on the logic of cleaning dishes

When I was a teenager, in 1991 or ‘92, my parents had my siblings and me do the dishes each night after dinner. Two of us three kids would wash and dry everything by hand then put it all neatly away. Just before my sister and I had finishing the chore one night, our mother came in and spoke to us, pointing out that water had collected on the counter and in the sink. “When you’re finished,” she said, “leave so few traces that that not even Sherlock Holmes could figure out what had occurred here.” We wiped away the clues, leaving the area sparkling, and spotless.

Now, nearly thirty years later, I still do my best to stick by the logic related above. When I dirty a dish or pot, I clean it up immediately. When the dishes are dry, I put them away. Used laundry goes in one place, clean clothes in another. If something is out of place or damaged, it gets fixed or discarded. In this way, my work gets done while it is still small - before it becomes a burden.

With a glance at my living quarters, a trained detective could gather lots of information about my habits and proclivities. What he would not find, however, is that I am a messy person.

americanifesto / JPR / whorphan / 場黑麥

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on bucket washing

​Save money and get a workout by washing your clothes using two buckets and a broomstick. Standard contractor buckets work best, as does a long, strong stick that has no sharp ends.

Cut four roughly inch-wide (~3 cm) holes in the bottom of the first bucket - to help drain water later. Fill the second, intact bucket halfway with soiled laundry, add about three tablespoons (~45 ml) of detergent, then add the rest of your dirty clothes. Pour in lukewarm water until it reaches no more than six inches (~15 mm) below the top of the bucket.

Using the broom handle, gently push the laundry downward against the far side of the bucket, using a foot or ledge to stop it from moving around, if necessary. Rotate (agitate) your clothing this way until the water looks oily, and brown. Then, take both buckets to a bathing area, place the intact bucket on the floor of your tub or shower, place the bucket with holes into it, and push downward. Dirty water will bubble up through the holes. Flip over both buckets then push downward on the bottom of the intact bucket to force as much water as possible out of the clothing now trapped between the two.

Once most of the dirty water has been squeezed out, rest the buckets on their side, remove the one with the holes, refill the intact one, and start the whole process over. Repeat at least twice using detergent and two more times using cold, clean water to rinse. Hang to dry.

For a balanced workout, switch hands during agitating. From start to finish, the entire process takes roughly 20 minutes.

americanifesto / JPR / whorphan / 場黑麥