Today, I had to do laundry. Generally, I confess, I tend to toss my clothes in the dryer, but frankly our building's dryer kind of sucks, and every time I put my laundry in it, I end up kicking myself for wasting energy when my clothes aren't even getting dry. So, this evening, I decided, No More!
Which left me with a slight problem. You see, I don't own a drying rack. And I couldn't run out and buy one.
So ... I thought to myself, What Would MacGyver Do?
And I came up with this:
For those of you wondering what exactly that is, it's the base of my papasan which I have temporarily converted into a drying rack. (It'll resume it's operations as a chair tomorrow.)
It's not perfect, but it'll get the job done. And anyway, whatever MacGyver would have done, you can bet that he wouldn't have just driven to the Target.
7 comments:
Brilliant! I did that for a year in our tiny 1 bedroom apt as well. You know it really has a cooling effect when the weather is hot.
BTW, is carpooling not popular in L.A? Or do you live far from your co-workers to make is a worthwhile option?
I don't see the duct tape.
Wow, that brings back memories. My undergrad apartment looked like that for 2 whole years! Wire racks that hang over the radiators took up most of the slack, but banisters, chairs etc. were in regular use too.
I bet clothes dry faster in LA than in Newcastle (almost as far North as you can get and still be in England).
Beany, I can't carpool because I work really weird hours and can never be sure when I'm getting off work. It sucks. If I had a job with known hours, I would definitely try to find a carpool buddy.
Jennie, what can I say? Maybe MacGyver would have made a clothesline out of duct tape, but this just seemed more efficient!
Cae, I think it's interesting that everyone in Europe line dries their clothes. It's definitely better for your clothes- the dryer can really ruin them. And of course it's more energy efficient. Is it a cultural thing? Do apartment buildings just have washers with no dryer?
I can only speak for the UK, where most houses have dryers but people with gardens like to line-dry whenever the weather allows!
Most proper grown-up apartments will have washers and dryers, but not the dodgy student places I lived in after leaving my parents' house and before moving to Canada! I lived in one with a washing machine only (the one I described above), or neither (I spent a lot of time in laundromats during those 2 years).
Of course the latter flat didn't have any heating either, there were 1-inch gaps around the windows, and this was in Scotland. You don't know what cold is until you've had to sleep under 2 duvets wearing head-to-toe fleece and a hat!!
Sorry for the diversion... ah, happy days.
Plus you need that many fewer quarters! I know I never had enough quarters when I needed to do laundry. btw, I've had a crush on MacGyver since I was like 7...is it just me or is he really hot? now I need to go turn on the tv and see if any channels show MacGyver re-runs...
Sweet! Yeah, now that it's warmer, my blanket rack is my drying rack since all the blankets can be stuffed away for the season. I supplement that with a short clothesline I made by braiding strips of old t-shirts together. You'd laugh to see it, because shirts hung on it hang about an inch from the basement floor - t-shirt material is super-stretchy! Gets the job done, though.
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