Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Take Me Back Tuesday: It's On The Line

The blue sky above, the heat from the sun, the soft gentle breeze on my skin, the sound of birds singing in the trees, the calmness that comes over me and soothes the spirit. These things are among the many pleasures that come from..........

.......clean wet laundry piled in a basket, a bag of clothes pins and a clothesline in the back yard. A simple pleasure really, but one that brings back lots of memories from childhood and also allows me to reflect on my everyday happenings today.

We live in a world that is in fast forward mode all the time. We are programed to get things done quickly, the easiest and the fastest way possible. We learn to take the path that requires very little energy from ourselves to get to the end result the quickest. Let me give you an example.

About a month ago, we were appliance shopping and I was dreaming of owning a pair of the new fangled front loader machines. Oh, the ones I wanted were top of the line, of course, with a top of the line price. When I looked at all the performance statistics, the one thing that stood out with the dryer was the fact it professed to drying a HUGE load of laundry in only 10 minutes.


I thought about that one....10 minutes to dry a load of laundry....that registered with me that once I put the clothes in the dryer I had only 10 minutes before I had to return to the laundry room to fold and put away that load....and all of a sudden, the appeal was lost. I dislike so much folding and putting away the laundry that all of a sudden, that was not a great selling point for me. Truth.

So for now, I have put that dream aside. Things can be bigger, faster, and prettier, but that does not mean it is the best for me.......

Often times, for me, I get so caught up in the daily grind of living I forget to slow down and enjoy the journey. If you are like me, let me say this, a clothes line will solve a lot of these issues. For me, once I take a basket of clothes out to the line, things slow down drastically. All of a sudden, I have time to think, ponder current situations, and relax in the warm sunshine without a care in the world.

One by one, the clothes are hung to dry and during this process, I have lots of time to think. Whether it be about someplace we have been or someplace we are dreaming of going. Sometimes thoughts of my family, friends, or thoughts of total strangers flood my mind. It is a slow down process, time to think, time to ponder the questions that plague my mind, time to leave the worries of the day right there in the sunshine.

It is a very therapeutic process and one I am so thankful to be able to enjoy. I know some think this is so old fashion and think who in their right mind would hang clothes on a line in the year 2010. I say, that these folks are the very ones who need to experience a slow down process and stop and enjoy the little things.

I remember as a young girl, we would spend the weekends at my grandmothers house. There was nothing like the smell of freshly laundered sheets as we snuggled into bed at night. The smell was intoxicating, fresh, clean with a hint of sunshine. No other place I ever remembered had linens that smelled that fresh, only my grandma's house. Along with the sheets, the towels were always soft and smelled just as good as the sheets. In fact, if you opened up the linen closet, the freshness filled the small space. I never really questioned that fresh laundry smell until I became an adult. I wondered why my laundry was not that fresh smelling and how it was I only remember that from my grandma's house.

The answer was so simple, it made me smile.....Downy fabric softener, a clothesline and sunshine. If you have not slept on freshly, line dried sheets in a while, you have no idea what you are missing. Do you suffer from sleep apnea? I am certain a freshly made bed with sunshine dried sheets will have you sleeping like a baby in no time.

But don't take my word for it, ask Dora. Now, if I can come up with a solution in keeping wiener dogs out of the laundry basket of clean clothes, I will have it made.

Thanks for stopping by on this Take me back Tuesday.....simple memories from a much simpler time. These days, sometimes when you least expect it, the past will sneak up on the present......slow down, relax and smell the fresh laundry....I'd hate for you to miss out!

19 comments:

  1. Hi Suzanne...Thank you for the wonderful smile & memory provoking post! All the time as a child, my mother never had a dryer, and her washer was a huge old thing with the wringer thing on top...as I got older we would sometimes go to the laundromat down the street...quicker, but I never liked the smell left on the clothes! Today? I don't own a dryer...:O} Happy Tuesday *elaine*

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  2. Dora looks so peaceful. I hung all my sheets and towels on the line yesterday. The towels are so much more absorbent and they do smell so fresh. I love you pics.

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  3. This is the reason I want a clothes line, even if it is a smaller one. I could almost smell the freshness you described. Lovely pictures to go with this post. Sweet little pup, how could you wake her up??

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  4. We were just discussing the Lost Art of Ironing on another of my favorite blogs, and now the circle is complete: the fresh, Spring-morning scent of sheets and towels spanking in the breeze, the too-white-for-your-eyes flashing in the sunshine, and the end-of-the-day gathering in of all that wonderful freshness into the house in armfuls of clean, dry laundry.

    Simplest memories are sometimes the most lasting.

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  5. i love this! growing up, having to hang out(and bring in, and FOLD)the laundry was such drudgery, but lately i have been daydreaming about a clothesline, too. how ODD is that? lol.
    your pictures are lovely--except for the stinging little bug. ewww! ;-)
    happy summertime!

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  6. You know, I also hate the folding and putting away part of the laundry. I normally (and probably shouldn't admit this) just dump the pile of clothes on my guest bed and wear them from there. Haha! Talk about lazy! If we had a place to hang a line I would do that. I love sheets that way. Jeans... not so much because they're all crunchy. haha!
    ~Maggie

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  7. Love your final thoughts and photo of Dora - simply A - DORA-ble!

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  8. Hi Suzanne, I am grabbing a few minutes to write a few thank you comments. We gave all the grands a hula hoop for a big contest to take place on Friday. Right now they are practicing like crazy. It is so funny to watch them.

    Thank you for your comment of well wishes for grandkid's week.

    I totally get the clothesline thing. I hung a gazillian diapers in my time. I finally got my first drier when my 5th child was born. I did miss the fresh smell so much but convenience was more important. Your pup knows the best place to take a nap. Smile!!!

    Have a happy day.
    Hugs, Jeanne

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  9. If the sun is shining, clothes are hung on the line; even in the dead of winter. I've got a photo of clothes frozen stiff and swinging in a heavy wind...taken in January or February.
    The sun not only dries clothes, it also disinfects them and that's an added bonus.

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  10. Hanging clothes out on the line brings back good memories to me too. I ♥ed those days. :) Gerry

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  11. Isn't it amazing how a simple smell can evoke memories from long ago? I am a huge fan of clotheslines and use mine from Spring until Fall.

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  12. Fond memories of clothes dried on the line. Thanks for bringing them back. Lane

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  13. I can relate to this 100%. They can knock the good old days, but somethings back then was not bad. Keep the cloths line and washer too.

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  14. And for all our bigger, faster, newer....do we have any more time? Nope. We fill up whatever few minutes were spared and find something else that we think we should be doing. We run on guilt quite often, don't we?

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  15. I don't have a clothesline now, but spent much time growing up hanging clothes on the line. There's nothing like standing between the lines filled with wet sheets or towels to refresh you!

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  16. One of my very favorite things to do! :) My friends think I'm insane, but hanging out sheets and towels and quilts quite simply takes me back to a simpler time. LOVE this post! :)
    And now I must go and thank Knitty for pointing it out to me.

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  17. A thoughtful post - well written.
    I've never owned a dryer. Dh and I have always hung our clothes (and sheets etc.) We have lots of porches and several big wooden racks and a couple smaller ones. I really don't see the advantage of dryers (which I used for a while in my early 20s at the laundry mat.) But then I've never had small children, so there might be the rub! My mom has/had a dryer but also a clothesline always.

    Kathy

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  18. Suzanne, I have to start by saying that your dog is adorable. I sometimes wish I could dry my clothes on a line (but I live in an apartment), if only to save money ($2 per load..just to dry!!). I loved the smell of my grandparent's sheets in the summertime. My dad gave me a set of my grandmother's sheets after she died and they still smelled so fresh. Thanks for the memories!

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  19. Oh, Suszanne...hanging clothes on the line, then, running out during a spring rain to bring them back in...one of my fondest memories. Gosh, now I WANT A CLOTHESLINE !!
    Thanks for this trip down memory lane...
    See you for VT...:)
    xo bj

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Sometimes someone says something really small, and it's like it fits into this empty space in your heart!

Thank you for stopping by and leaving your thoughts here, they really mean a lot to me!

Suzanne

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