Project Laundry List: 04/01/2008

Sunday, May 25, 2008

It's Ironic....

It's Memorial Day weekend. A time when we honor those who gave their lives or their souls so we can live in freedom. I don't like war and I find it hard to support the causes, especially in some cases. But I need to understand it, we all do. Here are people who value their freedom so much that they would die for it. People who can understand the reasoning for war and think enough of me, without even meeting me, to protect me and my freedoms. People who don't look at Americans as who is illegal or who is not, who is guilty and who is innocent. They see America, a country as a whole, the best in the world, and they will do anything in their power to keep it that way. A true and pure love and dedication for their home.

So it seems ironic that people would die to keep us free yet some will take away our freedoms while still calling themselves Americans. Clotheslines, for example. (Who saw that coming? :) It seems like a slap in the face to those who have given so much to keep us free.

I will probably never understand war but will take the time to think of those who have lost everything to let me keep my freedom to not understand. And not just on one day a year, everyday, and in everything I do....

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Hi from a new British member

Hi everyone - I am living in the (currently) sunny south east of England and got interested in the Laundry List after a visit to the USA (OK I suppose the flight wasn't very environmentally friendly but we were visiting lots of relatives & we do try & be green the rest of the year).

I was really shocked when I was told by an uncle not to bother to hang out the laundry on a sunny day because you might as well use the dryer & outside drying was not good for towels - news to me after 55 years of hanging out and seeing my mum hang out! Then a cousin's son had a school project to do the laundry. His check list ended with "put bleach in the machine" then finally "put clothes in the dryer". In the UK we never use bleach in machines as considered bad for the workings. As it was a sunny day I suggested that he would create a good impression with the teacher if he said he had hung the washing out to save energy - the environment is very high on the agenda in UK schools. I was told by an embarressed cousin that the teacher would not know what he was talking about. I could hardly believe this - are we living on the same planet.

Then the worst thing was our cousin in Georgia who with 3 young children is actually BANNED from hanging out her washing on her (very nice but not exactly luxury by UK standards) estate.

I live in the perhaps most affluent area of the UK - house prices average around $1 million at least - no one thinks twice about seeing laundry hanging outside. In fact most people would view someone NOT hanging out on a good drying day as rather lazy and perhaps the less charitable would think they were a bit "chav"/common/like Victoria Beckham but I would not be so judgemental (at least that's my story)

It is not easy being green & I cannot pretend that I do not drive a car (although we now drive my little Nissan Micra rather than my husband's work car when we can at petrol -gas - is now around $8 for your gallon) nor do I have solar panels etc which are still very expensive over here. however tumble drying wastes so much energy & hanging out washing takes so little time & gives such lovely smelling laundry that it seems a no brainer way to do your bit & save some cash in the process.

Good luck with your campaign - I keep trying to find Engish people to convert to line drying however am pushing at an open door as I cannot find anyone round here who does not line dry at least on fine days.

Are Energy Companies really on our side?

I'm still trying to figure this one out. My electric bill for March - April was $210.00. I have a big house and we're trying but not quite there on turning things off when we're not using them. During the month of April - May I used my dryer once or twice. I was really diligent about it because I wanted to see what a drop it would make in my electric bill. The time came when my meter was supposed to be read and I checked my on-line statement for a few days, with my excitement almost bursting from my line-dried seams. Then it was there....my bill... $40.00 more than the previous month. WHAT? There was an additional $20.00 in the electric companies portion as well as an additional $20.00 in the supplier portion. When I e-mailed them to see if it was an actual read or if they had any idea of why it was so high they gave me the standard response telling me where I can go to calculate how much energy my appliances take. Ummm - that's where I found out it costs me $2.25 every time I run the dryer. Really makes me wonder if they are really on the side of the environment or just pretending to be so we conserve and their bills don't really decrease much....or go up....

Thursday, May 8, 2008

What is an American?

Quoted is a portion of an e-mail recently received from Project Laundry List:

This AP story appeared Monday:

One highly effective way to reduce electricity use is to hang laundry on an outdoor clothesline, instead of using a dryer, Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden said Monday.
But many upscale housing developments ban outdoor clotheslines on aesthetic grounds, he added.

There, in a nutshell, is why state attorneys general will be key players in the battle against global warming, Wasden said at the opening of the National Association of Attorneys General conference on energy.

"We are blind to some of the simplest solutions," Wasden said. "Clotheslines are not pretty enough for our notion of the American dream."

This immediately made me think of an Amtrak trip we took on the way back from Florida a few years back and the pathetic state that America is in.

On the trip back we passed through some very sad towns. Vacant buildings, grafitti, people hanging out aimlessly no where to do anything productive if they wanted to. As much a part of America as people who live in high rises in big flourishing cities. But for some reason the hidden part of America. Who are we trying to impress by only showing the world the rich or well to do or the people who pretend to be?

Who's notion of the American Dream are they speaking of? The American dream to some is simply to move here, become citizens, work hard and have a better life. To some, who pile 10 deep in a rowboat, the American dream is to just to make it to the land. To some, who have been so conditioned that living simply is not an American dream option, the more "bling" the better no matter how it is attained. Or is the basic American dream simply being able to live the way one chooses thoroughly and completely?

Why is it that some people can decide for others what their American dream can be? That doesn't sound very American to me. I'm having real difficulty understanding the concept.

As cyber-hippie said " I think the world would be a better place if more people had a "Love Problem!" " Wouldn't that be something! What would we do without all that hate? Kind of feels like a world without hate when hanging (or taking down) clothes from a clothesline doesn't it? Calm, peaceful, serene.

But on the other hand, how would the gun manufacturers survive? After all, it's our Constitutional right to own a gun.....but not have a clothesline...Again, I'm having real difficulty understanding the concept.

"A Love Problem"

I was home from work, sick, yesterday. My BF gets up in the mornings, and one of the first things he does just about every day is the laundry. As I sat, just relaxing (boyfriend's orders!) I could hear the sounds of him doing the laundry and then running it outside to hang it up to dry. (I do the laundry on Saturdays and Sundays--if there IS any on Sunday.)

The tinkle of the water hitting the tub as he wrung out the laundry and then the thump of the sliding glass door as he headed out into the yard for a hanging session were reassuring to me, solid. The sounds of home.

You caught that correctly: We do our laundry by hand, in the bathtub. The primary reason for this is we have a leak in the pipes between the laundry room and the kitchen. I have not yet had the money to get it fixed. We are both able-bodied and green-minded, so it doesn't make sense to either of us to spend the time, money, or gas to go to a laundromat. Washing it in the tub--one load a day--is our solution to this.

Since I was not allowed (again: Boyfriend's orders!) to do any housework at all, I watched him as he worked around the house. Finally, about 10pm, it was time to bring the clothes in off the lines. I offered to help, as he was working on something else--a painting project--but he declined and ordered me to stay put on the couch. Did I listen? No.

At about 10pm, I went upstairs and grabbed the basket and the pin bag and headed outside to take in the clothes. When he saw me, he said: "Hey! I think you have a listening problem, young lady!"

I responded, "No. I don't have a listening problem. I have a love problem!" Well, that hushed him up and gave the warm, night air an even warmer feel. The breezes seemed to embrace each of us, as we worked away in the little, golden pool of our backyard light. All was in harmony, moving along as it should.

I think the world would be a better place if more people had a "Love Problem!"

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

A New Patio Umbrella

Years ago I was standing in my backyard with my new umbrella style clothesline in my hand, scanning the yard for a good location. The patio off the back of the house had full sun and was especially warm due to the pavers. But I didn't want to make a hole in the patio to insert my dryer. Then it occurred to me: there was a hole in the center of my patio table for an umbrella. I stuck my dryer in there as a temporary solution, but there it lived for many years. The spot was ideal. I could place my basket on the table as well as my bucket of pins. There was room to fold the laundry right off the line. And it was easy to remove for entertaining.

Now it's time to consider it a permanent solution, and so I'll cut about nine or ten inches off the bottom of the post to make it easier to reach. Maybe this is a solution that will work in your neighborhood too.

Ellen in New Hampshire

I see you!

Several days ago I was using maps.live.com to cruise the world, and CT in particular. When I zereoed in on my Farmington condo from the rear, I could actually see my laundry hanging on my illegal lines, which I have strung between the privacy walls on my back deck. How cool is that? Pam in CT

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Don't Flatter Yourself

I was hanging laundry again yesterday through my window. It was a beautiful day with, what I believe, was the best nature (and enlightenment) day so far.

It started before I opened my window with the bunny I could see even without my glasses :) Unfortunately I wasn't able to open my window quietly enough to sneak it by him and he hopped away across the yard.

As I continued to hang my stuff a squirrel was walking around under the two lines that were almost full and I thought "He's not threatened by my laundry". I continued to watch as he dug something up, moved forward a few inches and re-buried it. Did you ever see a squirrel bury something close up? They pat the dirt down with their little paws to secure their planting. Too cute :)

I then looked down to see a little brown mouse, who had made a hole under my deck step, munching on some grass. Chubby little guy :)

The birds were flying around as usual. The crows were chasing off the hawks who were coming too close to their nests, no one threated by me or my laundry....

I have always taught my kids that we are not much different than the other land dwelling creatures that we share the earth with. We all have 2 eyes to see, a nose that smells, our ears all do the same thing they just look different. No one is better than the others. We all have purposes and they are all different but they are all necessary.

So as I was looking at these creatures doing what they do as I was doing what I do I realized that people who think that hanging laundry is, among other things, a sign of poverty are truly the outcasts of the world. They do whatever they can to avoid anything that has to do with the planet that sustains them. Birds annoy them, mice have no place in their world, squirrels are "just disposable rodents". They flatter themselves because they need some kind of material validation. They are so engulfed in mechanical this and technological that and they end up in a world that they have to work so hard to be a part of when the creatures of the earth will accept them in a heartbeat.

I may be over the edge in the comprehension of nature as I appreciate it but I will continue to watch the birds do what they do and learn from them. I will always think that squirrels patting down the dirt is one of the cutest things in the world and I will brake for moles crossing the road. I will continue to pick grass and dandelions for our pet guinea pig and he will continue to sleep on fleece blankets.

I don't feel like I'm in the minority anymore. After all I'm in a group with a planet, lots of creatures and lots of people who love the afore mentioned. Pretty Cool :)

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

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