Sunday, January 21, 2018

Airing our dirty laundry

My buddy Jenny_O over at Procrastinating Donkey did a post on Laundry Baskets that got me to thinking about airing our dirty laundry, she actually suggested that I do so, so to not disappoint a good friend here goes.

Cindy and I have a wicker laundry hamper with a lid that all of our dirty laundry goes into, when it gets full and the lid doesn't close anymore, this is when one of us does the laundry... usually.

Wicker laundry basket with jeans hanging out of the top
(Photo Source)
Sometimes when it gets to the point that I can't close the lid, no matter how much cramming and pushing down on the dirty clothes that I do. Rather than just do the laundry I keep pushing and stuffing clothes into all of the little nooks and crannies. It is amazing how much stuff you can force into a wicker basket before it starts to balloon out, or before you begin to hear that little crackling sound that says you had better stop, or even worse when I hear Cindy yell "You better Stop that Jimmy! You are going to break something!!" When I hear this I know that it is definitely time to do laundry.

Cindy and I have different styles of washing clothes. We both separate all of the dirty clothes into their proper piles exactly the same, but this is where everything changes.

I carry the clothes in my arms to the washing machine, I then layer them evenly into the tub, close the lid and select the temperature, water level, and make sure all the switches are in the right place and then press start.

Cindy on the other hand will open the lid, press start to get the water going, and then she grabs a pile of clothes and tosses them onto the washing machine and starts stuffing them in, there is no layering going on here. She looks kind of like me at the hamper stuffing everything into whatever space she can find. I keep expecting to see her with a stick poking the clothes into the washing machine or even on top stomping them down with her feet.

When my load of clothes are running the machine goes smoothly through all of the cycles, and stops with all of the clothes still partially layered to where they are easily removed.

When Cindy's load is running you will occasionally hear a Thump-Thump-Thumping sound that shifts to a quieter thump-thump-thump, and then disappears. But other times instead of disappearing the sound grows into a SLAM-BANG-BAM-BAM-BAM as the machine begins to shake and dance around in a circle, vibrating out into the hallway as far as the hoses will allow and then backwards slamming itself into the wall. This is when I find myself dancing with the washer trying to catch hold of the lid so I can open it up and stop it from violating me right there on the spot.

As you have guessed the wad of clothing is now a wet ball stuck to one side of the tub. I usually spend a short little lengthy a lot more time than I should trying to wring out and pry that ball of clothes apart, it's kind of like attempting to neatly unroll a ball of wadded duct tape...And it's not easy to layer a wet ball of clothes into the machine so the cycle can continue but folks I'm here to tell you that it's doable.

Once the load of washing is done it is time to load them into the dryer, I literally take everything out of the washing machine one item at time, I shake the clothes out straight, and then toss them into the dryer, it really takes a while for me to load the dryer, but there are no balled up clothes, no socks with the tops rolled down, nor are there any panties in a wad going into my dryer load. I have literally had Cindy tell me "Just stuff them all in there, the dryer will straighten them out!"

Now when Cindy loads the dryer she does just that, everything that she can possibly grab goes into the dryer at one time, the dryer sheet goes in, the door slams and the clothes are Thump-Thump-Thumping until the dryer straightens them out or the cycle is complete, whichever comes first.

When it comes time to unload the dryer, we both drag everything into a big ball and carry the wad of dry clothes into our bedroom and toss them onto the bed, we usually share the task of separating the pile and folding all the stuff that needs folded, laying out the shirts and jeans that are to be hung up into their respective stacks.

Clothing lying folded on a bed
Photo Source
The folded clothes are put away and then we go back and pick up what we dropped, there's always a few random socks and undies lying in a line, kind of like breadcrumbs dropped so you can find your way back to the dryer. The dropped undies are put away and the random socks are used to lessen the stack of socks with no mate, sometimes we get lucky and match up all of the socks, but most of the time there is at least one lone sock with the matching one missing in action.

Then it is up to me to hang the clothes, I usually do this because our closet is kind of like loading the washing machine, my side is all in order and Cindy's is all willy-nilly.

Cindy's side is randomly stuffed with clothing. Hangers are sticking up here and there, with some even on the floor. My side is in order, jeans, t-shirts, button up short sleeved shirts, etc. and all of the empty hangers are on the end between the jeans and the wall, I have just enough hangers for my share of the clothing and if I come up one hanger short, it's not like it is the end of the world but it's close... Seriously this is when I know Cindy stole one of my hangers because one of hers is hidden in the middle of her mismatched and stuffed closet, or either she bought herself another shirt.

There we go, this is an overview of laundry day at our house, I forgot to mention slipping on a dryer sheet on the bathroom floor, come on now you know you have done it, it's kind of like slipping on a banana peel. The bad thing is when you slip on the same one more than once and then only pick it up after your spouse slips on it too.

Cindy says that I am anal about my laundry, I say that all I want is for my clothes to be clean and where I can find them, I don't even mind doing the laundry myself. Cindy hates doing laundry and has told me over the years her solution to laundry, summed up into two simple words... Disposable Clothes.

52 comments:

  1. Lol, I could visualize your entire story! I guess I'm the anal one, because I have my own dirty clothes basket. No one is allowed to wash my clothes except myself, because Romeo just opens the washer door and throws in whatever is within reach. Towels, undies, socks, ~ everything goes into one batch. He has been known to shrink a beautiful hand knitted sweater that he bought me for my birthday...it would have fit a 5 year old afterward. At least I was able to wear it twice.

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    1. At least you got some use out of your sweater before it shrank down to kiddie size, it's too bad that happened to it. I have had flannel shirts do the same thing, some will wash and hold their shape really well while others shrink every time they get wet. I don't think that I would be brave enough to attempt cleaning a hand knitted sweater though.

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    2. Oh, I think he was doing what Cindy does, just stuffing the washer without noticing what he was putting in......in his defense, I suppose I should have put it somewhere else so it wouldn't get thrown in with everything else. My bad...

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    3. An easy mistake to make, for both of you...

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  2. Disposable clothes. That's what street people do..wear things until they are so dirty they can't stand themselves or the season changes...whatever comes first.

    Your way of doing laundry is the correct, by the book way. Sometimes I do it your way and sometimes I'm in a Cindy mood. I don't think my husband ever did a load of laundry in his life. When I couldn't do it for some reason he'd drop the basket at a laundromat that did if for him for $5.00 a load. Cindy would love it. LOL

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    1. I can see Cindy paying someone $5.00 a load to do laundry for her, I don't mind doing the laundry myself so it works out well for her when I do it.

      Stuffing laundry into the machines we can call a Cindy mood lol.

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  3. So Cindy loads the washer like you load the wicker laundry basket? Got it.

    Hubby and I do the laundry about the same. Not nearly as interesting as the way you two do the laundry.

    Have a fabulous day. ☺

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    1. Yes Sandee that is correct and I only realized this as I wrote this post, I stuff the laundry basket and she stuffs the machines ha ha.

      Have a great day my friend.

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  4. Men and women should never see the other do the wash. Just don't. I'm with you on the wash, I'm with Cindy on the dryer and you are both wrong in folding. Laundry should be folded as it comes out of the dryer.

    Oh, if a garment has been washed more than twice, there is no need to separate...it will not run, that is a wives tale to make men feel stupid. I have not separated for 10 years and there is no bleeding (just don't tell Mrs. C.)

    As to the closet, I am allowed about two feet of hanger space and the rest of my stuff goes in a one foot space in the guest room closet. Mrs. C gets about 100 feet of space and her stuff is organized much like your wife's.

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    1. I agree with you that clothes should be folded as they come out of the dryer, for us the problem with that is space we don't have room where our washer and dryer are to do that, with our bed right next to the closer make it a perfect place for us.

      If Cindy's and my clothes were in the same closet space I'd be pushed out just like you. Luckily for me our closet is wall to wall with a chest of drawers in the middle, basically giving each of us our own closet.

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  5. I'm picky about it and would never let my husband wash my clothes! We've always had separate closets except in our first apt. It's probably why we've been married so long! Lol

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    1. Bijoux, I can see how separate closets can help a marriage survive, that is excellent marital advice, you two are living proof.

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  6. I follow your method in the washer. I fold on the dining room table, then I leave the basket at the foot of the stairs and HE gets to haul them up and put them away. It's how we share the dastardly duty. :)

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    1. Your method of doing laundry sounds perfect, this way the chore is split down the middle each time.

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  7. A real life 'odd couple' when it comes to laundry. We stopped using those dangerous slippery fabric softener sheets a few years ago...we got ourselves some 'wood balls'. They work great although they do try to escape every once in a while.

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    1. Shoot...that's WOOL balls, not wood balls.

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    2. Delores, I hadn't heard anything about the wool balls before but they do look to be a perfect alternative to dryer sheets. I'm going to get some for us. Thank you for this great laundry tip.

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  8. I don't mind putting the laundry in the washer and dryer, putting it back in the proper place is what I can't stand.

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    1. Unless you have a deal with Daisy before you start the laundry I guess you will be stuck putting it all away too, that's how it works here anyway.

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  9. I load the washer like you but load the dryer like Cindy. Haha.
    I hate folding the clothes so they often get fluffed ... alot. Lol
    Lisa

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    1. Cindy has been known to do that also Lisa, she will throw a shirt in the dryer and tell me that she is ironing. lol

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  10. I think it is clear that you are the CEO of washing. I tore up a really nice washer once by not balancing the load. The repair cost cured me. You definitely should do all the laundry. Maybe let Cindy do all the folding? You might want to still hang on the the job of putting your stuff away though.

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    1. Patti, The repair costs on appliances is something that will make you do a double take for sure, everything is expensive. Your idea on laundry day sounds like a good plan, I bet Cindy will go for that.

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  11. What a gift you have for telling a story, Jimmy! I smiled all the way through. My husband has been nearly fully trained on the laundry, which is to say he rarely gets involved and if he does, he makes sure to only wash his stuff, because my clothes have a lot of those "special instructions" to them. Occasionally, however (and this is where the not fully trained comes in), he puts a wash that I have started (with my things in it) into the dryer and that will always be the load with one of the few things I own that will shrink in the dryer. The poor man can't win. I'm thinking that sentence describes a lot of men's lives :)

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    1. Thank you Jenny I am happy that you enjoyed reading this one. The "Special Instruction" items I am scared of lol, if I am in doubt I simply put those aside and let Cindy handle them. I have been in your husbands shoes before, it's easy to lose when you guess on the special laundry items.

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  12. We wash (both of us) pretty much the way you do. We hang most things outside on the line to dry. And goodness we hang things differently. And his way is WRONG.

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    1. EC, I can just imagine if we tried to hang anything on the line together, I shudder to even think of that. Like you two I am sure that I will be wrong in the way I do it, and I am also sure that he has his concerns about the way you hang clothing too. ha ha

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  13. First time I have posted- I loved your story about the laundry. Still smiling...

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    1. I'm glad to have you join in Debby, I am pleased that you liked my little laundry story and I hope to hear more from you.

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  14. Heh, heh! I think Cindy is using the "Joeh Method" of doing a disliked task: she does it WRONG so you will take over. Only you haven't taken over.

    We use a plastic, holey-sided hamper that looks like a wastebasket with a lid. We have a wicker basket to put the clean and dry clothes in.

    Yes, Cindy is right that the water must be started first, and detergent put in to begin the suds. I don't layer, but I do plop things in so the load is balanced. Yes, you are right that the wet clothes must be unwadded before you toss them in the dryer. As for FOLDING...who does that? We wear them out of the "clean" basket.

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    1. "I think Cindy is using the "Joeh Method"", I have thought this in the past too Val, but I haven't fallen for it, so far. Using a "clean basket" would be too easy Val, for me it would be hard to break the habit of folding and putting my stuff away.

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  15. I suspect the washing machine has been the cause of many divorces.... My wife refuses to let me wash her clothes and then gets upset when I do my darks and she only has one dark thing in need for a wash...

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    1. I have a feeling you are correct Sage, the washing machine can be the source of a lot of tension. I can see the scenario with your wife happening to all of us, "Don't do my laundry but yet I only had one thing why didn't you wash it"...Smile and nod your head Buddy this is the only answer sometimes.

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  16. I notice people have there own style from sorting, water temp, soaps and such. Biggest thing is folding and there sure a large ray of folding clothes that is.
    We have plastic one but our clothes hamper is and old wicker basket.
    Coffee is on

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    1. I believe the differences in styles of washing, drying, and folding clothing is as many as there are people, we all seem to do it just a little bit differently.

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  17. DH does his laundry on Sunday (night). He always leaves a load in the dryer. I wash my clothes when they are all dirty, because it's hard for me to do. I do a load and I'm done in for a couple of days.

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    1. Sharon it sounds like you may have to train DH to do yours also...

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  18. I'm sitting here trying to scoop my dropped jaw off the floor. First, I'm surprised at how many people put off doing laundry until they can't cram any more into the hamper, or when they run out of clean clothes to wear. Second, Cindy really does that? Crams it all in?
    My machine is a front loader, Swedish made and I put the clothes in loosely, overloading is a no-no no matter what style machine you have, things don't clean properly if they can't swish through the water. Anyway, put the clothes in loosely, then the drum spins one way for a short time, then the opposite way for a shirt time and so on to the end of the cycle. My chosen cycle does a long wash followed by three rinses and during the spin cycles if the clothes are unbalanced, the machine stops, slowly spins a couple of turns one way then the other to balance the load before going into full spin. I LOVE my machine which is 21 years old this coming September. I thought 22, but I just checked the original invoice.

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    1. "shirt time"? oh dear. That should be short time.

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    2. River, Cindy and I have had this discussion many times over the years, I don't think she actually overloads the machine (ours has always been a top loader with an agitator in the center) it's that they all go in at once and not layered loosely, I agree with you that clothes clean better when properly loaded. We are hoping to buy a front loader next time which I hope is a long while yet because our set now is not that old.

      Thank you for your input River, I really do respect your opinions, proper usage of equipment like a washer prolongs it's life and helps it to work better, all the more reason for Cindy's dream of disposable clothes.

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  19. I read this post in horror and amazement, Jimmy. OMG what a nightmare. My husband was banned from using the washing machine, which incidentally was/is a front loading washer/dryer. I use a programme of my own invention (!) that cuts out most of the ironing. Everything else has been covered by River.

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    1. Good morning Valerie, I'm sorry this was supposed to be more of a comedy post rather than a horror piece, in our house Cindy would volunteer to be banned from using the washing machine, I am surprised that she hasn't banned herself already. Truth be told I do the wash the majority of the time. I like your idea of cutting out most of the ironing, for me putting clothes away quickly after they come out of the dryer is key in that respect.

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    2. Hanging things on the line as straight and square as possible helps to minimise ironing as well. Folding things straight off the line or out of the dryer is another way. I haven't ironed anything at all in years. I rarely use the dryer though, preferring that sunshine lined dried smell. Never used dryer sheets either.

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  20. I have eight pair of underwear. When I am on the 8th pair I do the laundry. My only question is when do you add the laundry detergent? Before the clothes or after the clothes are in the machine?

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    1. Hello Annie, We have been using the pods lately and I always add them first, even when I used the powdered laundry detergent it went in before the clothes were loaded.

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    2. with a front loader there is a soap loading drawer where you put the soap powder, or the liquid soap in more modern machines, close the drawer and when the machine starts, the water runs into the drum through the soap drawer taking it to the clothes already dissolving and sudsy.
      In the top loader I once had many years ago, the instructions were to load the clothes, add soap powder, then start the machine. I was never happy with that and only had that machine about a year.

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  21. LOL! At least you guys kind of share the duties. While in the Air Force, I found that almost every guy I knew was anal about the laundry. They even ironed t-shirts once they came out of the dryer. Everyone has their method I guess, but as long as it gets done, I guess it works. Once again, love your story! Hugs...RO

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    1. RO, You just described one of the guys we knew when we lived in New Mexico, he was in the Air Force at the time and I have never seen so much spray starch used in my entire life, he ironed everything (t-shirts included) and he was good at it too.

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  22. After reading your intro, I wondered if I wanted to continue reading. I get enough of our own dirty laundry! But thanks for the overview. I do laundry every day - it was a tip a mom friend gave me many years ago. Even when the house is a mess, you know you've got clean laundry!

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    1. Abby that is definitely a way to always have clean laundry, it makes sense, a little bit every day rather than a lot at one time.

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  23. thank you for sharing this interesting details of your laundry process
    we have tow huge plastic baskets to put dirty clothes though i hardly let them be filled and wash them before they make me too tired if gather MUCH

    i smiled over the mention of difference between your side and the one that Cindy owns
    much like us mine is not as disciplined as in my side there are the clothes of my sons too so when they pull out everything gets messed up though the side that hubby owns is completely organized

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    1. Yes Baili, As you mentioned when our children were still at home the laundry process was much larger, it is amazing how much less clothes there are to wash now. It sounds like you and your husband are similar to Cindy and I in how we sort and wash clothes.

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