the bulk of the laundry is generated in the first place. When I first saw it I was giddy. One of the houses I used to clean had a laundry room off the kitchen, but they moved it into the huge walk-in closet in the master bedroom...perfect for a home with no children.
Being able to do our washing indoors is a wonderful thing. It's a way bigger deal than having a dishwasher, which I've been perfectly happy to live without during the times in my life when I haven't had one. Sheesh, my comment's almost as long as your post. Sorry.
You just described my life with laundry . Same childhood and we were married seven years before I got my own automatic washer and dryer. The laundromat was a bummer. But I always enjoyed hanging out side in nice weather.
When we got in the rental business, one of the very first things I said is that I wanted our tenants to have a washer and dryer. I remember how hard it was to haul everything to the laundromat. Tim did not see it as important. I did. I won. It makes a huge difference.
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