It'll all come back to haunt you

Several months ago, in the process of helping my friend with home renovations, I observed her doing laundry. She is one of those laundresses who soak and spray and fart around with their washers while they are running, stopping to add products, etc. I'm more the throw it in with some detergent and hope for the best, but I have several friends with a laundry obsession--the types who will not let me touch their machines or their clothing. One of them absolutely refused to allow me to wash her child's clothes when I kept her for a week! Apparently, laundry isn't considered one of my fortes.

My friend got a new set of machines almost a year ago, and the washer is a deep one. So deep that my short friend is unable to touch the bottom of her washing machine. To deal with this situation, she bought some grilling tongs, the kind with the long, long handle, and she uses it to pick up the items of clothing she can't reach. I found it hilarious. I mean, ingenious, but funny. I thought a stool would work too, but her room is narrow and houses a multitude of cleaning items, and it would just get in the way. Thus the tongs.

During the renovations, my own washing machine went on the fritz, and I was forced to turn my laundry over to my friend or go to a laundry mat. I chose my friend.

Who did a remarkable job every other day of cleaning our clothes until my husband gave up and purchased a new washing machine.

You can imagine what's coming, can't you?

The new machine is exactly like my friend's machine in that it is deep. I mean, pool diving board depth. It's great for a family of six like my cousin Jaimee but for empty-nesters? I only do my laundry every two days or so, and that's if I want to divide the loads into whites and colors. Which I do in deference to my Laundry Tyrant friends.

The thing is I can not reach the bottom of the machine when there are small items such as socks. I have to get up on my tippy toes and stretch far into the barrel. My big belly butts against the side and depending on the stretch can get knicked against the opening. It's, well, I was going to say a stretch, but... 

What did the makers of washing machines think making these suckers so deep? I mean, did no one consider this problem? Nothing came up trying out the prototype? 

I finally gave up the other day and got the tongs--not the grilling tongs since I'm taller, but regular tongs. Then in curiosity, I researched this problem on the Internet and found that yes, people, especially short people, are having trouble. 

Consumer Reports had an article explaining deeper washers as a way for us to boost capacity. I mean, who wants to spend all day washing load after a load of laundry? The same article suggested a deep diving technique to retrieve the laundry at the bottom or, if preferred, the use of tongs. So much for my friend as the inventor of that little device.

Oh, and of course, someone did invent it. Ah, first world problems.

SueG: "Not so funny now, is it? Guess what you're getting for your birthday?"