I have two Californians staying at my house. I say, "I am not going to tell anyone how to do their laundry, but in warm weather I hang all my clothes out on the line."
Their interpretation: "Welcome to Montana, a backward place peopled with the ignorant. In addition to hanging your laundry on the line, I expect you to haul all your water from the creek and cook your meals over a campfire."
What is so outrageous about hanging clothes on the line for Pete's sake? In hot weather the clothes dry faster than the dryer. I think the clothes are cleaner since the ultra-violet rays kill bacteria and viruses. Also, whites are whiter and the clothes smell wonderful. My friend from Audubon assures me a dryer is one of the biggest energy hogs in the house, so drying on the line should result in considerable monetary and energy savings. And who wouldn't want to spend time outside in beautiful weather hanging out freshly laundered clothes and linens?
Since many Americans from big cities seem to hold all things European in adoration, maybe I should mention that many, if not most, Europeans dry their clothes in a similar manner. Perhaps I'm just an ignorant hick, but the sophisticates fascination with Europe is lost on me. Genealogical research reveals that my ancestors started fleeing Europe in 1607. A circumstance for which my forefathers have earned my eternal gratitude.
After I ventured mentioning the clothes line as a laundry-drying method, I had the misfortune to hear from a newly married young lady who has just moved here from Maryland/Washington D.C. She is still reeling from the terrible shock of moving so far away from her city home. She has described her consternation publicly a number of times in testimony meetings and other gatherings. I gather moving to Montana was comparable to moving to a cave in Tibet or a hut on the Andean Plateau. In RS today she informed us all how surprised she was to find normal people and mammals other than cows living here.
I am considering discussing my visit to Washington D.C. with this young one. Following her notion of polite remarks to make residents of our area, I thought I would begin with: "When I planned my trip to D.C., I was sure the entire city was comprised of drug dealers, prostitutes, corrupt politicians, and gangs. I was so surprised to find that normal people lived there." No doubt D.C. dwellers would be delighted to hear such observations from someone who had just moved to their city.
Yes there are some ignorant people around, but when it comes to good manners most Montanans could profitably instruct these particular city folks.
4 comments:
In high school some friends said the teenagers from washington DC believed that montanans rode pigs to school! :)
A sad commentary on the DC educational system.
I hear it is one of the worst in the nation. Are we as a people so uneducated that we'd actually believe Montana only had cows and wacko's living there? Crazy!
I believe the D.C. education system is highlighted in Waiting for Superman a documentary on public school in inner city areas. And Japanese always line dry their clothes, at least in the part that I lived. We'd wave at each other at 10 AM every morning while the neighborhood dried their clothes.
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