First, let me explain that I am not intending to whine here. But, honestly, many of my daily chores are much harder to do in Honduras, than they are in the states. Many. And they are much harder.
I have to admit, though, that my life was more difficult when we lived on the island of Guanaja than it is here in Gracias. However, since I didn't have a blog back then, you didn't get to hear about my having to pasteurize my own milk, or living without a dryer in the rainy season, or moving all of our worldly goods from one house to another using a wheelbarrow for transportation, or traveling at night on boats with no lights . . . hmmm, suddenly my life here sounds remarkably easy.
But, still, there are tasks which are more difficult than they should be.
Today, I want to introduce you to my laundry. Honestly, just about any mom with six kids is going to find it a big job to keep up with the laundry. But it doesn't help that it currently takes approximately 2 hours for my washing machine to fill with water. That's just for the wash cycle. Another two hours for the rinse cycle. Sigh. The water line to the washer consistently has the lowest water pressure of anywhere in our house and yard.
If I want to wash with hot water (which I do want to do, when I am washing my dish towels) I have to run a hose from the backyard hot water spigot (at my request, my sweet husband installed a spigot at the back of the house, on the line next to the hot water heater) to the washing machine. The hose isn't quite long enough, so I have to stand a few feet from the washer, holding the hose up in the air so that the water arcs gracefully into the machine. Once the machine is full of hot water, I immediately turn off the hot water spigot and return the hose to it's normal location. I'd hate for someone to water the plants with hot water!
The upside to washing with hot water is that the machine fills much faster. I don't think I'd be able to hold that hose up for two hours!
6 comments:
Have you considered filling the washer with a bucket instead of waiting 2 hours? That's what my husband's cousin does because the water pressure won't reach the height of the washer ever (they can't use their shower either).
sounds like fun. Not. I dont want to even imagine my laundry pile in Honduras. My husband keeps talking about we have a washing machine called a pila, and a dryer called wire strung out back. He thinks its funny to tell me that. But with the money of selling my washer and dryer here, I will buy a new washer and dryer there. And while I will use the pila, I can't do it all the time thanks to my arthritis. Finally something good from having arthritis in my hands, LOL. An excuse to not have to wash the clothes by hand, LOL.
He has been dealing with mold on his clothes during all the rain he has gotten, and why he thinks adding 8 more peoples clothes to that will make the clothes dry totally is beyond me. The dryer will be used come rainy season.
~Jennifer
Hi Jac. We have used the bucket system, when we are in a hurry (we have a nearby water supply, if we keep the pila filled), but we try not to do this regularly. This is because the water line to the washer has a filter on it, and we really want to use the filtered water. The city water system has so many "floaties" that the washer gets all clogged up if we don't filter the water. We don't filter it to be safe enough for drinking, just enough to get out the leaves and sticks. We don't clean the filter as often as we should, which doesn't help the water pressure situation, but the water pressure is so low, even without the filter, that it doesn't seem to make much difference when the filter is freshly cleaned.
Jennifer, if I tried to imagine your laundry pile, even in the US, I think I would get nightmares. I'm thrilled to be at a point in life where many of my kids are doing their own laundry. I try not to remember those days when the number of hands which only made messes so outnumbered the number of hands that cleaned up messes!
Tell your hubby pfffffbbbbbbt from me, okay? ;-D
make you thankful for what had in the USA, have a great day
the frozen New Englanders
Give the kids a hug from us
Hey Trish
Laundry is no fun no matter where you live. I have always been a little overwhelmed by the daily chores here in the States so I can't imagine I'd be much good in Honduras. One thing that has helped me immensely is to attach prayer to my "worst" chores. I especially try to pray for people whose clothes I am washing as I sort, and wash and fold.
Love Beth
I saw some people pouring water on their drying clothes on a line once. That completely confused me. Why pour water on dried clothes? So that it can dry again?
We just changed our water filters and it really did make a huge difference in the water pressure. But we also have newer water lines, etc. We do not have a hot water heater though. So all the, diapers, towels and dish towels are bleached then hung to dry in the sun all day. Hated having to deal with laundry when it was cool, humid and cloudy for a week straight during the rainy season. We had lines hung in the bedrooms with fans blowing on them. Oh yea...we don't have a dryer either.
Our neighbors fill their washer up from a line they rigged up using plastic tubing from the pila spout to the washer. Why they don't get a hose, I don't know. So I often see my neighbor out there holding the tubes waiting for the washer to fill.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that you aren't alone in your laundry woes.
And Jennifer - my husband's aunt and uncle had 6 kids. They had a full time laundress who washed everyone's clothes by hand all day long. What a horrible job.
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