CLOTHESLINE RULES

I received an email forward relating to a topic we discussed last fall – the clothesline – and setting forth some basic rules:
1. Wash the clothesline before hanging any clothes. [I do that only at the beginning of the season or if I see there is a need.]
2. Be orderly – hang the whites with whites and hang them first. [Who knew? It makes sense to hang the jeans first; it takes them longest to dry.]
3. Hang shirts by the tail – never by the shoulders. [That’s to avoid obvious clothespin marks. I occasionally break this rule when hanging stretchy knits – like pajama tops.]
4. Wash day is Monday. Never wash on the weekend – especially not Sunday. [Some rules are made to be broken.]
5. Hang the sheets and towels on the outside so that your undies are hidden in the middle. [I don’t worry about that here, but I think it’s a good rule if hanging clothes where they can be observed.]
6. Hang clothes out even in winter – clothes will freeze dry. [In winter or rainy weather I move to a wooden rack purchased at Wal-mart and dry clothes by the fire. It’s been my experience that hanging clothes outside on a chilly day just increases my work because they don’t get dry.]
7. Always gather the clothespins when taking down dry clothes because it’s tacky to leave pins on the line. [It’s more than that! Leaving the pins on the line causes them to deteriorate, turn dark, and then leave tracks on your clothes. My mother was specific and strict about this rule.]
8. Be efficient. If possible line the clothes up so that each item shares a pin with the next washed item. [This is to conserve line space as well as clothespins. It’s a good idea unless the day is cool. On a cool day items dry better if fabric isn’t layered.]
9. Clothes should be off the line before dinner time, neatly folded in the clothes basket and ready to be ironed. [On a busy day this rule can be difficult to meet. At any rate, it is not good to leave them out overnight. Birds fly and bugs land.]
10. Ironing – a subject that little affects me.

An all-time important rule not mentioned (whoever wrote these rules wasn’t an expert) is to smooth the clothes as much as possible and make sure there are no tucks or wrinkles. If you don’t iron, the clothes are fairly smooth; if you do iron, it makes your job easier.]

Included in this forward was a lengthy poem setting forth nostalgic ideas about the clothesline, the premise being that neighbors knew a lot about one another when they hung their laundry on clotheslines. For instance, you knew by the laundry:
-- Who had had company – fancy sheets, towels, table linen
-- When the new baby had arrived

-- The ages of any children in the home

-- If someone was sick (extra bed linen, pajamas, robes, etc.)
-- When folks were on vacation (This alone would probably keep some folks from hanging clothes today.)
-- And dingy laundry and haphazard hanging said something about the quality of your housekeeping and hence your character.

It doesn’t mention that neighbors met and visited (gossiped) while hanging out the clothes – and that wasn’t a bad thing. We knew each other better and maybe that gave us better social awareness and social skills. Our modern conveniences – our dryers, air conditioners, televisions, etc.—together with our work schedules -- have shut us away from one another.

[The photos show today's laundry on the line while Mike rests in the welcome sunshine. Maybe you can see the mud under the line. I had to take care to stand on the little tufts of grass in order to hang the clothes. And for Nellie fans, here's a photo of her by the bramble bush.]