My Mom sent me this, so I just had to share. To be honest, I don't care where and what goes on my clothesline, and sometimes (gulp!) I just throw whatever I have all in the same load. If you drive by, you may see my "unmentionables" on there too.
Some of you may simply have to pass this up or pass it along to your
parents, uncles and aunts.....
You have to be a certain age to appreciate this.
THE BASIC RULES FOR CLOTHESLINES:
(If you don't know what clotheslines are,
better skip this.)
1. You had to wash the clothes line before hanging any
clothes--walk the entire lengths of each line with a
damp cloth around the lines
2..You had to hang the clothes in a certain order, and
always hang "whites" with "whites," and hang them first.
3. You never hung a shirt by the shoulders, always by the
tail What would the neighbors think?
4. Wash day on a Monday! . .. . Never hang clothes on the
Weekend, or Sunday, for Heaven's sake!
5. Hang the sheets and towels on the outside lines so you
could hide your "unmentionables" in the middle (perverts &
busybodies, y'know!).
6. It didn't matter if it was sub zero
weather....clothes would "freeze-dry."
7. Always gather the clothes pins when taking down dry
clothes! Pins left on the lines were "tacky!"
8. 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.
9. Clothes off of the line before dinner time, neatly
folded in the clothes basket, and ready to be ironed.
10. IRONED? Well, that's a whole other
subject!
A CLOTHESLINE POEM
A clothesline was a news forecast
To neighbors passing by,
There were no secrets you could keep
When clothes were hung to dry.
It also was a friendly link
For neighbors always knew,
If company had stopped on by
To spend a night or two.
For then you'd see the "fancy sheets"
And towels upon the line;
You'd see the "company table cloths"
With intricate designs.
The line announced a baby's birth
From folks who lived inside -
As brand new infant clothes were hung,
So carefully with pride!
The ages of the children could
So readily be known
By watching how the sizes changed,
You'd know how much they'd grown!
It also told when illness struck,
As extra sheets were hung;
Then nightclothes, and a bathrobe, too,
Haphazardly were strung.
It also said, "Gone on vacation now"
When lines hung limp and bare.
It told, "We're back!" when full lines sagged, with not an
inch to spare!
New folks in town were scorned upon
If wash was dingy and gray,
As neighbors carefully raised their brows,
And looked the other way.
But clotheslines now are of the past,
For dryers make work much less.
Now what goes on inside a home
Is anybody's guess!
I really miss that way of life. It was a friendly sign.
When neighbors knew each other best by what hung on the line.
Now, I do try to wash my whites separately, and I do collect all my clothespins and bring the bag in each time. They get moldy if I don't.
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