April 19th is (Inter)national HANGING OUT DAY
The forecast isn’t for sunny today, but it’s (way!!) above zero – 15C, 60F – so I’m hanging out at least one load of laundry on the line.
Today is National Hanging Out Day, an initiative of Project Laundry List to promote cheap, low-tech, and easy to install solar clothes dryers – that is, hanging out laundry to dry.
As I’ve discussed on this blog before, in urban & suburban areas, clotheslines can be considered eyesores and are often banned.
In many rural areas, though, hanging clothes is regarded as an art form of sorts. At the very least, it’s just the way things are done: it saves energy (and therefore money) and the clothes smell terrific and last longer.
Clotheslines are definitely part of country living. Whether you participate or not, chances are you’ll be looking at your neighbours’ lines.
Postscript: According to Project Laundry List, the average American uses more energy running a clothes dryer than the average African uses in a year for all her energy needs. Is this fair to the planet?! Yikes, don’t get me started on The Story of Stuff.
I normally hang clothes out all spring, summer and fall. Last year I couldn’t because of my health. Today I would be out at my clothesline with the sheets and towels but the wind is blowing so hard, I would probably find them two miles down the road later. Can’t wait to have sheets smelling of fresh air.
It’s just such a wonderful smell, Barbara, and it can’t be duplicated.
I know what you mean about the wind: I hung out some sheets on a very windy day last week and they tangled so badly we couldn’t pull the line in – had to get a stepladder and a pole. It was the first time using a replacement line and I think it hadn’t been pulled taut enough to begin with.