Cleaning Up

I'm amazed by how much more I can get done when I don't do laundry.

About a month ago, our washing machine started leaking. It was still under warranty, so we had to wait a week for the certified repairman (who, ironically, was our usual repairman) to come take a look at it. During that week, only essential laundry got done, because doing laundry involved going to the laundromat and paying to do the wash. Not. Fun.

Under normal circumstances, laundry is neither a hugely time-consuming task, nor is it a difficult one. Still, all through that week, I kept feeling as though there was something I should be doing. Several times, I even stopped myself from going downstairs to switch laundry over from the washer to the dryer. I had never realized how ingrained this in-between task had become in my day-to-day life, how often it got squeezed into transition times. Finished reading e-mail? Check the laundry. Need a break from a mind-numbing task? Check the laundry.

All through that week, I found myself moving right from one task to another, with no intervening "check the laundry" step. It was eerie how much more time I seemed to have. Still, I was afraid to get  used to the luxury of an uninterrupted life, because it was only a matter of time until "do the laundry" and "check the laundry" reinserted themselves into my life.

Sure enough, once the serviceman arrived, he discovered it was a simple repair - one not covered by the warranty, of course. The door closed behind him, and the cycle began again.

Now I'm amazed by how many clothes my family has.