I miss dry cleaning.
It's not that you can't get it here, you can. Even this place isn't that backwards. It's just that dry cleaning was one of those little luxuries of life we had to give up when everything came crashing down.
I don't actually mind doing the laundry. I kind of find it slightly therapeutic. If I don't have any work at the time, it allows me to feel productive. And if I do, it gives me an excuse to take little breaks. It really wasn't much of an issue when we still lived in LA, except that I quickly learned that the "DRY CLEAN ONLY" label in clothing isn't so much a suggestion as it is a threat. I thought that if I just washed them gently everything would be OK. Well, it wasn't and those clothes are long gone, may they rest in peace.
The laundry didn't really become an issue until we moved to Bakersfield. When we lived in LA we had good appliances, but they were sadly part of the short sale on the house. When we moved to Bako, we were dead broke and ended up getting the cheapest refrigerator and washer & dryer we could find.
The fridge has done OK. Technically, it's a side by side, although everything freezes on the top shelf of the fridge, and everything thaws on the bottom shelves of the freezer. So it's really more a "zonal" arrangement.
And then there are the washer and dryer. The washer has four temperature settings which are all a slight variation of "luke warm". Screw the "gentle" cycle, this thing is aggressive and abusive. Like Charlie Sheen after a couple eight balls. But it appears to get the job done and will empty every pocket of all the spare change, which is an unexpected bonus. Some days I make more money off the wash than I do working.
The dryer, however, is another matter.
It has two settings - "low" and "regular", or as I refer to them, "mildew" and "atomic meltdown".
Put it on "low" and it doesn't matter how long you let it run, nothing will ever dry. It's not such a issue during the hot summer months when things can be hung to dry, but during the cold, clammy, Bako Fall, Winter and Spring, hanging the clothes has the same effect as drying on low: nada.
Which leaves "regular".
I keep thinking I can outwit it. That maybe I can just throw the clothes in for a couple of minutes at a time. But the dryer heats up faster than a rocket and after only a minute you need oven mitts to remove anything.
The end result is I now have a closet full of doll clothes. I looks like I have a Cabbage Patch doll collection, and these are their outfits. I don't know why I don't just throw them out. Probably because then I'd realize just how few wearable clothes I still have.
The boyfriend tries to be helpful...
"Why don't you wear this?"
Because it no longer fits.
"Well... you have put on a little weight..."
Riiiight... and my arms have each grown 12 inches. Thanks, honey.
As the wardrobe continues to dwindle I've had to contemplate what to do, and so far I can only think of one thing..
Mumus from WalMart.
It seems to work for everyone else here.
