View Full Version : Simple living practices and withdraw related to.
It's back again, I go through it every year, same time every year, around this time (fall), I'm talking withdraw. (Withdraw related to the end of the clothesline drying season).
It begins with a subtle build-up, one that starts off slowly, then builds to a crescendo. At first it's a countdown of sorts, where I remind myself that outdoor clothesline is reaching it's end and soon, I'll be relying on the electric tumble dryer once again.
With each washing I pin-up or take down off the line I think to myself, "only one more week or two of outdoor drying left". It's a bitter-sweet affair with me. One that never fails to pull at my frugal strings. On one hand I think, "thank goodness the heat is done", but on the other I think, "ugh, the cold and wet, and the long dark miserable days".
I cherish our true Canadian seasons (all four of them), but somehow (each year) I find myself revisiting this yearly withdraw syndrome related to giving up one of my favourite simple living pastimes/practices, clothesline drying.
How about you? For those of you who live in a region where seasonal changes take place and colder temperatures set in, do you find yourself missing the joys of clothesline drying? Of course withdraw related to simple living practices doesn't only apply to clothesline drying, but for me, clothesline drying is it.
frugal-one
10-28-11, 6:06pm
More than clothesline drying I miss daylight. I hate that it gets dark so soon in the evening. I find I am sleeping longer in the morning too. It is now a little after 5 pm and it is starting to get dark!
I don't really miss the clothesline, gardening, or other summer activities... fall and the holiday season is busy, and I am focusing on other things (and also sleeping a little more every day). I appreciate the bonus time I save. I also enjoy completing indoor projects during the winter, which I never have time for in the 9 warm/warmish months. But when spring arrives, I am really ready to get outside, hang laundry, dig in the garden!
domestic goddess
10-28-11, 6:33pm
I don't line dry outside, so that is not any kind of trigger for me. But now I am going to work in the dark, and leaving in the dark. I feel like I hardly ever see the light of day! But things will get a bit better with the time change.
That said, I really like the cool weather for a variety of reasons. It is cool enough to have the oven on to bake, and cook comfort foods. Inside projects can finally get done, the evenings are great for sitting and doing crochet. Love having hot chocolate, tea, hot spiced cider, and all those other cold weather favorites! Beef stew, hot soups, etc., are so warming.
OTOH, I am cold most of the time, and sometimes find it hard to get warmed up. I did get an electric mattress pad, and that has helped, and tonight am going to look for a small room heater. I would like to find some kind of battery operated warming suit to wear at work, as I am always so cold there. Still, in the winter you can add more clothing or blankets; in the summer you get to a point where you just can't take any more off!
i withdraw from the line drying to hanging clothes on racks near the airtight woodstove so the same amount of work really.
I do withdraw from the madness of spring summer and fall to a near hibernation from Nov 1-Mar 1 each year and knit/sew, listen to music and read. I was so upset this past spring when I had to go back into the world of being busy.
I withdraw to eating out of the freezer and pantry filled during the growing season.
I live where it's cold but not particularly wet. If I'm on my A game, I can line dry clothes in the winter as long as I don't mind cold fingers when hanging them out or that it takes 2 days to dry a pair of jeans. A few years back my dryer broke down in January so I line dried.
The clothes still smell nice even when dried in the winter.
Mrs. M, maybe you could still hang a few sheets and towels and things just to give yourself the joy of the experience.
Frugal-one. I here you. OK, this may sound strange, but here goes. As far as dark mornings and short days (dark setting in early in the late afternoon), I actually quite like the winter months. I find it incredibly relaxing, but when the actual days are dark and gloomy, that tends to cast a pall over me. For the past coupe of years now I've really been affected by our long winters. By January (most years) I'm ready for spring, yet for us, winter is only half way in.
Rosemary. I too enjoy the slower paced winter season. I tend to long for the arrival of fall (towards the end of summer), so I can tear apart a closet or organize a room. I simply do not get the chance to do that over the course of summer. Everything seems so hustle- bustle, and the heat! Gosh I hate the heat. But somehow the wind-down process that occurs during the lead-up to the winter season has a somber effect on me.
Domestic Goddess. I'm just like you, in the way I cherish all the home-front attractions synonymous with winter. As you say, piping hot drinks by the numbers, wholesome belly-warming meals/foods, and just time to catch ones breath and relax a little. It truly is a time to put ones feet up and take a much needed rest.
Razz. It's funny, but over the past several weeks I have been eying up my wooden drying rack with the thought of, "soon, real soon"... Ever notice the strange peculiarity between rest in us human kind, and rest in the material world? The parallelism? I'm referring to everyday common things, objects. For instance, throughout the warmer months of the year my wooden drying rack sits vacant (empty), as if taking a rest (just like we do), then over the course of winter my clothesline sits vacant and empty.
Anne Lee. Oh, I'll bet washables smell heavenly dried outside in the cold of winter! I've always wanted try that. (Maybe this year). Although I'm not crazy over the prospect of lengthy drying times and things freezing, there's still a pleasant appeal about it that tantalizes my senses. Would make for such a great topic come December/January!
domestic goddess
10-29-11, 2:32am
My mother has told me many times about how she line-dried my diapers and, though they were stiff as a board when she first took them off the line, once she brought them inside and they warmed up a bit they were amazingly soft. I was never even tempted to try that when I lived in Chicago and dd was a baby, and I haven't even seen an outdoor clothesline since I've been in the 'burbs, so I'm not even sure such a thing is allowed here. I'm still not really tempted to try, though I line dried for years in the basement, using vinegar as fabric softener. DD uses one of those Bounce drier bars, so I am using fabric softener in a way, but at least it doesn't add so much scent to the clothes. If we can get a fence built next spring, I might put some clothes out, and the nosy neighbors won't know!
I use indoor lines or the dryer, so there's no withdrawl associated with them. Gardening is my trigger. I LOVE autumn. 'Thank God gardening is over, I need a break' vs 'that's the last tomato? Oh noooo'.
When the summer chores are over, the winter chores begin (firewood). I love that first fire in the woodburner. By Jan or Feb, I hate messing with firewood and I'm ready to garden again.
Domestic Goddess. I'm so grateful for living where we do (established residential area). No absurd rules... Tell you a funny story, every spring, when the flowers start blossoming and the birds start singing, I look for clotheslines in passing. I never tire of it. The sheer old-fashionedness of it and the homey look of an outdoor clothesline is my weakness. So warm and inviting and established looking. But most of I enjoy the relaxation I get out of pinning things up to dry! That, and the look!!! So nostalgic.
Marianne. Isn't it funny how each season brings reprieve and a sense of escape. With the end of summer I think, "whew, no more heat, no more sweating, no more gardening and lawn-cutting, no more watering", and by the end of winter I think, "finally, I get to start gardening again"! I thrive in a four seasons environment, even though I do go through pangs related to such.
I love line drying too Mrs-M! I thought I was the only one who too so much pleasure in such a small thing. And yes, I have been counting down the days left for line drying, though we have been really lucky and have a lot of indian summer days. I dry on a rack near a radiator in the winter, but it isn't the same. I go into hibernation mode this time of year and make certain I have a stack of good books and music to get me through the long dark days - sort of like Frederick the Mouse. :)
Acorn. You're in good company with me! :) The most simple and frugal of things pleasure me to the nth! Giddy pleasure!!! You're right about wooden drying racks not being the same. I cherish the squeaky pulley wheel on my outdoor line when I draw and cast line out. It's not obnoxious in the way of loudness, just subtle enough to remind one of the nostalgic practice of line-drying goodness. (One of many countless sounds related to simplicity/frugality).
And the sound of sheets on the line snapping in the gusty wind. :)
iris lily
10-30-11, 7:48am
And the sound of sheets on the line snapping in the gusty wind. :)
oh yes! I remember that from childhood from my mom's clothes line.
Oh yes, Acorn! Hearing sheets and things snap and pop! Or when a gust rolls the washing from one end to the another like a wave! I never tire of sitting out back on a summer day and watching the patterns and movements the laundry makes as it gets tugged and pulled back and forth, side to side. Like snowflakes, no two patterns are exactly alike or repeated.
Iris Lily. Do you have an outdoor clothesline?
Well, my spring garden did great, summer garden flopped miserably due to unseasonable rain...brought disease. Being that my spring garden did so well I thought I'd try, for the first time, a fall/winter small garden plot. I found a good source of high quality square straw bales and bought some, used the hoops and seeded lettuce, beets, and swiss chard into a few garden boxes.
I may try and hang laundry til winter storms set in. We'll see. I do so love the smell. I like to add a few drops of various essential oils into the rinse cycle and get different smells.
I like having more sunshine in my house as the angle is lower in the sky. Still trying to figure how to capitalize on that free and beautiful energy without much investment!
Blessings,
prairiebird
Sad Eyed Lady
10-30-11, 3:34pm
I am a line-dryer too, and in the winter time I use a folding rack in the bathroom to do most of my drying. If I can hang things out at all in the winter, then I do. If it is a sunny day, they will dry even if it is cold. Like someone else noted here, you just have to put up with the cold fingers! Also, Mrs-M, as you may recall, I got a retractable line this summer and have it on my deck, so I hope to use it for small things that will dry rather quickly this winter. Today I have a full rack drying in the bathroom and smaller items like underwear and socks on my deck on the retractable line. I manage okay with this, but just the thought of winter and the cold dreary days, not to mention ice & snow, makes me dread the season every year. We just got back from Las Vegas on vacation, and while we were there last week I spent time each day sitting by the pool in the sunshine soaking it up against the colder days coming. I totally loved that dry desert climate.
domestic goddess
10-30-11, 4:39pm
I think it is time to go and make a big mug of hot chocolate. It is a windy, gusty day outside, and I got a call this morning that my aunt died, and have had little energy today. Our washer has died, and we are currently without, and I haven't been able to muster the energy to go to the laundromat. DD very kindly offered to wash uniforms for me, as I have to work tonight and didn't have a clean one to wear. Since they don't really get dirty, I think I will hand wash them and hang to dry. I think we could do with a bit of humidity in here.
Mrsflib. I like your idea Re: adding a hint of essential oils to the rinse! Note to self, must try that.
Shalom. Oh, your vacation sounds so inviting! One of these years... P.S. Please let me know how the retractable clothesline works SP. As the completion date of my laundry room rounds it's last phase and corner, I'm looking at putting a retractable in.
Domestic Goddess. I'm sorry to hear of your loss. Sending a warm hug and well wish your way.
Gardenarian
10-31-11, 4:35pm
Mrs M -
We Pagans love creating rituals, and especially rituals around seasonal changes! I think taking down the clothesline would be a great starting point. You could wipe down the line and put it in a special bag or box, along with your clean clothespins. Then I would light a candle and think of all the memories that you had over the summer - not just the pleasure of hanging out fresh, clean clothes, but all the great times you had since you put the clothesline up in the spring.
Halloween marks the end of the year in the Pagan solar calendar, so this would be doubly symbolic to me.
You could have another ritual when you put it up again - cleaning out the dryer, hanging up a load, and having a picnic under it (when I was a kid, we often ate lunch under the clothesline. It smelled so good and was nice and cool under the shady damp sheets.) Both Easter (Ostara) and May Day (Beltane) are important holidays in the solar calendar as well.
Eh, I know this might sound sort of nutty, but what the heck.
I love your style, Gardenarian! (Not nutty at all)!!! :) As a kid I remember one of my aunts had a clothesline that was about 100' off the ground. It started from a small wooden deck (right against the house) and extended way out into the backyard which was a ravine.
For us, we move when it gets too cold. That is what snowbirds w/ RVs do!
However I am also a seasonal Park Ranger so we usually go when the summer season ends ~ end of Sept. But this year we worked for an extra month, and almost did not get out in time. We are headed to Boulder City, NV and Lake Mead NRA for the winter. Although it might be cool there, we have never gotten snow.
So lucky you are, Ljevtich! I envy all you guys (so much) who get to enjoy such lifestyles!!! Makes me so jealous. :) P.S. Enjoy your time away.
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