March 30, 2006

Play to Your Strengths

My workload Tuesday was light, a typical end of the month Tuesday. I ran some errands, visited a jobsite to pick up paperwork, and headed home to hang out with the dogs.

Because we've been travelling so much on the weekends, it was nice to just be around the house. It was a warmish sunny day. I did some outdoor cleanup with the chainsaw and would have done more, but I ran out of gas. Literally. Energy I had, but the chainsaw does not run on energy alone. It demands liquid nourishment. Going to the gas station to get more seemed like too much trouble, so I cleaned up what I had accomplished and stashed the saw for another day.

Inside, I turned on the stereo and popped Avril Lavigne into the CD player. (What does it say about me that I really enjoy her song "Sk8er Boi"? I am such a dork.) I bopped around the kitchen doing a little of this, a little of that and a bit of the other. With the quiches in the oven, I spied the pile of dirty, very dirty, clothes on our bedroom floor from when I had unpacked the day before. "Ah ha!" I thought. "I'll surprise Wendy and do that laundry. But first I'll wash our sheets and comforter."

Most of you know I am not in charge of laundry at our house. There is a reason for that. But I did laundry for years before I lucked into my dear Wendy, the Laundry Queen. I know how to do it. Step one is, of course, sorting. I ended up with five loads: sheets, comforter, jeans and sweatshirts, other colored things, and whites.

The sheets were in the dryer when Wendy arrived home. Doggedly, I continued the cycles despite her protests that I should just leave it for her. I was determined to finish what I had started. But by the time I took load three out of the dryer and filled it up with load four, I'd about had it. I left the whites in a pile by the laundry room door, folded the clean jeans and abandoned the clothes currently in the dryer.

And that, my friends, is one reason I'm not in charge of laundry at Casa de Lesbiana Suburbanas. I rarely finish the job.

When Wendy came home last night, she headed to the laundry room. "Suzanne?" I heard her call up the stairs, "What's with the sticky stuff smeared all over the inside of the dryer?" She sounded remarkably calm. I giggled nervously as I headed down to take a look.

Sure enough, sticky splotches liberally dotted the dryer drum. "Looks like you may have left a piece of gum in a pocket," she opined.

Reason two I am not in charge of laundry. I forget to check pockets. We laughed together as I scrubbed out the mess.

After I finished, Wendy gave me a hug and said, "Honey, we really should stick to playing to our strengths, okay? And laundry just isn't one of yours."

That Wendy. She's a smart one.

.

10 comments:

tiff said...

Does she hire out this skill? My laundry languishes in the dryer until it's a wrinkled mess of a thing, at which point (sometimes) I PUT IT BACK IN THE WASHER to wet it so I can dry it again.

However, I have the most developed set of laundry skillz in my house of boys, so for NOW it's my job.

For now.

Gina said...

Yes, yes, enough of your rubbing it in...

Anyhoo, laundry is far from being my strength, yet I have to do it anyway!

weese said...

I do so like that Wendy.

Geeky Dragon Girl said...

I'm usually the laundry-doer around the house, but I never check pockets either. I know I should, but I never remember. I don't know how many times I've ended up with white particles all over the load because I'd left a tissue in my pocket. I say people should empty their pockets before throwing clothes in the laundry pile!

Melodee said...

But you are a self-described "dork" that makes quiche and that counts for something!

Anonymous said...

I love Wendy.

I mean, I adore you to your very core. You know this.

But I love Wendy.

:-)

Bent Fabric said...

*lol* Glad I'm not the only one who have gum mishaps.

As for laundry, I just throw all the shit together. hehe

KMae said...

I messed up the laundry at the very beginning of our relationship, & my beloved does it all now! Also, I made her sick with the 1st omlet I made her (24 years ago) I mean REALLY sick, she had to go to the hospital. It's amazing she stayed with me, but she is DEFINATELY the cook. Which is why I'm now trying to loose weight. I am blessed!

Anonymous said...

do laundry??? whats that???

i'm still a firm believer that laundry does it self... how else would all that dirty clothes in my hamper turn into clean clothes to be put away

seeing as i've only used a laundry machine maybe twice in my life, i guess i take for granted the job thats done for me

one more blessing to add to the list

Career Guy said...

I remember crayons in the dryer. They gaily spot everything in there until you can figure out what happened. It's an awful job to clean that crud off the drum.