"Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands........" 1 Thessalonians 4:11

Monday, May 2, 2011

Are clotheslines just a memory for you??

Did you know.............




1. You had to wash the clothes line before hanging any clothes.
Walk the length of each line with a damp cloth around the line.
2. You had to hang the clothes in a certain order and always hang whites with whites and hang them first.
3. You never hung a shirt by the shoulders, always by the tail



A clothesline was a news forecast
To neighbors passing by.
There were no secrets you could keep
When clothes were hung to dry.

It also was a friendly link
For neighbors always knew
If company had stopped on by
To spend a night or two.

For then you'd see the fancy sheets
And towels upon the line;
You'd see the company table cloths
With intricate design.

The line announced a baby's birth
To folks who lived inside
As brand new infant clothes were hung
So carefully with pride.

The ages of the children could
So readily be known
By watching how the sizes changed
You'd know how much they'd grown.


It also told when illness struck,
As extra sheets were hung;
Then nightclothes, and a bathrobe, too,
Haphazardly were strung.

It said, "Gone on vacation now"
When lines hung limp and bare.
It told, "We're back!" when full lines sagged
With not an inch to spare.

New folks in town were scorned upon
If wash was dingy gray,
As neighbors raised their brows,
And looked the other way..

But clotheslines now are of the past
For dryers make work less.
Now what goes on inside a home
Is anybody's guess.

I really miss that way of life.
It was a friendly sign
When neighbors knew each other best
By what hung out on the line!
by Marilyn K. Walker

19 comments:

Debbie said...

That is absolutely precious! Sooo funny and true. A report on your personal life all on the clothesline. :D I wish I had a place to put one up; I'd at least save money drying my sheets and towels! Sometimes when I'm taking a walk in the evenings I can smell a particularly pleasant smell of someone's fabric softener escaping from their laundry room vent.:D

Gingerbreadshouse7 said...

I love that poem! I remember those days and I wish I had them again There is nothing like a clothes line to get the fresh air smell...and what about saving energy too.. HOA's suck!

grammy said...

I grew up with a clothes line...
can't say I miss bringing in the frozen garments in winter (o:
we don't sit outside much anymore and the kids don't play out in the street. You don't hear a mother call her children home at dusk either...man...I am homesick.

Michaele said...

I love clothes lines - but in the country. I have a neighbor at our house in town who hangs out her underwear all in a line to flap in the breeze. I can't imagine myself doing that in town.

Paula said...

That was wonderful, Kathleen.. especially the part about an illness or being gone on vacation then announcing "we're back! with not an inch to spare."
Too cute!

aprilmecheelesdulllife said...

Thanks Kathleen. I seen some clothes hanging on a line just the other day. I remember the clothes hanging out to dry. I am with granny, I remember bringing in stiff cold clothes in the winter time. On the clothes line the other day were panties!!! I just laughed when I drove by... Must have been over 2 weeks worth... lol
Thanks for bring back good memories!!

nancy huggins said...

Love that and how true..We still hang our wash out but I told Billy that no way did I want my undergarments hung on the line..that would be when someone would stop to visit. I do have one of the wooden racks that fold down and can just put it in the tub and pull the shower curtain until they are dry :)
Fresh air smells good on most things but I really don't mind if my undergarments don't smell like fresh air

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Grenville and I have never used a clothesline to dry our clothes. Growing up my mother did hang the laundry out to dry. She didn't use a dryer until we bought her one 2 years ago on her birthday.

Anonymous said...

good one

i remember hanging the clothes out.

now i keep some wooden pins in my kitchen to close packages and hold papers together, etc.

the folks in new zealand still hang their clothes out to dry. the weather is good for that there.

my mother also had lines in the basement.

DayPhoto said...

I dry my clothes on line...except in the rain or below zero weather.

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

Mel said...

Yes, Indeed brings back many memories...
How ironic, I just purchased three 4x4x10 poles to erect one of my own.

Great poem, justifies the cause for a clothesline... now where can I put mine.

<>< Blessings,
Mel

Vickie said...

I love clotheslines. I want one when I get moved. Even if it's just for sheets and towels... sigh...
Such a cute poem! Thanks for sharing that with us!

Haddock said...

Some of the points I still follow.
I wonder what is the reason for that white with white.

Mini said...

Loved this post! Thankfully it is not just a memory, I still put out my clothes to dry on a clothesline.

Unknown said...

I enjoyed your post. Hubby actually put up hooks today for my future clothesline, seriously he did!

Stickhorsecowgirls said...

I've been begging my hubby for a clothesline for over thirty years! "C" and I grew up playing at our mothers' feet in our adjoining backyards as they hung out the daily wash! This is such a wonderful memory and it's sparked a future post about something that happened! Thanks for posting--

Nancy M. said...

Cute poem! I haven't hung clothes on a line since I was a child, but I do hang clothes up inside to dry on a rack. I'm always scared of fire ants getting on my clothes outside.

peggy said...

I wish I had some old pictures, little did we know back then what memories we were making. Loved your post.

Jody Blue said...

Very cute! I hang our clothes out, except for the unmentionables(I don't want the neighbors to see:)I figure the wind is free!