The Neverending Pile of Laundry

There are many fairytales, myths and legends where the protagonist has to push a rock up the hill forever or spin thread into gold all night. These stories are like the secret torture that most women have to deal with. That torture is "The Neverending Pile of Laundry."

Many of us were slobs when we lived the single life. Laundry wasn't a big issue. We often grabbed something we particularly loved out of the bottom of the laundry basket for a second wear if we had to out in a rush. We only had ourselves to worry about so we could feasibly do all our laundry on one day a week.

Family life has changed all that and we are now enslaved to the washing machine, tumble drier and ironing board.

As a control freak I will not let anyone else near the washing machine. I had a lovely cleaning lady with poor english at the start of my domestic life. Each week I would ask her not to put anything in the machine. Each week she threw in towels, socks and anything else according to her own categorisation with predictable results.

I finally managed to stifle her enthusiasm by showing her a lovely khaki green, silk mix Prada top that I had got for a fantastic sale price in Brown Thomas. I held it against me with tears in my eyes. It had shrunk beyond repair to doll size. I pointed: "Very Expensive - Prada - (showed her the label) Please No Touch Washer"

When people tell me they have five or seven children the first thing I think about is the washing. How do they do it? Do they have staff? Shouldn't they be at home now taking something out of the machine? Do standards slip??

A friend of mine who has no children sends her laundry out to a laundrette. She told me that she can't sleep in sheets that haven't been ironed. It was too shameful to admit that the idea of ironing sheets had never, ever crossed my mind.

As a child growing up in a large family I remember a room that was dedicated to laundry. There were piles of sheets, machines going constantly and lovely warm smell of ironing emenating into the kitchen.

I have tried having the machines in the kitchen and in a separate laundry room and have now decided that having the machines in the kitchen is the best option. I spend loads of time in the kitchen so it's okay to throw in a few loads while I'm talking to friends or in the middle of cooking something. It's not so lonely or boring as going into a separate room. It also means that you tend not to forget about it or leave it all to one miserable day.

There is a huge amount of satisfaction to be had from knowing that all your clothes (including the handwashing, drycleaning, towels and sheets) are clean. Unfortunately because it's a neverending task if you do finish it all you will begin to seek higher standards. The curtains and sofa will suddenly start to look a bit grubby. The neverending pile will continue......

Emma in Canada said...
Laundry is a constant source of irritation in my house, though apparently only for myself. All my kids have to do is bring their laundry down twice a week. They can't be bothered. They are also supposed to put laundry away in the closets and drawers, but again that is not a big priority. So it is just me, washing, drying, folding and putting away laundry for 6. I draw the line at ironing though, unless it is an absolute necessity. I'm a great disappointment to my mother who irons not only sheets but panties and socks.