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Remembering Mom's Clothesline
There is one thing that's left out.
We had a long wooden pole (clothes pole) that was used to push the clotheslines up
so that longer items (sheets/pants/etc.) didn't brush the ground and get dirty.
I can hear my mother now...
THE BASIC RULES FOR CLOTHESLINES:
(If you don't even know what clotheslines are, better skip this.)
1. You had to hang the socks by the toes... NOT the top.
2. You hung pants by the BOTTOM/cuffs... NOT the waistbands.
3. You had to WASH the clothesline(s) before hanging any clothes -
walk the entire length of each line with a damp cloth around the lines.
4. You had to hang the clothes in a certain order, and always hang "whites" with "whites,"
and hang them first.
5. You NEVER hung a shirt by the shoulders - always by the tail!
What would the neighbors think?
6. Wash day on a Monday! NEVER hang clothes on the weekend,
or on Sunday, for Heaven's sake!
7. Hang the sheets and towels on the OUTSIDE lines so you could
hide your "unmentionables" in the middle (perverts & busybodies, y'know!)
8. It didn't matter if it was sub-zero weather... clothes would "freeze-dry."
9. ALWAYS gather the clothes pins when taking down dry clothes!
Pins left on the lines were "tacky"!
10. If you were efficient, you would line the clothes up so that each item
did not need two clothes pins, but shared one of the clothes pins with the next washed item.
11. Clothes off of the line before dinner time, neatly folded in the clothes basket,
and ready to be ironed.
12. IRONED??!! Well, that's a whole OTHER subject!
Remembering Mom's Clothesline
There is one thing that's left out.
We had a long wooden pole (clothes pole) that was used to push the clotheslines up
so that longer items (sheets/pants/etc.) didn't brush the ground and get dirty.
I can hear my mother now...
THE BASIC RULES FOR CLOTHESLINES:
(If you don't even know what clotheslines are, better skip this.)
1. You had to hang the socks by the toes... NOT the top.
2. You hung pants by the BOTTOM/cuffs... NOT the waistbands.
3. You had to WASH the clothesline(s) before hanging any clothes -
walk the entire length of each line with a damp cloth around the lines.
4. You had to hang the clothes in a certain order, and always hang "whites" with "whites,"
and hang them first.
5. You NEVER hung a shirt by the shoulders - always by the tail!
What would the neighbors think?
6. Wash day on a Monday! NEVER hang clothes on the weekend,
or on Sunday, for Heaven's sake!
7. Hang the sheets and towels on the OUTSIDE lines so you could
hide your "unmentionables" in the middle (perverts & busybodies, y'know!)
8. It didn't matter if it was sub-zero weather... clothes would "freeze-dry."
9. ALWAYS gather the clothes pins when taking down dry clothes!
Pins left on the lines were "tacky"!
10. If you were efficient, you would line the clothes up so that each item
did not need two clothes pins, but shared one of the clothes pins with the next washed item.
11. Clothes off of the line before dinner time, neatly folded in the clothes basket,
and ready to be ironed.
12. IRONED??!! Well, that's a whole OTHER subject!
