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Laundry Day Memories

March 9, 2012, Friday, Day 9 ~ 30-Day Blogging Challenge prompt is HOW WAS YOUR DAY? WHAT HAPPENED?

I washed a basket of laundry this morning, which brought back memories of my childhood and the first time I helped Grandma with “the wash” as she referred to doing dirty laundry. My Grandmother had an electric washing machine, but it was not like the automatic washer we have today. Grandma’s machine had a agitator and only washed clothes. In order to rinse the soap out of the clothes, she had to use large aluminum washtubs.

I remember helping Grandma with “the washing”. Hot water filled the electric washing machine and during this time, she added the laundry detergent. Then she put the clothes in and then turned the machine on. After the clothes finished washing (I do not remember how it was determined if they were clean) and the machine stopped, Grandma put the clothes through the rinse.

Grandma took the wet clothes from the washer, put them in the wringer and turned its handle to squeeze the water out of the clothes before putting them into the first rinse in one of the washtubs. After the first rinse, Grandma put the clothes through the wringer a second time and then into the second rinse. Before putting the clothes into the second washtub, she would add some bluing to the water to make the clothes whiter and brighter.

My greatest joy occurred when Grandma let me put the clothes through the wringer. I was still in grade school, so it made me feel like an adult. Grandma stayed right by me as I wrung the clothes out. She warned me not to get my hands caught in the wringer.

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